Biden’s Climate Summit Recognizes Clean Energy and Climate Innovation As Key To Achieving Goals, ITIF Says

WASHINGTON—Following the Leaders Summit on Climate hosted by President Biden on April 22-23, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), the leading think tank for science and technology policy, released the following statement from ITIF Senior Fellow David M. Hart, director of ITIF’s clean energy innovation program:

The global leaders who gathered in Washington renewed their vows to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but they also did something more important and fundamental: renewed their commitment to accelerate innovation. Without more rapid innovation, promises to cut emissions will be hollow. Now the leaders need to follow through by investing public resources to spark innovation, aligning regulations and incentives to sustain innovation, and working with the private sector and civil society to deploy systems that make full use of innovation.

ITIF Senior Policy Analyst Colin Cunliff added:

The international agriculture and shipping decarbonization innovation initiatives announced by the Leaders Summit on Climate are promising steps. But the fate of the Mission Innovation initiative, which was announced in parallel to the Paris climate agreement in 2015, highlights the potential gap between word and deed. Mission Innovation did not result in the promised doubling of public investments in clean energy research, development, and demonstration. It’s crucial that the global public continue to shine a spotlight on international climate innovation initiatives going forward, hold nations and firms accountable to fulfill their commitments, and push to raise their ambitions.

For more on this issue, see:

• Colin Cunliff, “Omission Innovation” (ITIF, December 2018)
• Colin Cunliff and David M. Hart, “The Global Energy Innovation Index: National Contributions to the Global Clean Energy Innovation System” (ITIF, August 2019)