Paul Growald

The key is coal

When we feel hot indoors, the first thing most of us do is open a window or turn down the thermostat. We do not look for new technologies to regulate indoor climate, or seek to change our countries’ policies.

Yet the mind-numbing complexity of climate change has caused many philanthropists to overlook one compelling fact: burning coal contributes about 40 per cent of the total CO₂ released into the earth’s atmosphere every year, or 8 of every 20 pounds of carbon released. And if we want to turn down the earth’s thermostat most immediately, the first step is to stop construction of new coal-fired power plants and ultimately phase out the most polluting old ones as well.

At present, however, in the United States only 5 per cent – one of every 20 philanthropic dollars invested in stemming climate change – is directed at this most carbon-intensive of fuel sources.

So if we had $10 million to spend to combat global warming, we would invest it to slow, and eventually stop, emissions from coal.

It is critical to focus on this in the next three to five years because each new plant that gets built today will continue operating for another half century or more, thus locking in 50 years of CO2 emissions. Compared to other strategies that address climate, the impact of coal is staggering.[1] California recently passed legislation to cut carbon dioxide in new cars by 25 per cent. Even if every new car sold in the state this year met the new standard, the carbon dioxide emissions from only one medium-sized coal-fired power plant would negate this effort in just eight months of operation.

We would invest in fighting coal because:

• Results are clear and measurable. Non-profit advocates have achieved astounding success while subsisting on limited resources, having stopped over 100 of 160 proposed new coal plants in the US, and thereby prevented emissions of 408 million tons of CO₂ annually.[2]
• Results are rapid. A proposed new power plant can be stopped in a matter of years, not decades, when it is rejected by regulators or dropped by its owner. In comparison, changes in consumer behaviour or improvements in technology can take decades to achieve and are often hard to measure.
• We know this strategy works. At the Growald Family Fund, we have focused our philanthropy on coal over the last three years, with impressive results. However, we have found that the need far outweighs the resources we are able to provide. There is a compelling opportunity to scale our impact and achieve significant CO₂ reductions.

Our vision is to help combat climate change and contribute to meeting the goal of reducing global warming emissions by 20 per cent by 2020. To accomplish these ambitious goals, we would allocate the $10 million to:

• selecting and investing in a portfolio of high-impact organizations working on the issues of climate change, and particularly the lifecycle of coal;
• leveraging our investments to exponentially increase their impact through capacity building, research, networking and additional fundraising; and
• providing a clear measurement framework for the outcomes of both the organization’s work and our own choices.

Obstacles:

• The power of the coal industry. Coal is a known technology with momentum and money on its side. Last year the coal industry spent $45 million on clean coal messaging in the US alone, and political ties run deep.
• Philanthropic response is not commensurate to the scale of the problem. Although we know that coal is 40 per cent of the problem, it receives only 5 per cent of climate-related philanthropic dollars being allocated towards climate change solutions.

To overcome these obstacles, we will focus on the following key areas of work:

• Stop new coal
  • The rush to build new coal plants will lock us in to 50 or more years of emissions and take scarce investment funds away from clean energy opportunities. We will focus on stopping the remaining US proposed plants and steering multilateral institution funding away from coal and towards clean energy development.
• Retire existing coal-fired electric generating plants
  • In order to meet emissions reductions, existing coal plants must be cleaned up or retired. Given the investment needed to clean up existing plants, many should instead be closed.
• Address the coal lifecycle The full cost of coal to society is not reflected in coal’s cost on the market place. In order to level the playing field, the full cost of coal should be internalized, including:
  • Mining. Mining has devastating ecological and health impacts and is also a valuable strategy for raising awareness of the true costs of coal. The focus will be on stopping mining in valuable ecosystems and blocking infrastructure development.
  • Ash/waste removal. Another impact of coal is the waste, which is extremely toxic to ecosystem and human health, yet lightly regulated.
• Develop an international ‘COALition’ to support wide-ranging efforts to stop coal development. While initial efforts have focused on the US, it is imperative that we coordinate them internationally to move the globe away from coal and towards sustainable solutions. This will need to include work with poverty and economic development advocates.

Expected impact

• It will help the environmental non-profit community have a significant impact on combating climate change, specifically reducing or avoiding emissions from coal.
  • Benchmarks include tons of CO₂ avoided or reduced, number of new plants stopped, number of existing plants retired, shifts in public opinion about coal, reduction of financing of coal.
• It will help strengthen today’s most critical climate organizations, while laying the groundwork to create tomorrow’s climate leaders.
  • Benchmarks include amount of additional philanthropic investment and organizational growth.

Conclusion

While it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the challenge of climate change or tempted by the lure of new technologies and complex policy fixes, it is important to remember that one of the most powerful parts of the problem is also one of the most powerful parts of the solution. In order to make a significant impact on climate, we must stop coal.

1 Architecture 2030.
2 The Sierra Club Foundation Beyond Coal Campaign.

Paul Growald is a feature and documentary films executive producer and venture philanthropist.  
Eileen R Growald is an author and venture philanthropist.
Joanna Messing is philanthropy advisor and president of Positive Ventures, LLC. Email jmessing@positiveventures.com

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