Presenters on Panel I, left-right: R.K. Sethi, Government of India; Gert-Jan Koopman, DG Enterprise, European Commission; Harlan Watson, U.S. Department of State; Alejo Vidal-Quadras Roca, European Parliament; Alison Burrows, Australian Embassy and Mission to the EU; and Sangkyu Lee, Embassy of the Republic of Korea and Mission to the EU.

According to a new economic analysis released 28 June 2006 by the International Council for Capital Formation, market-based institutional reforms in China and India and other developing countries could reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by almost as much as the Kyoto Protocol while increasing economic growth. The new study, "The Asia Pacific Partnership: Its Role in Promoting A Positive Climate for Investment, Economic Growth and Greenhouse Gas Reductions" by Drs. W. David Montgomery and Sugandha D. Tuladhar of CRA International highlights the key role that the business community can play in encouraging reforms such as intellectual property protection, reduction in state ownership of major industries and electric power generation and reductions in corruption. The new analysis was discussed by government officials and business sector representatives at a workshop in Brussels hosted by the ICCF, ENEL and the Belgian-Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

To read the Montgomery-Tuladhar analysis,
please click here.

Click here for the workshop flyer and to read the speakers' presentations at the Brussels forum.

ICCF Managing Director Dr. Margo Thorning spoke before the UN Commission on Sustainable Development on May 5, 2006 as it ended the first week of its two-week session on the challenges and opportunities related to investing in energy and industrial development. Appearing with Dr. Thorning on the panel were Faith Birol, Chief Economist of the International Energy Agency in Paris and Christine Woerlen, Climate Change Focal Area, Global Environment Facility.

To read more about the presentations,
please click here.

Dr.Thorning speaks at U.S. Senate hearing. Other experts at the hearing were Dr. David Montgomery (left) and David Doniger.

Dr. Margo Thorning, Managing Director, International Council for Capital Formation, appeared before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation Subcommittee on Global Climate Change and Impacts on April 5, 2006 as an invited witness on a panel of climate policy experts. Dr. Thorning’s testimony focused on “The Impact of Voluntary Measures and the Asia-Pacific Partnership for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions.” Also on the panel were David Doniger, climate policy director, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Dr. David Montgomery, vice president of CRA International and co-head of CRA’s global environment practice.

Click here to read Dr. Thorning’s testimony.

Dr. Margo Thorning, managing director, International Council for Capital Formation, presented an analysis of "The Cost of Kyoto for Europe and Alternative Courses After 2012" at the 17 January 2006 workshop sponsored by Istituto Bruno Leoni in Strasbourg, France.

Click here to read Dr. Thorning's presentation.

In this OnPoint Interview with E&E Television, Margo Thorning, managing director of the International Council for Capital Formation, explains how Kyoto will affect European economies.

Click here to watch the video.

On Tuesday, December 6, 2005 the International Council for Capital Formation hosted a panel discussion for the attendees of the United Nations Climate Change Conference/COP 11 in Montreal. Made up of experts and government officials from the United States, Australia, Italy and South Korea, the ICCF panelists focused on the shortcomings of the Kyoto Protocol and the need to focus on a technology approach to climate change.

To read the press release on the ICCF presentation and view the speakers' presentations, click here.

(Left to right) Panelists Dr. Jonathon Cobb, BNFL / Westinghouse; Dr. Manfred Marsmann, Head of Industrial Policy, Bayer; Dr. Margo Thorning, ICCF Managing Director; Mrs. Anne Laperrouze, MEP; Mrs. Stina Soewarta, Member of Commissioner Piebalgs' Cabinet; and Dr. Karlheinz Haag, Head of Environmental Issues, Lufthansa, discuss "Climate Change Policies: Economic and Environmental Impacts" at the ICCF workshop. Photo European Parliament

ICCF Workshop on EU Energy Supplies

Mr. Alejo Vidal-Quadras Roca, MEP, Vice President of the European Parliament, and Mr. Giles Chichester, MEP, Chairman of the EP Committee on Industry, Research and Energy hosted a workshop sponsored by the International Council for Capital Formation on "EU Energy Supplies: Integrating Climate Change Policies and Renewable Energy Standards with the Goal of a Secure Energy Future."

