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Presented by Neste MY SAF: | | | | |  | | By Adam Wren and Debra Kahn | Presented by Neste MY SAF | | | | | 
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb isn't denying the economic benefits of the green transition. | AP | TELL ME IF YOU'VE HEARD THIS ONE — A conservative Republican governor from a barn-red state walks into a climate change conference. It may sound like the beginning of a joke, but it happened last week as Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb attended the 27th round of annual U.N. climate talks in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt — the only Midwestern governor present, and the first Indiana governor to ever attend. Holcomb isn't exactly a climate activist. He says he believes "multiple sources" affect the climate, not just human activity. He also applauded Donald Trump's move in 2017 to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, saying states know best how to handle their energy portfolios. But his presence at the conference marks a new moment in the battle against climate change, as economic development opportunities in green energy lure unlikely converts. To compete for clean-energy jobs with other states — and in some cases, nations — governors such as Holcomb are becoming increasingly pragmatic about the venues in which they seek an edge. In 2021, 47 foreign-owned businesses committed to locating or growing in Indiana, according to the governor's office. "I want to make sure that our automobile industry is flourishing, not just tomorrow, but 10 years from now, 20 years from now," Holcomb said in a Zoom interview. He says the old false dichotomy Republicans have had on climate change is "not an either-or proposition. It's not either [choosing] the economy or the environment. It can be both." While at COP 27, Holcomb met with automakers such as General Motors Co. and agricultural companies such as Corteva AgriScience. He delivered the opening address for a session on electric vehicles, highlighting Indiana's investments from companies like Cummins Inc., Stellantis NV, Samsung SDI Co., and Toyota Motor Corp. And his presence earned him the ire of the conservative Club for Growth president and fellow Hoosier David McIntosh, who criticized Holcomb's visit in an op-ed in The Indianapolis Star, writing that "the woke programs coming out of the UN’s COP27 will have oversized and long-term devastating impact on Indiana." "It's not a conspiracy or the Illuminati getting together," Holcomb responded. To his critics on the right, Holcomb invoked his great grandfather, a blacksmith in Knox County, Indiana in the 1880s through the 1940s, who saw the transition from horses to the automobile. "Some people probably said the same thing about my great grandfather when the when he wasn't shoeing horses anymore and said, 'Oh my gosh, the end is near.' But I tend to accept where we're heading. But my responsibility is Indiana and the growth rate in terms of manufacturing and agriculture. It is at an all-time high and going to continue on that trajectory, I think, for years to come."
| | | | A message from Neste MY SAF: To reach the ambitious goals set out in the Paris Agreement on climate change, greenhouse gas emissions need to be reduced urgently, and drastically. In aviation, Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel™ is a solution available today. It reduces greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80% over the fuel’s life cycle compared to using fossil jet fuel. Moreover, it is commercially available and in use worldwide. Neste MY SAF. Today. | | | | | | EIGHT BILLION, BUT WHO'S COUNTING — Talking about population and the environment hasn't been in vogue since China tried to claim emissions reduction benefits from its one-child policy. Some are still trying, though. Population discussions tend to run quickly into political roadblocks on the global level. Such talk smacks of rich countries pulling up the drawbridge behind them in the same way that developing countries accuse rich ones of hypocrisy in getting them to curb their carbon emissions — or worse, considering the core issue is reproductive freedom. Focusing on one's own backyard is almost as fraught: Advanced-and-aging economies are more concerned about finding people to care for the elderly and pay into their retirement funds. Pointing out that U.S. fertility has been below replacement rates for decades quickly veers into immigration policy and Tucker Carlson territory. Exhibit A: the Sierra Club's evolution from a booster of limiting both population and immigration in the '70s to a fervent opponent of any effort to link population and climate change. "Contraception and family planning are not climate mitigation measures," the group says in its stance, updated earlier this year. And hand-wringing about population can come off as misanthropic and pessimistic in the techno-optimistic zeitgeist. If focusing on one's personal carbon footprint is the result of successful misdirection by corporate interests, then opting not to have children in order to save the planet is the ultimate act of capitulation. "A lot of people have backed away from talking about it because they're like, 'There's not a way to do this,'" said Stephanie Feldstein, population and sustainability director for the Center for Biological Diversity, which has handed out more than a million endangered species-themed condoms since 2009. Advocates have been working on softer messaging around "gender equity and reproductive justice," both in the U.S. and abroad. The nonprofit Population Connection, one of the original population groups from the '60s, cites USAID surveys that found 218 million women in low- to middle-income countries have an unmet need for family planning. But it's still making the basic point that population, alongside consumption, is a major driver of emissions. "The IPCC releases reports all the time based on different scenarios of what the future might look like," said Marian Starkey, spokesperson for Population Connection. The scenarios are based on population growth, economic growth, and technology, she pointed out. "It's kind of hard to argue that population growth doesn't matter when it's one of the three components of these outputs," she said.
