Naropa University Endorses Federal Carbon Pricing

President Lief put his signature on the following endorsement letter, created for this initiative:

“As leaders of higher education institutions, we call upon our elected representatives to act collectively on behalf of current and future generations by putting a price on carbon. We work to prepare our students for thriving futures, over which climate change casts a dark shadow of uncertainty. Putting a price on carbon pollution is an indispensable step we can take to combat climate change effectively.

Carbon pricing creates an economy-wide incentive to reduce greenhouse gases in economically efficient ways that can, if revenues are used wisely, benefit low-income households while stimulating job growth. The World Bank has endorsed carbon pricing as a way to account accurately for the external costs of emissions, like crop loss, flood damage, and medical treatments that result from heat waves and other climate change disasters. Thousands of businesses support carbon pricing for its transparent and predictable approach. Dozens of countries and jurisdictions across the world have already enacted carbon-pricing mechanisms, and the evidence is in: carbon pricing enables renewable energy to flourish, helps phase out polluting energy sources, and lowers emissions. A strong carbon price will rise quickly enough to work without burdening low-income and middle-class families, and will not create new dependencies on profits from carbon-based energy.

It is time for the United States to lead on this defining issue of our time, and protect the health and well-being of current and future generations. By making carbon-intensive industries pay a fair share of the costs of their pollution, we will have cleaner air and healthier communities, and prevent the most devastating effects of climate change. Naropa divested from investment in fossil fuels in 2013 and today’s action is an important next step. We therefore ask our elected officials to proactively work to enact a carbon price on the state and national level.”

Founded in 1974, Naropa University is the birthplace of the modern mindfulness movement, and the only school in the United States that grounds the student experience in contemplative education principles.