Contact: Katie Kouchakji, kouchakji@ieta.org

GENEVA, 18 June - IETA welcomes Pope Francis’s call for climate action in the run-up to the Paris talks. He is right to call on all of us to do our part, especially those of us in the business community.  We share his hope that the nations of the world can come together in Paris to chart an ambitious path forward that delivers climate benefits and enhances sustainable economic growth. 

However, the encyclical's brief mention of carbon credits was out of step with the views of most economists and analysts.  Carbon markets are typically quite competitive, and they contain safeguards against the excessive speculation warned about in the encyclical.  It misses the more important point that market mechanisms can help keep the costs down for producers and consumers alike.  Through their cost-effectiveness, market approaches can enable more ambitious emissions cuts to be achieved – and more quickly than cumbersome regulations. 

Carbon markets are not just a tool for incentivizing major economies and their industries to change.  They also  allow smaller countries and organisations to access climate finance and engage in the global response to climate change. They can also deliver side benefits, such as improved public health, access to education, job creation and female empowerment, among others, as demonstrated by REDD+ and clean cookstoves projects in the developing world.  

IETA stands firm in its belief that market approaches can benefit climate action and enable businesses to do well by doing good.  In so doing, they can enable humanity to rise to greater ambitions in protecting the earth. 

Download the press release here