Chicago Sun-Times Op-Ed: Climate Change Demands Global Solutions, Not Local Lawsuits

By MAP Special Counsel Phil Goldberg and Illinois Manufacturers’ Association President and CEO Mark Denzler

Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time. We need serious solutions, and that requires an all-hands-on-deck approach to developing the technologies and policies that will enable the world to produce and use energy that is sustainable for people and the planet.

Thanks to the ingenuity and innovation of American manufacturers, we are making headway. Manufacturers have reduced greenhouse gas emissions more than any other sector since 1990. The industry remains focused on identifying ways to meet the world’s sustainability goals.

That is why we disagree with Chicago’s recent decision to sue various oil companies in an effort to make them pay the city for the impacts of global climate change. The lawsuit names the companies that provide all of us with the energy we need to live our lives — from heating our homes to turning on our lights to powering our factories. Other similar lawsuits name companies that produce the food we eat.

Read the full op-ed here.