Apr 14, 2010 -- STATE DEPARTMENT RELEASE/ContentWorks



Every person willing to do something to address the global problem of climate change can have an impact, the U.S. Department of State's deputy special envoy for climate change said April 7.

Governments -- and businesses that know to take advantage of emerging clean-energy markets -- can also make a difference, said Jonathan Pershing in a Global Conversations climate webchat.

Speaking to participants from across the globe, including university students in Brazil, China, India and the United States, Pershing said switching to a mostly carbon-free society will cost enormously in new infrastructure and technology investments.

By signing the December 2009 Copenhagen Accord, developed nations signaled their intent to spend $100 billion annually by 2020 to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and help developing nations adapt to climate change. Seventy-five nations have signed the agreement so far and submitted emission reduction targets, setting the stage for a legally binding climate agreement perhaps as early as this year. Together, these nations account for 80 percent of the world's energy-related greenhouse gas emissions.

However, the climate change challenge and towering costs also bring opportunities for involvement at every possible level, Pershing said.

"It can be as small of a thing as paying attention to whether the lights are left on, or paying attention to the consumption that you as an individual, and that your family and your community has," he said. "We can reduce the size [of the carbon footprint] no matter where we stand."

Individuals can also reach out to government leaders and academic institutions with an interest in climate change and ultimately push for social change.

"Find out what they're doing, engage with them, contribute your ideas about how you can move something forward. And collectively that will begin to change the policies of government ... and behavior of society, which is what's required," Pershing told the students. "This is a problem that is both local and global, and both sides of that equation have to engage."

The search for cleaner energy is an opportunity for businesses as well, many of which have already taken advantage of new markets for renewable energy and alternative technologies. Going forward, Pershing predicted, such markets will only grow. The current global fleet of wind power generating stations needs to expand 750 times to slash carbon dioxide emissions by one gigaton. In all, seven gigatons of carbon dioxide must be trimmed to reduce emissions by 50 percent by 2050 -- the level required to stabilize the climate.

Another gigaton would be achieved if the world's 1 billion cars were switched to vehicles that get 40 miles per gallon (17 kilometers per liter). Any carmaker looking at options for growth could find huge investment potential developing these vehicles, he said.

"Climate change need not be only a negative," Pershing said. "Managing the impacts clearly is something we have to do, but the shifts in economy, the opportunity for technology, for investment, for global jobs, for development is substantial."

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