U.S. Senate Hart Office Building (map)
- Stephanie Hanson, Communications Associate
NOTE: Event is by invitation only.
The symposium, the US Climate Change Action: A Global Economic Perspective, is a one-day bicameral event in the Capitol building bringing together US and international expertise to support the formulation of US policy on climate change by addressing economic concerns and focusing on opportunities. The event has secured the sponsorship of Democrat and Republican Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), John McCain (R-AZ), Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
The event will respond directly to the main questions of legislators, as the principles for domestic general legislation are formed in early 2009, alongside policies on the economy and energy security. It will do this by focusing on the key issues and concerns that have stalled previous legislative efforts on climate change, discussing new economic opportunities of transiting to a low carbon economy, and, presenting international lessons and perspectives.
The day will consist primarily of two parts:
- A small and high level event in the morning involving US and international keynote speakers, followed by a Press Event.
- A larger content-driven event in the afternoon, responding to the key economic concerns of policy makers and insights from international experience.
Video of the Symposium
- Fred Bergsten, Director, Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE)
- Nancy Birdsall, President, Center for Global Development (CGD)
- Jonathan Lash, President, World Resources Institute (WRI)
Professor Lord Nicholas Stern, Patel Chair and Director, LSE Asia Research Center
Keynote Speaker: Todd Stern, Special Envoy on Climate Change, U.S. Department of State
Session One: Business as usual is not sustainable
- Professor Lord Nicholas Stern
- Bill Cline, Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics
- The Honorable John Warner, Former U.S. Senator from Virginia
Session Two: The Costs of Domestic Action on Climate Change and How to Contain Them
- Jeremy Oppenheim, Director, McKinsey and Company
- Trevor Houser, Visiting Fellow; Peterson Institute for International Economics
- Gary Hufbauer, Senior Fellow; Peterson Institute for International Economics
- Jim Rogers, Chief Executive Office, Duke Energy Corporation
Session Three: What are the Economic Opportunities on the Pathway to a Low Carbon Economy?
- Gerry Hudson, Executive Vice President, Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
- Vinod Khosla,Founder & Partner, Khosla Ventures and Founder of Sun Microsystems
- Steven Fludder,Vice President, ecomagination, GE (invited)
Session Four: Towards an International Framework
- The Honorable Connie Hedegaard, Minister of Climate and Energy, Denmark
- The Honorable Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Climate and Energy, U.K.
- Zhou Dadi, Energy Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission, China
- Nigel Purvis, President, Climate Advisers
