Second Life Remarks to the Virtual Bali UN Climate Conference, 12.11.07

Thank you, Sue, for that kind introduction.  I can now safely say I am the first member of the United States Congress ever to be introduced by someone with a blue dragon draped on her shoulder!

Ladies, gentlemen…avatars, thank you for joining me today on the virtual island of Bali created by One Climate in Second Life

As some of you may know, I serve as the Chairman of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming in the U.S. House of Representatives.  I have teleported here over the Internet, as you can see, as an avatar, taking advantage of the new possibilities of digital collaboration that mimic in-person travel without the carbon footprint that comes with taking a jet to a place as remote from the United States as Bali.

 I wanted say a special thank you to OneClimate and OneWorld who built and maintain this virtual Bali space and OneClimate Island. Their efforts are making it possible for people all across the planet, to not only join in the UN Conference discussion, but also to learn about sustainable living. I invite everyone to take a tour of the Island after this speech.

This is my first foray into Second Life, but it won’t be my last. I applauded all the residents of Second Life who have been building out a truly unique world, pushing the limits of imagination -- creating this 3-D world where the potential for global communication, scientific innovation, commerce and education initiatives truly has no limit.

I wanted to do this not only to draw attention to the rapidly evolving capacity of the World Wide Web, but also to the rapidly dwindling window of opportunity we have to stop global warming before it stops us.

The eyes and ears of the world are now focused on Bali.  The Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012, and it is imperative that the international community – with the full participation of the United States – use the Bali conference to establish a clear roadmap for future action. But drawing a clear roadmap is difficult when the largest emitter of global warming pollution – the United States --won’t cooperate, and that is the problem we are having today.  Everyone knows that an effective roadmap must have a clear destination, but the Bush Administration continues to oppose any specific or binding targets for emissions reduction.  Dozens of representatives of the Bush Administration are in Bali, all carrying instructions to say “No” to real progress.    

That is why it is important for Bali and the world to hear other American voices – voices advocating a new direction for the United States, voices guided by the extraordinary scientific work of Rajendra Pachauri and the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, voices that embrace the message of my friend Al Gore, co-recipient of the Nobel Prize.  These voices recognize that when it comes to fighting global warming, delay can be deadly, and vague “aspirational” goals are no match for the challenge before us.

The Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, is one of those voices.  She announced the creation this year of a special committee devoted solely to the subject of global warming and energy independence – which I now chair.  With Speaker Pelosi’s unwavering commitment, the House has just passed a broad energy bill that promises to reduce U.S. carbon dioxide emissions dramatically.  

The centerpiece of this bill is a measure for which I have fought for the past seven years.  Each year I have tried to amend the law in order to increase fuel economy standards for American autos by 10 mpg in 10 years. In 2001, a majority of Congress said No.  In 2003, a smaller majority said No.  In 2005, a smaller majority said No. In 2007, a majority of Congress finally said…YES.

The energy bill represents a major step forward in reducing U.S. carbon emissions.  But when it comes to saving the planet, we need a solution that takes us not just partway there, but rather, all the way there – we need an economy-wide cap on global warming pollution. So it is heartening that in the House, 173 representatives (40 percent of all members) are already co-sponsors of one of the major greenhouse gas “cap-and-trade” bills introduced in this Congress, and Speaker Pelosi has announced her intention to pass legislation capping carbon emissions.  In the Senate, meanwhile, Chairman Boxer of the Environment and Public Works Committee has successfully moved such a bill through her committee, and Majority Leader Reid has expressed his willingness to bring climate legislation to the Senate floor next year.

    There has also been substantial progress on climate change policy at the state and local level.  Fifty-five percent of the U.S. population now lives in a state that has already committed itself to rigorous mandatory greenhouse gas reduction targets.  And over 725 mayors, whose cities represent over 25 percent of the U.S. population, have signed the U.S. Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Agreement – which calls for signatories to strive to cut local greenhouse gas emissions by 7 percent or more from 1990 levels by 2012.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the federal government has the authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions to protect public health and the environment, and should act accordingly – stripping away one of the Bush Administration’s favorite excuses for inaction.

Corporate leaders are stepping up as well.  The U.S. Climate Action Partnership, a coalition of 27 major U.S. corporations (including many of the nation’s largest greenhouse gas emitters) and six national environmental organizations, has called upon Congress to enact federal legislation requiring greenhouse gas emissions reductions of 60-80 percent below current levels by 2050.  And several major energy industry trade associations have also endorsed mandatory federal limits on greenhouse gas emissions.

    Finally, according to recent polls, 70 percent of Americans agree that global warming is already causing serious impacts, and two-thirds of the American public believe that the time has come for the United States to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases even if it does so by itself.

Just to reinforce these points, I have also organized a letter to the UN from myself and 10 other chairmen of committees in Congress urging stronger action on climate change.  The letter is available on the web at www.globalwarming.house.gov.

So to my friends in Bali, let me say that help is on the way!  The Bush Administration’s willingness to risk global climate catastrophe is not only contrary to science – it is also increasingly at odds with public opinion and the political mainstream in the United States.

2008 will be a pivotal year.  It is important that we not waste 2008 while hoping for a change of Administration in 2009 and beyond.  Instead, we must keep working for a change of heart, because in the end, this is not a political issue – it is a moral issue.  Much of the CO2 in the atmosphere is red, white, and blue.  It came from the United States, and we owe it to the rest of the world to stop making things worse.  When the United States does its share, then, and only then, will we be in a position to talk seriously to our friends in China and India about what they must do to help.

An ounce of global warming prevention is worth a ton of CO2 cure.  There are no emergency rooms for a sick planet.  As the New Year approaches, I urge you to join me in a supremely selfish act for which the world will be forever grateful – make it your New Year’s Resolution that in 2008 you will help renew the health of our planet. That’s a resolution we can all keep.

Thank you.

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