Monica Araya The billiondollar campaign to electrify transport TED Countdown
Chris Anderson: A year go at global
Countdown’s virtual launch,
Monica Araya, who,
among many other things,
is a distinguished fellow
at the ClimateWorks Foundation,
she shared news of a campaign
to take on the massive emissions
from the world’s cars,
trucks and buses, etc.
And we have an exciting update
that we want to share with you.
Monica, welcome here
to the Countdown stage.
Monica Araya: Thank you.
It’s so great to be here,
and so great to see you in person.
(Applause)
CA: So look, you’re up
against a vast industry.
I mean, there are more than a billion
polluting vehicles out there.
How on Earth can you attempt
system change at that scale?
MA: Well, that is the point that,
because of the scale
and because of the speed
that we need to inject
into this transformation,
we have to work with all the levers
of change simultaneously.
That’s the key point.
So, cities, we have to engage with cities.
That’s great.
Not enough.
We have to engage with politicians.
We have to engage
with the companies themselves.
We have to create business coalitions.
And we also have to empower citizens
so that they play their act.
Ultimately, we know
that we have to create political space
for stricter regulations for policy.
So that is something
we are doing right now.
CA: In a sense, these
aren’t separate initiatives.
They all build on each other?
MA: Exactly.
So think about an automaker.
Maybe we have some in the room.
So you’re not going to give up
your profits just like this.
But.
If you hear that so many
cities start saying
no more petrol and diesel cars
are going to circulate in our streets;
and you hear the politicians saying
that life is going to get
more difficult for fossil fuels;
and you turn on the TV
and you see millions of people saying,
you know, we’re angry
about the products that you’re making;
and you look at the demand
and you look at companies that are saying,
“You know what? We’re switching.
It’s working. We’re saving money.”
Then you have to act.
CA: But how could you take on
all these agendas at once?
MA: That’s the point.
You can’t do just one thing,
or you can’t just expect
one single organization to do this.
So this is the exciting news.
A group of over 70 – seven, zero –
organizations are coming together,
creating a coalition, a global campaign,
we call it Drive Electric,
and it’s already shaking things up.
CA: How so?
MA: Well, the best thing would be
to give you one example from this year.
So partners of this coalition
have done an amazing job
persuading the European Commission
to propose that after 2035,
there will be no more sales
of petrol and diesel cars.
And this alone was
unthinkable two years ago.
And even though I mentioned in Europe,
the progress is happening from China
to California, everything in between,
including the small countries.
CA: So Monica, what’s the overall goal
of the Drive Electric campaign?
MA: Well, we have to persuade the world
to do exactly what I just mentioned,
and actually in some cities
and some countries,
you can actually go faster.
And the point is that we need
to set these timelines,
make it normal, you know.
Say, after this year, say, 2035,
we’re not going to sell
more petrol and diesel cars.
And now our campaign works
with all segments.
So we say, buses 2030, trucks 2040.
And if we want to get there,
if we say we have to be here by 2035,
then the next five years are so critical.
So that is what we have to achieve.
You know, we have to get
to these mark and tipping point.
CA: But just to play
devil’s advocate there.
MA: I know you like to do that.
CA: Well, you know.
MA: It’s OK.
CA: Wouldn’t some people say
that actually were kind of already
at that tipping point?
And that in a sense,
the move to electrification
is already inevitable?
MA: Thank you,
because that’s a very important question.
You know, it reflects
that we’re making progress,
and that’s a good thing.
So somebody could say, well, you know,
let’s take Tesla, you know,
super pioneering,
deserves a lot of credit.
And yet if we look at our partners,
early on, they advocated the very policies
to promote early adoption
of electric vehicles.
So timing is everything.
We cannot waste any time.
So if you look at the progress
we’re making, yes, it’s there,
and yet, only one percent
of the global stock of cars and trucks
is electric right now.
So we have to keep that in mind
and also, you know,
coming from a developing country myself,
Costa Rica, as you know,
I would not say that in the global South,
this is already inevitable.
In fact, when you look
at some industry projections,
you still find that at least
some companies see
a lot of fossil fuel cars
in their future up to 2050.
CA: OK, so if that’s still happening
in 2050, we’re screwed.
So the goal of the campaign is basically
to accelerate that by how much?
MA: So here’s the point.
The campaign in the next year
is going to accelerate this 20 years,
Twenty years, make it happen faster.
And we calculate that –
I know you like the numbers –
(CA laughs)
So we calculate that doing that faster
will save the planet
160 gigatons of CO2 equivalent.
CA: Wow. 160 billion tons of CO2.
On my maths,
that’s more than three years' worth
of humanity’s entire emissions,
excess emissions.
So that’s a huge, huge number.
But, look, you’re up against
industries that are, you know,
getting trillions of dollars
of revenue annually.
How can your coalition
possibly take that on?
MA: Well, there is opposition,
and the more progress we make,
the more the opposition gets activated.
So that’s why we’re saying Drive Electric
is the most ambitious coalition
and campaign in our space ever undertaken.
And what we need to make sure
is that we grow it,
we grow the partners and we secure
funding for what they do
because they are playing a key role
in their geographies,
playing all these levers.
So we have to make sure they get
the resources to work on the ground.
CA: So you’re raising money,
not just for ClimateWorks
but for all of these partners.
MA: Yes.
CA: How much is it going to take?
MA: For the next five years,
roughly one billion dollars.
CA: I mean, Monica, as you know,
when I when first heard that number,
I said, “No way.”
I mean, you’re looking for this
from philanthropists.
There’s no precedent for that.
And yet this is kind of where
the exciting news comes in,
because …
Drive Electric and TED and Countdown
and a coalition of visionary donors
called the Audacious Project
have been working together on this,
and just a few weeks ago,
something kind of amazing happened.
We were able to secure a commitment
from them for how much?
MA: 300 million dollars.
(Applause)
CA: This was really exciting,
and it builds on a couple hundred million
already committed by the founding
donors of Drive Electric,
so that we’re already over halfway
to your billion-dollar goal, right?
So how is this? How does this feel?
Where are you now?
MA: It’s electrifying.
(Laughter)
But I mean, I know
there partners are here,
I can see where they are sitting,
from foundations,
I’m sure Anthony’s somewhere here.
We are so excited
because we have come to a point
where we know this campaign
is unstoppable.
And in short, you know,
we are going to make sure
that all of this gets translated
into all these strategies
that we have to deploy
in the key geographies.
And, think about the fact
that this is happening
just as we move to COP.
So that is also very good news.
CA: And everyone in this room
can actually play a part.
Or indeed, if you’re watching online.
If you live in a city,
please advocate to create
and expand a green zone
where only electric vehicles are welcome.
If you work in government,
raise your level of ambition.
Ignore the fossilized lobbyists.
This is a winning political issue for you.
MA: If you are a citizen,
consider not buying
an internal-combustion car.
And why not share it?
Share it with friends,
share it in your social media.
If you are a creative,
if you are an influencer,
if you’re an artist, help us.
We need to find new and better ways
of telling the story.
CA: And finally, if you work for a company
that makes or uses cars, trucks,
motorized vehicles of any kind,
do what you can to urge them
to get on the right side of history.
I mean, Monica, what do you think,
can we actually do this?
MA: Yes, we have to work
together, go faster.
And let me finish by saying this.
This campaign is about
changing transportation,
with all the benefits that that brings
to people and the planet.
And yet,
it is also about showing how
systems change works in practice
and making sure it happens
everywhere else.
So let’s do it.
CA: Thank you, Monica.
Thank you, everyone.
(Applause)