Commercial, GHG Emissions, Industrial, Regulation, Commercial, Industrial, Regulation  -  November 17, 2016

300+ businesses urge Trump support of Paris deal

More than 365 U.S. businesses and investors on Nov. 16 joined together in a letter addressed to president-elect Donald Trump and other government leaders reaffirming their support for U.S. participating in the Paris Climate Agreement.

The business group, at a press conference held in Marrakech, Morocco, where global leaders are convened for the 22nd Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, said walking away from the deal would put American prosperity at risk. Trump, who has previously called climate change a hoax, promised during his campaign for the presidency to abandon the agreement, which 197 countries, including the U.S., have already agreed to. 

Signatories include more than a dozen Fortune 500 firms alongside small, family-owned businesses across more than 35 states, including iconic American brands such as Gap Inc., General Mills Inc., Hilton Hotels & Resorts, The Kellogg Company, Nike Inc. and Starbucks.

"We want the U.S. economy to be energy efficient and powered by low-carbon energy. Cost-effective and innovative solutions can help us achieve these objectives," the group wrote in the letter addressed to Trump, President Barack Obama, members of Congress and global leaders in Marrakech. "Failure to build a low-carbon economy puts American prosperity at risk. But the right action now will create jobs and boost U.S. competitiveness."

Secretary of State John Kerry addressed leaders at COP22 on Nov. 16, and sought to ease concerns about the possibility of the U.S. pulling out of the Paris deal. 

"I want to acknowledge that since this COP started, obviously, an election took place in my country," Kerry said, according to the transcript of his speech. "While I can't stand here and speculate about what policies our president-elect will pursue, I will tell you this: In the time that I have spent in public life, one of the things I have learned is that some issues look a little bit different when you’re actually in office compared to when you’re on the campaign trail."

The companies' statement was coordinated by C2ES, Ceres, Environmental Defense Fund, Environmental Entrepreneurs, The B Team, The Climate Group, We Mean Business, and the World Wildlife Fund. 

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