UK's Prince Charles launches Web channel, six-point plan to fight global warming
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Curated by Prince Charles, the RE:TV channel aims to combat the spread of misinformation.
PHOTO: AFP
LONDON (BLOOMBERG) - Britain's Prince Charles on Thursday (Sept 24) launched a Web platform for short films focused on climate change solutions.
Curated by the Prince, the RE:TV channel aims to combat the spread of misinformation on everything from the coronavirus to climate change.
He also rolled out a six-step "Marshall-like plan" aimed at putting the world on better footing to fight global warming.
First, he urged national leaders and businesses to embrace carbon pricing and end "perverse" fossil fuel subsidies.
He also called for the scale-up of carbon capture and storage technology, the expansion of a global carbon offset market and the creation of an ecosystems services market which would put a higher value on preserving nature.
Lastly, he advocated for sustainable urban development that protects the environment.
"As momentum and ambition builds, we need to narrow in on the solutions and start working towards real-world implementation," he said during the World Economic Forum's Sustainable Development Impact Summit on Thursday.
Prince Charles, who contracted the coronavirus in March, has warned that the unfolding climate emergency will soon dwarf the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Prince has long championed environmental issues, occasionally drawing fire from critics who say members of the royal family should stay clear of policy matters. He's pushed for a carbon tax and has personally lobbied United States Presidents Donald Trump and Barack Obama about global warming.
The plan would largely be carried out by another initiative he launched earlier this year with the WEF - the Sustainable Market Initiative, a 10-point plan to accelerate the shift to eco-friendly markets.
That effort created a Sustainable Markets Council bringing together leaders from government and industry who would be key to implementing the steps of Prince Charles' so-called Marshall Plan, a nod to the US programme that helped rebuild Western Europe after World War II.
Earlier this month, Facebook launched a "climate science information centre" that seeks to stop the spread of misleading posts on social media that reject established facts.
Mr Brian Moynihan, chief executive officer of Bank of America Corp, which sponsors RE:TV, said the new Web platform would play a democratising role by helping people better understand the solutions available to tackling climate change.