WASHINGTON (November 20, 2015)—On the opening day of COP21 in Paris, six heads of state from France, Chile, Ethiopia, Germany, Mexico and Canada, along with the leaders of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund called on countries and companies to put a price on carbon. The World Bank Group and partners also officially launched the Carbon Pricing Leadership Coalition. To help mobilize action, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the World Bank Group announced a new $500 million facility that will support countries in adopting carbon pricing mechanisms.

Already about 40 governments and 23 cities, states and regions have carbon pricing mechanisms in place, from countries representing 89 percent of G20 GDP and 75 percent of global GDP.

Following is a statement by Dr. Andrew Steer, President & CEO, World Resources Institute:

“World leaders in Paris are coming together around pricing carbon, which is both extremely important and absolutely sensible. Basic economic theory tells us that we should place a price on bad things, like carbon pollution and congestion, and not on good things like income, profit and hard work. More and more countries, regions and cities are adopting mechanisms to put a price on carbon. Already, more than 40 governments and nearly two dozen cities are on board, and over 1,000 companies have announced their support for pricing carbon.

“With sustained support and commitment, a vast majority of the world can have a price on carbon over the next few years. A strong climate agreement in Paris will send a clear signal to actors in the real economy and inspire the rapid expansion of carbon markets that can drive down emissions and create economic opportunities.”