Why businesses can benefit from call for clean energy plans

President Hu Jintao's landmark speech at the United Nations Climate Change Summit in September sets forth a series of principles by which the world can meaningfully confront climate change.

The president calls for cooperation among nations to overcome the inertia seen throughout the world today, but he also offers a realistic perspective on the differing challenges faced by developing and developed countries.

President Hu rightly asserts that financial and technology investments can address the climate change problem while advancing prosperity for all nations.

Without question, this doctrine provides insight into how nations must establish their policies and actions.

More urgently, the president's statements are a call to action for governments to not only commit to this effort, but also to tap into the knowledge, experience and resources of their business communities.

The business community's capabilities hold the key to achieving President Hu's vision of dealing realistically with climate change - a vision that the world so desperately needs and deserves.

Given the large and rising profile of climate change, a multitude of corporations are transforming technologies into practical, climate-friendly solutions that increase energy efficiency, reduce emissions and lower adoption costs.

Viable business models

Beyond technology development, these companies succeed by building viable business models and promoting adoption through thoughtful communication and incentives.

To overcome the commercial limitations that exist in the less developed economies, the world's premier industrial companies must commit to - and set as a priority - encouraging the adoption of climate change mitigation strategies and technologies in these locales.

President Hu's speech sets forth four areas of opportunity, and he underscored each with policies and objectives that will help neutralize climate change.

These areas of opportunity are: increasing the use of nuclear and renewable fuels, reducing CO2 emissions, expanding reforestation efforts and emphasizing energy efficiency. To accomplish these objectives, President Hu pledged that China will " enhance research, development and dissemination of climate-friendly technologies."

Innovative solutions

There are a wide range of environmental challenges facing our world and many innovative solutions under development. Many of these ideas will take years to refine and become commercially viable.

But most encouraging, history shows that innovation steadily surmounts the technical and cost barriers to developing more energy-efficient or environmentally responsible products. A steady stream of technological advancements promises to produce affordable solutions on every front to abate risks to the environment.

Examples of existing viable technologies and successful adoption models abound. A progressive nation like China consumes increasingly larger absolute levels of energy and must supplement capacity. New technologies offer significantly higher efficiencies for fossil fuel plants while containing harmful emissions.

Other advancements reduce the cost of nuclear energy capacity and improve wind and solar capabilities, making them economically practical. Monitoring systems exist today that substantially reduce incidences of energy transport infrastructure failure, such as gas pipelines that leak and pollute.

Business opportunities

In China, which will build a substantial part of the world's energy infrastructure over the next decade, the acute need for the best technical solutions supported by the thoughtful commercial models creates a substantive opportunity for businesses.

President Hu appropriately recognizes this "challenge and reward" reality. Beyond their financial incentives, technology-focused businesses must consider that our planet and future generations depend on their contributions and, yes, their successes.

Other opportunities to apply more efficient and responsible energy technologies exist throughout China. Urbanization fuels a construction boom as citizens seek modern residences that offer increased comforts such as heating and air conditioning systems. The information revolution creates a huge need for data centers, the most energy intensive space in the modern world.

How does China ensure that this construction employs the most efficient technologies available - conforming to standards that often offer efficiency improvements of 50 percent or more compared to traditional approaches?

In addition to the right technological solutions, efforts to break down barriers and gain acceptance require astute and rigorously enforced government policies and regulations. But we must also recognize that deep experience rests within technology-savvy enterprises that understand how to address these hurdles. Their expertise can help deliver results on these difficult initiatives.

Improving efficiencies

China's leaders must focus their efforts not just on the new facilities they build, but also on the shortcomings of existing infrastructure that harms the environment. Innovative technologies exist to improve operational efficiencies or, alternatively, to replace outdated equipment.

Technologies are available that can address the environmental challenges posed by inefficient electric motors in industry, aging fossil fuel power plants and outmoded waste disposal approaches. The world's industrial companies must support the Chinese commercial community's efforts to make real changes.

The president's insights balance the gravity of the climate change threat with the practicalities of globalization and national economic development.

President Hu appropriately calls for the engagement of every nation, recognizing their differing roles, yet shared responsibility. The president challenges the nations of the world to cooperate and take on the threat of climate change - contrasting the consequences of inaction with the hope of engagement.

Government commitment creates a foundation critical to the success of these initiatives. Still, the magnitude of the problem, its scope and diversity demand more.

Success will require the endorsement and attention of the world's technology leaders - the businesses that possess the real knowledge about the problems and, most important, the solutions.

Enlightened companies must seize the opportunity and invest the necessary resources in the developing world and, as President Hu observes, reap the benefits for their constituencies and, more important, for future generations.

The author is president of Emerson Electric Asia-Pacific. The views expressed here are her own.

(China Daily 11/09/2009 page2)