Global Roundtable on Climate Change

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Global Roundtable on Climate Change, convened by the Earth Institute ^[1] at Columbia University is a group of representatives from corporations, research institutions, and government organizations to discuss the scientific consensus, economics, technology, and public policy issues associated with climate change. The group first met in 2005 and plans to meet through 2009.^[2]

The Roundtable has five objectives:

Improve global consensus on the science, technology, economics, and policy issues of anthropogenic climate change.
Review technology and policy proposals for mitigating climate change while meeting global energy demand.
Support research and prototypes of technologies and policies that address climate change.
Provide a forum for discussion, analysis, and exchange of ideas from the represented groups.
Support proposals and initiatives generated by the Roundtable's discussions.

Participants in the Roundtable include: ABB, Air France, Alcan, Alcoa, Allianz, American Electric Power, BASF, Bayer, China Renewable Energy Industry Association, Citigroup, Columbia University, Deutsche Telekom, DuPont, Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, Endesa, Environmental Defense, Eskom, Eni, FPL Group, General Electric, Iberdrola, ING Group, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, International Gas Union, Munich Re, National Grid, Rainforest Alliance, Republic of Iceland, Ricoh, Suntech Power, Swiss Re, Vattenfall, Volvo, World Council on Churches, World Petroleum Council, and many others.

The Roundtable is funded by a grant from the Lenfest Foundation. Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute serves as Chair. David L. Downie serves as Director.

On February 20, 2007, the Roundtable launched "The Path to Climate Sustainability: A Joint Statement by the Global Roundtable on Climate Change". The Joint Statement outlines a post-Kyoto framework and has been endorsed by over 100 of the Roundtable participating corporations and organizations. The Statement outlines ways to effect change at the levels of policy and industry, particularly in regards to creating sustainable energy systems necessary for achieving economic growth. The statement is the basis for an ongoing online petition^[3].