Press releases from the coalition

CDP and We Mean Business Unveil Toolkit to Unlock Large-scale Decarbonization

September 24, 2015, New York City: A newly released set of tools from CDP and We Mean Business is aiming to change the conversation about effective carbon pricing policies globally. The Carbon Pricing Pathways Toolkit presents analysis on ways that carbon pricing levels could be ramped up over time to reduce global CO2 emissions, drive innovation in new technologies and transform countries’ energy use.

Carbon pricing is widely agreed among policymakers, business and government leaders to be an essential part of an ambitious policy framework that will drive systemic change on the global economy to achieve large-scale decarbonization. Companies from all over the world have committed to putting a price on carbon through the We Mean Business campaign. However, in many economies this has not yet resulted in effective carbon pricing policies.

The toolkit aims to start a better conversation that focuses on price levels and time frames that would help keep global temperature rise within 2°C, the limit agreed upon by scientists and governments to avoid dangerous climate change.

 “Carbon pricing is one of the key policies which businesses around the world are calling for to help harness the power of markets in tackling climate change,” said Nigel Topping, CEO of We Mean Business. “We need to see much broader adoption of carbon pricing around the world and, crucially, we need to make sure that price levels are sufficiently high to drive investment in our low carbon future. This toolkit will help business leaders explore carbon pricing and steer this crucial global conversation.”

According to the toolkit, the ideal pathway to a low-carbon economy presents a package of complementary climate policies that balance national and international efforts. Central to this pathway is a strong framework for carbon pricing that contains graduated price levels over time, allowing economies to prosper, adapt and innovate as emissions fall.

Other pathways suggest what could happen if there was a failure to achieve such a balance, leading to 3 or 4 degrees Celsius of warming, with varying levels of economic damage and social disruption.

These pathways map out a journey through price levels for different economies to take, from introductory to operational to transformational.  The toolkit offers illustrative price ranges to generate discussions about key questions such as: What level of carbon pricing would drive the switch from coal- to gas-generated electricity?

“We need a conversation about what effective carbon pricing looks like,” said Lance Pierce, President of CDP North America. “This is fundamental for giving investors, businesses and governments a common platform for investing in a cleaner energy future.”

“The latest corporate data on internal carbon pricing, which CDP released this week, shows that a large number of companies are integrating carbon pricing into their business planning, or they expect to. The fact that so many companies are pursuing this individually, with differing results, suggests we need a dialogue to develop an approach that will give the market certainty.”

The Carbon Pricing Pathways Toolkit is an open-source toolkit, which aims at stimulating stakeholders to explore this crucial area of policy. This will be launched at the IETA Carbon Forum North America on September 24.

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About CDP
CDP, formerly Carbon Disclosure Project, is an international, not-for-profit organization providing the only global system for companies and cities to measure, disclose, manage and share vital environmental information.  CDP works with market forces, including 822 institutional investors with assets of US$95 trillion, to motivate companies to disclose their impacts on the environment and natural resources and take action to reduce them.  CDP now holds the largest collection globally of primary climate change, water and forest risk commodities information and puts these insights at the heart of strategic business, investment and policy decisions. Please visit www.cdp.net or follow us @CDP to find out more.

About We Mean Business
We Mean Business is a coalition of organizations working with thousands of the world’s most influential businesses and investors. These businesses recognize that the transition to a low carbon economy is the only way to secure sustainable economic growth and prosperity for all. To accelerate this transition, We Mean Business has formed a common platform to amplify the business voice, catalyze bold climate action by all, and promote smart policy frameworks. We Mean Business coalition partners include BSR, The B Team, CDP, Ceres, The Climate Group, the Prince of Wales Corporate Leaders Group, and the World Business Council on Sustainable Development (WBCSD).

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