While much of the climate change discussion in the area of finances has focused on divestment, Carbon Tracker works with those who remain invested. This independent think tank helps investor
s and energy companies accurately price fossil fuel risk. Or, to use a somewhat British phrase from this U.K. website, they are “aligning capital market actions with climate reality.”
In early October, Mark Campanale, the founder and executive director of Carbon Tracker, gave a talk in Goshen, Ind., entitled, “Climate at the Crossroads: the Investor Role in Achieving a Low-Carbon Future.” He is pictured during a conversation with students in Goshen College’s Sustainability Leadership Semester.The event was co-sponsored by Everence, Goshen College and Mennonite Education Agency. See write-up by The Mennonite.
“Companies are overstating energy demand, underestimating the increased role of renewables and ignoring looming changes in energy,” Campanale observed during the lecture. He likened the situation to what Olivetti [typewriters] and Blockbuster might have been telling shareholders before they went bust. He also expressed outrage that the coal industry has been able to raise capital without discussing climate change in its risk assessments.
Resources on the Carbon Tracker website include a helpful review of key terms, a news feed on recent articles related to environmental finance and a series of in-depth reports on topics such as stranded assets.