Notes From The Clinton Global Initiative Discussion On Innovation

Former Vice President Al Gore Wednesday cited the absence of political will as a significant roadblock to fighting climate change, noting that while business leaders and citizens are willing to confront the issue, politicians are not.

“We do not have that much time,” Gore said during a discussion held by the Clinton Global Initiative on innovation. “We have to put a price on carbon directly or indirectly.”

Gore, who has attended thirty summits since penning “An Inconvenient Truth,” explained that Americans are currently releasing ninety million tons of carbon into atmosphere without acknowledging the impact.

The Vice President touched upon the upcoming climate change conference in Copenhagen, stating that it was very important for the U.S. to secure a deal, even if it isn’t initially perfect.

Securing this deal will be the responsibility of President Barack Obama, who Gore contends needs to aggressively urge the Senate to unite behind combatting climate change.

Gore warned that if unchecked, climate change will present a growing threat, claiming that food production can be slashed by half in some African countries coupled with decreased soil fertility.

In closing, Gore called upon the international community to embrace sustainable capitalism.

The Vice President was joined by a number of leading environmental experts.

Muhammad Yunus, Founder of the Grameen Bank, stressed the importance of spreading businesses that work for a concrete social objective. Yunus mentioned that there is already some progress being made by food companies, but suggested that social businesses should tackle medical problems plaguing countries like the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.

Jack Ma of the Alibaba Group discussed innovation in China. According to Ma, the future of Chinese industry lies in privately owned countries, such as the smaller “garage companies” started by his organization. 

 The Rockefeller Foundation’s Judith Rodin explained how innovation on a global level is becoming easier to track. According to Rodin, innovation has as systematic set of processes. Some of these processes such as user innovation and crowd thinking can be applied to social situations. Rodin also suggested collaborative competitions where competitors post their solution.

Rodin called for a business environment where companies can take risks and even fail. She also noted that the foundation is slated to launch an impact-investing network.

Sen. Brown: Climate Bill Will Not Pass Without Manufacturers' Approval

By Leah Valencia
, University of New Mexico – Talk Radio News Service

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) said the American Clean Air and Security Act will not make it through the Senate if harmful economic consequences facing the manufacturing industry are not addressed.

"I don't think there's any way we get to even 50 votes if we don't deal with manufacturing in the climate change bill," Brown told reporters in a conference call organized by Campaign for America's Future. "I do know for sure that there are a number of us who understand that manufacturing is so important to this country that if we don't do manufacturing right, our standard of living will continue to decline."

The American Clean Air And Security Act passed through the House of Representatives late June under the stewardship of Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.). The bill seeks to put a cap on greenhouse emissions and levy a tax on carbon.

According to Brown, the concern facing lawmakers is that new climate control legislation would constrict existing environmental regulations, and thus persuade manufacturers to advance overseas production as a means to lower labor and energy costs.

Brown said it is imperative to have at least a temporary "border equalization" step to prevent American manufacturing jobs from relocating to India and China

"We need some sort of border equalization ... temporary not permanent...until the Chinese and others move in the direction they need to on this issue," Brown said.

The Ohio senator said the President needs to take a more aggressive approach to regain trust from the American public during this week's G-20 summit in Pittsburgh.

"The public has already lost confidence in trade agreements and the way we approach globalization," Brown said.

Kerry Calls For China And U.S. To Speed Up Climate Change Conversation

Travis Martinez. University of New Mexico- Talk Radio News Service

Sen John Kerry (D-Mass.), who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called upon the U.S. and China to escalate their efforts to prevent climate change Tuesday.

"These conversations [about climate change] between the U.S. and China are at a critical stage... they need to speed up. They need to focus," Kerry said during a conference call.

"The U.S. needs to lead, we [the U.S.] have an obligation to lead", Kerry added. However, Kerry stressed that this did not release China from responsibility.

"China needs to understand along with the developing world that we [the U.S.] cannot enter into a global treaty without meaningful commitments", Kerry said.

China and the U.S. lead the world in CO2 emissions.

Efforts are currently being made to secure new climate change agreements among the international community before 192 countries converge in Copenhagen this December.

Lieberman: Climate Change Threatens National Security

By Laura Smith, University of New Mexico - Talk Radio News Service

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) said Tuesday that climate change presents a growing threat to the United States.

“The environmental concerns have merged with two other major American national interests. One is economic. The second coalescence is that climate change is a matter of national security,” Lieberman said during a panel discussion with the Reserve Officers Association in Washington, D.C.

Lieberman, who chairs the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, added that climate change does not threaten the stability of the U.S. alone.

“The Minister of Defense from Bangladesh is planning what they will have to do for the unrest that will occur if global warming is not checked and tides rise,” said Lieberman.

Lieberman noted that legislative changes would need to be enacted to offset the risks, conceding that while there is a resistance to change, the U.S. is making progress.

“This is not easy because of the change involved. And yet as the years have gone by the number of stake holders, including businesses that have come forward and said they want to be part of the change because they see it coming ... has grown.”

Western Caucus GOP’ers Predict “Cap And Tax” Disaster

By Mariko Lamb, Talk Radio News Service

“Cap and Trade is a jobs killer,” Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) said in a bicameral Western Caucus hearing on the impact of Cap and Trade on jobs Thursday. He urged the Obama administration to “get their priorities straight,” and start creating jobs.

Bill Kovacs, Senior Vice President of the Environment, Technology, and Regulatory Division at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said the Waxman-Markey bill will promote regulatory chaos, foster lawsuits, do great harm to the economy, and ultimately not reduce carbon emissions in the atmosphere.

President and CEO of the Black Chamber of Commerce, Harry Alford pointed to a recent study by Charles RIvers Associates which concluded the Waxman-Markey bill will lead to higher energy and transportation costs fir businesses and consumers, a fall in household disposable income and consumption, decline in purchasing power, a fall in wages and returns on investments, net job loss and a decrease in the U.S.’ ability to compete internationally.

"There are two jobs destroyed for every green job created,” Former GOP Rep. Dick Armey (R-TX) argued. “Global warming might be, in fact, one of the most hyped fictions in America today.”

Armey added that the “most treasured umbrella objective in public policy” right now is to “create the illusion of a crisis and then... demonstrate the need for their policies of government growth and income redistribution as a resolution of the crisis." Armey went on to describe global warming as a “high-profile [fiction] designed to serve the political purposes of the majority party.”