It’s Starbucks vs. Inhofe on global climate finance

Companies including Starbucks and Nike say U.S. officials should take the lead in creating a global climate change fund, a move that comes as some Senate Republicans are pressing the State Department to halt climate financing for developing nations.

A corporate coalition that also includes Timberland, eBay, and PepsiCo says in a letter to President Obama that the U.S. should drive creation of the fund at the ongoing United Nations climate talks in Cancun, Mexico, calling it “imperative that the United States reassert its credibility and leadership on climate change and establish a fund at this critical juncture.”

“Climate change effects are global.  So are our markets and supply chains. As outlined in your speech to the United Nations Millennium Development Goals Summit on September 22, 2010, it is in our long-term economic interest to partner with developing countries, which will bolster their efforts to transition from poverty to prosperity through sustainable and equitable economic growth,” states the letter released Friday through the group Oxfam.

“The establishment of an equitable, effective and accountable Global Climate Fund is just such a partnership. The U.S. should work alongside developing countries as they reduce their emissions, save their forests, and respond and adapt effectively to the climate impacts already being felt by companies and communities alike,” it adds.

But the administration faces some GOP pressure against foreign climate aid.

A quartet of Senate Republicans including Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), who is the senior GOP member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, wrote to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Thursday claiming the U.S. should not finance developing nations’ efforts to slow emissions and adapt to climate change.

The senators say that funding pledged at the Copenhagen summit last year should be frozen to help rein in the deficit. Inhofe – along with Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), David Vitter (R-La.) and George Voinovich (R-Ohio) – also say there are doubts about UN forecasts of the effects of climate change on developing nations.

As part of the “Copenhagen Accord” last year, nations jointly pledged almost $30 billion in “fast start” financing to help developing countries curb emissions and adapt to climate change, with an eventual goal of $100 billion annually for developing nations by 2020.

But construction of a fund for delivering on the Copenhagen pledges is among the key issues that diplomats are haggling over in Cancun, according to dispatches from Agence France-Presse and other news outlets.

Oxfam also released a letter to Clinton from retired military generals that says climate change is a national security issue and calls for U.S. financing to “enhance climate preparedness in developing countries in order to address the serious security implications for the United States from the impacts of climate change.”

Here are the letters from the companies and retired military brass:

Dear Mr. President:
 
As companies employing many thousands of Americans across a range of economic sectors, we are writing to urge you to lead in the effort to establish a Global Climate Fund under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at the 16th Conference of the Parties in Cancun, Mexico.  It is imperative that the United States reassert its credibility and leadership on climate change and establish a fund at this critical juncture.
 
Climate change effects are global.  So are our markets and supply chains.  As outlined in your speech to the United Nations Millennium Development Goals Summit on September 22, 2010, it is in our long-term economic interest to partner with developing countries, which will bolster their efforts to transition from poverty to prosperity through sustainable and equitable economic growth.
 
The establishment of an equitable, effective and accountable Global Climate Fund is just such a partnership.  The U.S. should work alongside developing countries as they reduce their emissions, save their forests, and respond and adapt effectively to the climate impacts already being felt by companies and communities alike. 
 
Furthermore, effective climate finance abroad will contribute significantly to equitable economic growth at home.  It will create employment opportunities, generate demand globally for U.S. technologies and services, and facilitate innovation in multiple sectors.
 
An effective climate change policy is also critical our national and global security.  Substantial climate impacts contribute to political and social instability.  Without immediate and effective action, they will lead to greater poverty and increased conflict, creating uncertainty for trade and investment flows. 
 
It is imperative that the United States lead in the creation of a Global Climate Fund, and the time to act is now.  As the impacts of climate change continue to grow around the world, we must ensure that a fair, effective, and accountable fund is established so that nations are able to reduce their emissions and adapt in a sustainable way that has the confidence of all countries.
 
Mr. President, thank you in advance for your leadership on this issue.  Our organizations will stand behind you on this effort and welcome your efforts to fight climate change.
 
Sincerely,
 
Aspen Skiing Company
eBay Inc.
Gap Inc.
Jones Lang LaSalle
Levi Strauss & Co.
Nike, Inc.
Pentair
PepsiCo, Inc.
Seventh Generation
Starbucks Coffee Company
Swiss Re
Symantec
Timberland
 

Dear Secretary Clinton,
 
We write to urge your support of programs and financing by the United States to enhance climate preparedness in developing countries in order to address the serious security implications for the United States from the impacts of climate change.  
 
The 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) warns that the effects of climate change such as droughts, floods, disease among others could further weaken fragile governments around the world.  The QDR also states that increasingly severe weather events can spark or exacerbate mass migration, poverty, and conflict.  Without forceful and decisive action, conflicts are likely to erupt as competition over dwindling resources heightens – potentially resulting in political unrest where terrorists can flourish. 
 
The Department of Defense review is among a number of that addressing the effects of climate change on vulnerable countries is in US national security interests.  In 2007, 11 retired three and four-star generals for CNA Corporation released a report stating that climate change acts as a “threat multiplier for instability in some of the most volatile regions of the world,” and concluded that “the increasing risks from climate change should be addressed now because they will almost certainly get worse if we delay.”  A similar assessment of climate-related impacts to the stability of governments, conflict (particularly around water scarcity), and increased migration was highlighted in the National Intelligence Assessment study in 2008.
 
More recently, an August 2010 report on Pakistan by the Congressional Research Service cited various ways climate change threatens security including the “creation of conditions that foment extremists or terrorists".  Indeed, recent news reports have indicated that insurgent groups are exploiting the floods in Pakistan by recruiting flood victims into their insurgency.
 
From the devastating floods in Pakistan, to droughts and other disasters in Afghanistan, Somalia, Darfur, and Yemen, predictions of climate-related disasters will continue to play out.  Fragile states further weakened by the effects of climate change will create safe havens for those who seek to harm us and will inevitably result in stretching our military and humanitarian resources unless we proactively build climate resilience in vulnerable nations. 
 
Providing financing for international climate preparedness and adaptation programs is a vital component of reducing global security threats.  Building climate preparedness in the most vulnerable nations around the globe is among the most effective ways to promote US national and international security from climate-related disasters.  Taking this action will also save our country significant resources and assets. 
 
Thank you for your consideration.  We look forward to working with you on this important effort.
 
Sincerely,
 
General Joe Ballard
General George Buskirk
General John Castellaw
General Michael Dunn
General Donald Edwards
General Pat Foote
General Keith Kerr
General Don Kerrick
General Paul Monroe
General John Douglass
General Norman Seip
General Ted Vander Els
General Roger Blunt
Admiral Alan Steinman
Admiral Don Arthur
Admiral Stuart Platt