City of Dallas participates in Climate Extremes Conference
The City of Dallas, Hunt Institute of Southern Methodist University, the Consul General of France, and a host of community partners participated in a first-of-its-kind event Sept. 17 at SMU’s Martha Proctor Mack Ballroom.
The Climate Extremes Conference took place in advance of the 21st Conference of Parties in Paris in December to bring together businesses, non-profits, academia, civic leaders and the public to discuss the challenges Texas faces as a result of climate changes.
In addition to Mayor Mike Rawlings, speakers at the event included SMU Provost Harold Stanley; Consul General of France Sujiro Seam; Dr. Eva Csaky, Executive Director of the Hunt Institute; Patrick Caron, Director General of Research and Strategy at CIRAD; Trammell S. Crow, Founder of Earth Day Texas.
A group of panelists, moderated by KERA-TV Host Lee Cullum included Dr. Bruce McCarl, Distinguished Professor at Texas A&M University; Russell Laughlin, Senior Vice President of Hillwood Properties; Janette Monear, President and CEO of Texas Trees Foundation; Jill Jordan, Dallas Assistant City Manager; Drew Byrd, Cities and Urban Infrastructure Program Director at Schneider Electric; and, Garrett Boone, co-founder and Chairman Emeritus of the Container Store and Chairman of Treehouse. Take-away remarks were given by Hunt Institute Communications Director Chris Kelley.
“As a business, the added costs of cooling our buildings and protecting our workers from excess heat impact your bottom line,” Mayor Rawlings said. “The cost of getting raw materials through storm ravaged areas can hold up production and cut into profit margins. And the fluctuating costs of a carbon based transit system can impact your ability to forecast future growth.”
Rawlings acknowledged measures the City of Dallas is undertaking to address climate change and improve the environment. He also announced his support for the Mayors National Climate Action Agenda, led by Mayors Parker of Houston, Garcetti of Los Angeles, and Nutter of Philadelphia that calls for binding emissions reductions at the national level and support for the United States at the 2015 Conference of Parties in Paris to reduce carbon output worldwide.
The Mayor also pledged that the City of Dallas will support the U.S. Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Agreement approved in Dallas in 2014.
“We will commit to reducing our emissions as an organization and look for ways to encourage the community to do their part. We will look for ways to further protect the environment, create a sustainable city, and build resiliency into our infrastructure so that generations from now, our great grandchildren can meet in a room like this and be proud of what we have accomplished.”
Attendees included students from the Dallas International School, staff from the City of Dallas and surrounding municipalities, Dallas City Council members and Dallas County officials, leaders of advocacy, non-profit, and institutes of higher learning, champions of businesses both local and world-wide, and the sponsors, including Earth Day Texas, Schneider Electric and Air Liquide.