Click here for the workshop flyer and to read the speakers' presentations.

Dr. Margo Thorning, managing director of the ICCF; and Dr. W. David Montgomery, vice president of the economic and consulting firm, Charles River Associates spoke on Monday, February 14, at the National Press Club in Washington, DC on why the US was right to reject the Kyoto Protocol and how implementation of the protocol would hurt the economies of Russia and Europe.

A better path forward on climate change policy is to focus on encouraging economic freedom in developing countries and research and development on new technologies to sequester carbon and reduce dependence on fossil fuels. The event was sponsored by the International Council for Capital Formation (ICCF), and featured presentations by Dr. Thorning and Dr. Montgomery. Dr. Andrei Illarionov, senior advisor to Russian President Putin was unable to participate in the briefing but sent in his presentation.

Click Here to Read the Presentations

On February 16, 2005, as the Kyoto Protocol went into effect worldwide, Dr. Andrei Illarionov, economic adviser to Vladimir Putin, held a press conference in Moscow to discuss the Kyoto Protocol and launch the Russian version of Climate Change Policy and Economic Growth: A Way Forward to Ensure Both. During his press conference, Dr. Illarionov stressed that the consequences of ratification of the Protocol would be destructive for theRussian economy and that the Kyoto Protocol is an anti-humane document that limits economic growth. Dr. Illarionov stressed that the global GDP will have reached the level of $36,000-37,000 per capita by 2050 without the Protocol limits; with the limitations Imposed by the Protocol, global GDP will only reach $11,000-12,000. He added that he believes that Russia will sooner or later pull out of the Kyoto Protocol because of the impossibility of complying with the emission targets mandated by the Protocol.

Climate Change Policy and Economic Growth: A Way Forward to Ensure Bothwas sponsored by the International Council for Capital Formation, the Institute of Economic Analysis, and Istituto Bruno Leoni. The volume was originally presented at the 2004 COP-10 conference in Buenos Aires. A second edition was released In ???. The underlying theme of the book is to point out a path that could lead to reduced global GHG emissions without harming economic growth in both developed and developing economies.

ICCF Managing Director Dr. Margo Thorning and Dr. Harlan Watson, Senior Climate Negotiator and Special Representative, U.S. Department of State, exchange views with Washington area diplomats.

The International Council for Capital Formation hosted a briefing on "The New Reality of Climate Policy" for climate and economic policy experts from the Washington-based diplomatic community on November 16, 2005. Dr. Harlan Watson, Senior Climate Negotiator and Special Representative, U.S. Department of State, presented an "Overview of U.S. Climate Change Policy" and Dr. Margo Thorning, ICCF Managing Director, discussed "The Cost of the Kyoto Protocol: Moving Forward on Climate Change Policy While Preserving Economic Growth."

Click here to see Dr. Watson's presentation.

Click here to read the executive summary of new studies presented by Dr. Thorning.

Dr. Margo Thorning, Managing Director of the International Council for Capital Formation, presented the results of new studies of the economic cost of reducing carbon dioxide emissions in all sectors of the economy in Italy, Spain and the UK at a workshop (click here for the program) in Brussels hosted by the ICCF on 18 October, 2005.

"Implementing limits on carbon dioxide emissions would dramatically increase delivered prices of energy to consumers and businesses, even with the availability of credits," Dr. Thorning told workshop participants.

On 15 November, 2005 ICCF released a new study of the economic cost of reducing carbon dioxide emissions in all sectors of the German economy. Click here to read the study in English.

Click here to read all four studies.

Studies of the economic impact of the costs of the Kyoto Protocol to four key European economies released by the International Council for Capital Formation have been the focus of media coverage in the UK, U.S., China and New Zealand, as well as on syndicated radio broadcasts around the world.

To read a sampling of the press coverage, please click here.