| | | | POLITICO APP USERS: UPGRADE YOUR APP BY DECEMBER 19! We recently upgraded the POLITICO app with a fresh look and improved features for easier access to POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Starting December 19, users will no longer have access to the previous version of the app. Update your app today to stay on top of essential political news, insights, and analysis from the best journalists in the business. UPDATE iOS APP – UPDATE ANDROID APP . | | | | | | | | FIRST IN LG — Anti-ESG advocates may not have gotten a huge boost from the midterms, but they're not wasting any momentum, our Jordan Wolman reports in a POLITICO exclusive. A conservative group that has been at the forefront of red-state attacks on Wall Street's embrace of sustainable investment policies is launching a new nonprofit to ramp up its political activity. Will Hild, executive director of Consumers' Research, said the spinoff lobbying group, called Consumers' Defense, will be the first one dedicated specifically to the “ESG scam.” “We needed a vehicle by which we could be very explicit in the ways in which consumers’ interests should be protected from ESG,” Hild said. “We decided it made sense to launch a 501(c)4 that can endorse legislation, that can be very specific about how we talk to legislators and government officials.” The group plans to hire lobbyists in various states next year to help push legislation either strengthening the fiduciary duty of pension fund managers, or a more aggressive “energy boycott” bill that would direct certain state entities to divest from companies that allegedly refuse to do business with fossil fuels. Hild predicts 12 to 20 states will be debating these bills next year .
| | | | A message from Neste MY SAF:   | | | |  | AROUND THE WORLD | | WHERE'S THE METHANE? — The methane emissions of the 15 largest meat and dairy companies are larger than some of the world’s biggest economies, including Germany and Russia, a new report from the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy and the Changing Markets Foundation estimates. The companies' methane represents more than 3 percent of global methane emissions from human activity, the report estimates. Tyson Foods alone has a methane footprint equivalent to Russia’s entire livestock sector, POLITICO's Marcia Brown writes. The report comes as 40 countries plan to release national methane reduction plans at COP27 this week as part of the Global Methane Pledge Ministerial, an effort to slash global methane emissions 30 percent by 2030. The report authors are arguing meat and dairy production needs to slow and possibly shrink. USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack declined to say Monday in a call with reporters if people needed to eat less meat and dairy in order to meet international emissions goals. He added that significant methane emissions come from other sources besides livestock and pointed to other USDA efforts to slash methane emissions, such as targeting food loss and waste as well as cattle feed additives.
| | | GAME ON — Welcome to the Long Game, where we tell you about the latest on efforts to shape our future. We deliver data-driven storytelling, compelling interviews with industry and political leaders, and news Tuesday through Friday to keep you in the loop on sustainability. Team Sustainability is editor Greg Mott , deputy editor Debra Kahn and reporters Jordan Wolman and Allison Prang . Reach us all at gmott@politico.com , dkahn@politico.com , jwolman@politico.com and aprang@politico.com . Want more? Don’t we all. Sign up for the Long Game . Four days a week and still free!
| | | | Less than one month to go to our POLITICO Live’s Sustainable Future Week! From November 29 to December 1, we will delve into climate geopolitics, the circular economy, green energy, mobility, and tech. Limited spots to join us in Brussels for exclusive closed-door debates and networking moments with top policymakers and industry leaders. Find out who is joining us and register today . | | | | | | | | — Five companies are trying to tap Nova Scotia's famously high tides for electricity. — A Chinese expert says creating “sponge cities” could help countries cope with climate change . — Rising EV sales don’t directly correlate to expanded adoption, thanks to superusers .
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