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The European Climate Foundation (ECF) - which claims to be
the first philanthropic organisation solely dedicated to reducing
CO2 in Europe - has been officially
established.
According to ECF, the foundation - 'aims to promote climate
and energy policies that greatly reduce Europe’s greenhouse
gas emissions and help Europe play an even stronger international
leadership role in mitigating climate change'.
Asked about his motivation, ECF's CEO, Jules Kortenhorst
says - "It is a great honour and responsibility to take
charge of the European Climate Foundation. I believe climate
change is the single biggest challenge facing humanity. All
available resources of governments, civil society and business
and must be directed towards tackling this problem. With ECF,
we look forward to being a part of that effort."
To meet that challenge, several
funding partners joined forces in 2007 to create a
new multi-million euro philanthropic entity called the European
Climate Foundation.
ECF sees Europe as a critical arena in the fight against
climate change for two reasons. Firstly, it is one of the
largest sources of global warming pollution, behind only the
US and China. Second, European governments appear to be committing
to sizeable emissions reductions, leading global regulation
and promising political commitment. If Europe meets its current
level of commitments and continues to improve them, it will
serve as an example to the world. Conversely, if Europe backtracks
it will severely undercut global efforts to meet the climate
challenge.
ECF is part of a global network of regional philanthropies
dedicated to funding climate and energy policies that lead
to significant reductions in carbon emissions - including
the Energy Foundation in the USA and the China Sustainable
Energy Programme.
ECF has identified four major areas for immediate intervention
within Europe -
In accomplishing its goals, the European Climate Foundation
will re-grant the majority of its funds to non-governmental
organisations engaged in trying to bring about meaningful
policy change. When ECF sees an unfulfilled need, it may also
engage in direct initiatives - such as commission papers,
convene meetings or launch a new organisation.
The organisation will generally not seek public attention
for its efforts, but prefers to highlight the success of those
who are actually doing the work.
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