Jeff Bezos pledged $2 billion to battle climate change after launching a space tourism project and flying on a private jet to attend a climate summit.
AMAZON founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos announced a $2 billion in funding to help restore nature and transform food systems at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26).
As part of a larger $10 billion pledge from the Bezos Earth Fund, the billionaire commits $1 billion to support landscape restoration and the other $1 billion for food and agricultural systems.
“We must conserve what we still have, we must restore what we’ve lost and we must grow what we need to live without degrading the planet for future generations,” Bezos said during his speech at COP26.
Climate activists quickly picked up on Bezos’ words as Amazon admitted on its 2020 report its carbon footprint had risen by 19% in a rush to deliver the surge of orders during the pandemic.
Critics also noted that Bezos flew to the summit on a private jet, which is known to produce ten times the amount of carbon per passenger.
Bezos has also been focusing on his space exploration company, Blue Origin, since stepping down as Amazon CEO in July.
The project has been seen by many to be very damaging to the environment.
One of the biggest critics of space tourism is Prince William, Duke of Cambridge who spoke earlier in October that taking off to space isn’t a real solution.
William said that he had “absolutely no interest” in going to space, adding that there was a “fundamental question” over the carbon cost of space flights.
"We need some of the world's greatest brains and minds fixed on trying to repair this planet, not trying to find the next place to go and live," the duke said.
The royal met with Bezos at the climate conference andchatted about William’s Eathshor Prize, a royal foundation awarding individuals for their contributions to environment.
It’s safe to say that the meeting raised a few eyebrows.
Commentators felt it was already hypocritical for Bezos to attend COP26 and pledge $2 billion.
To be fair, Blue Origin’s rocket, New Shepard, runs on fuel combining liquid hydrogen and liquid hydrogen, therefore, containing no carbon to emit carbon dioxide upon launch.
The main emissions from Bezos’s rocket would be “water and some minor combustion products, and virtually no CO2,” said Darin Toohey, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Colorado.
“Nature is beautiful but it is also fragile,” Bezos told COP26 delegates on Tuesday. “I was reminded of this in July when I went into space with Blue Origin.”
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