Lord Nicholas Stern and Steve Westly on the Economics of Dropping Fossil Fuels

Lord Nicholas Stern, Chair, Center for Climate Change Economics and Policy, London School of Economics
Steve Westly, Founder and Managing Partner, The Westly Group

Carbon pollution has recently dropped despite continued growth of the global economy. Supporters of clean energy cheered that news, and say it demonstrates that combatting climate change can be accomplished without massive economic pain. Was the decoupling of economic growth and carbon pollution just because of China’s slowing economy and temporary dip in coal use? What areas of the clean economy are most promising for investors and job-seekers?

Lord Nicholas Stern is former chief economist of the World Bank and one of the foremost global experts on moving from fossil fuels to cleaner energy. When world leaders signed the historic Paris climate accord last year, Lord Stern was cheering in the front, row standing alongside Al Gore.

Steve Westly leads a venture capital firm that made early investments in Tesla and the biofuel firm Anyris. It currently holds a position in Good Eggs, Planet Labs, Revolution Foods, RecycleBank, WaterSmart, and other companies pursuing more sustainable capitalism. Steve Westly was an early executive at eBay and is a former controller of the state of California.