ICCF Managing Director, Dr. Margo Thorning, made a presentation on The Cost of the Kyoto Protocol: Can We Move Forward without Harming Economic Growth at an energy policy conference on 26 October 2005 in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The conference, "The Future of Energy - Combat for Energy Sources," brought together representatives from the energy industry as well as from the public sector. The forum was organized by GV Izobraževanje. Slovenian State Secretary Marko Starman opened the event, which was sponsored by Siemens and Eco Consulting.

To read Dr. Thorning's presentation, click here.

Dr. Margo Thorning, managing director of the ICCF, presents an analysis on Climate Change Policy: Cost Effective Strategies on April 28, 2005 in Brussels at a breakfast hosted by the U.S. Mission. The breakfast was attended by companies from both the United States and Europe to discuss climate change policy.

Click Here to Read Dr. Thorning's Presentation

Dr. Margo Thorning, Managing Director, International Council for Capital Formation, urged in a letter to the editor in the July-August edition of E! Sharp that economic growth is a viable solution to climate change. In her letter, Dr. Thorning, stated that research showed that if economic freedom and growth could be accelerated in developing countries then emissions intensity would decline as these countries became richer.

Click Here to Read Dr. Thorning's Letter

Read presentations by leading think tanks at a workshop in Brussels cosponsored by the International Council for Capital Formation, Centre for the New Europe, Istituto Bruno Leoni and Institut Economique, Molinari. The think tanks warned that Europe's current approach to tackling climate change will seriously jeopardise the health of its economy over the next two decades. The workshop was hosted by the European Parliament's Vice President, Mr. Vidal-Quadras Roca, and Mr. Giles Chichester, MEP and chairman of the EP Committee on Industry, Research and Energy.

Click Here to Read the Presentations

During his remarks, Dr. Illarionov addressed the misconception that ratification suits Russia because the country would be a net seller of emissions credits.

"Simply not true," Dr. Illarionov said, explaining that given Russia's recent history (6.5% annual economic growth over the last five years), the country would be a seller of credits for just a short time. Russia would become a buyer of credits shortly after entering the Protocol's 2nd commitment period. The second commitment period requires Russia to reduce its emissions by 58% by 2050, roughly 3% a year.

"Russia would have an economy the size of Estonia," Dr. Illarionov added.

Read Dr. Illarionov's Slide Presentation.

ICCF jointly hosted a seminar, with the Istituto Bruno Leoni on market-oriented pension reform on 17 June in Milan. The keynote speaker was Jose Pinera, the internationally renowned expert on pension privatisation, and chief architect of Chile's successful pension reform programme.

Other speakers included:

*Giancarlo Pagliani, former Italian Minister of Budget, and
*Tiziano Treu, former Italian Minister for Labour.

Read the ICCF paper and coverage by Il Sole 24 ORE.

At "Are we ready for COP 9?", a forum hosted by Alejo Vidal-Quadras Roca, Vice President of the European Parliament, and sponsored by the International Council for Capital Formation and FORATOM, policy experts debated the question of whether the economic models currently employed by environmental policymakers throughout Europe provide an accurate picture of the full economic costs of compliance with the Kyoto protocol.

Read the Speakers' Presentations.

Carlo Stangnaro, Direttore, Ecologia di mercato, Instituto Bruno Leoni cited an ICCF climate control study in a front page article appearing on October 16, 2004 in the L’Indipendente. Click here for full article in Italian. To learn more about the Instituto Bruno Leoni, please visit them at www.brunoleoni.it.

On Tuesday, December 14th, the International Council for Capital Formation (ICCF) hosted a panel of climate change experts for the attendees of COP 10 in Buenos Aires.

"Increased economic freedom is the best way to promote cleaner energy use in developing countries," asserted Dr. Thorning. "Economic freedom positively impacts economic growth; faster economic growth is linked with reduced energy intensity and lower emissions per dollar of output. In other words, a focus on economic growth is a surer path forward in addressing climate change. Policies like the Kyoto Protocol aren't a step forward; they're actually a step backward because they impede economic growth with virtually no positive environmental benefits."

Read the Speaker's Presentations