We Mean Business Coalition statement on US withdrawal from the UNFCCC and IPCC
We Mean Business Coalition
The decision by the United States to withdraw from key UN climate institutions, including the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, risks weakening the shared frameworks that underpin effective global climate action. These institutions provide common rules, trusted science and coordination mechanisms that governments, businesses and investors rely on to plan, invest and act with confidence.
For business in particular, these frameworks matter. While companies operate under regulatory requirements set by individual governments, they depend on alignment across geographies to plan and deliver long- term investment. Many businesses manage complex value chains spanning countries and continents and depend on clear and aligned policy across geographies to make long-term investment decisions.
Climate change is a global challenge that no country or market can address alone. Fragmentation of standards and processes increases cost, uncertainty and inefficiency for the real economy, while reducing the collective ability to manage climate risk and scale solutions. Continued engagement in multilateral climate cooperation has historically strengthened economic resilience, innovation and competitiveness.
We hope the United States will in time choose to re-engage with the UN climate system, recognizing that shared institutions remain the most effective way to deliver credible, coordinated and durable progress — and that being at the table is in its own strategic interest in shaping the rules that will govern the global economy.
Climate action will continue, driven by businesses, investors, sub-national actors and governments around the world. We Mean Business Coalition’s network includes more than 20,000 companies globally, including 2,000 in the U.S. We remain committed to working with US businesses to advance the clean energy transition and reduce risk through global collaboration. Experience consistently proves that collaboration is the most effective way to deliver progress, reflecting the reality that companies operate in a deeply interconnected global economy.