BY CAITLYN JONSSON
Capitalism’s reliance on short-term profits over long-term sustainability renders the private sector unwilling to lead the charge into a cleaner energy landscape, argued author Brett Christophers at the New School on October 26.
In a conversation moderated by journalist Kate Aronoff, Christophers highlighted points from his book The Price is Wrong: Why Capitalism Won’t Save the Planet alongside historian Adam Tooze. Christophers outlined the financial model capitalist countries function under as one of the greatest obstacles in the transition to renewable energy.
The transition to renewable energy is essential to mitigate the impacts of human greenhouse gas emissions, particularly carbon dioxide and methane. Burning fossil fuels accounted for 74% of greenhouse gas emissions in 2022, according to the Energy Information Administration, with 2023 being the hottest year in recorded history.
In the United States, most electricity is generated with non-renewable energy. According to the Energy Information Administration, fossil fuels accounted for 60% of U.S. electricity generation in 2023. Christophers argues that “electricity generation is right at the heart of the climate problem as it currently exists.”
Though there are initiatives in place to combat reliance on fossil fuels, such as the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act in New York, Christophers and Tooze argued that reliance on the free market and profitability needs to be shifted. Rather than relying on the for-profit private sector, governments need to re-center their focus on the public sector in order to meaningfully combat fossil-fuel emissions.
Renewable energy technologies are affordable, but the returns they yield are often too low to attract investors. While major corporations like Amazon and Microsoft have committed to 10-year fixed-rate renewable energy contracts, Christophers questioned whether the commitment of businesses is enough to address the economic issues limiting renewable energy’s growth.
In terms of U.S. policy, the Inflation Reduction Act has created tax incentives to promote renewables, aiming to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by about 40% by 2030. While Christophers acknowledged that these credits are a positive step, he expressed concerns about their long-term effectiveness. The IRA’s incentives do not offer the stability or predictability that long-term renewable projects require, meaning the private sector’s willingness to invest remains inconsistent. Instead of relying solely on tax incentives, Christophers suggested that the government could lead renewable projects directly, making it less dependent on the unreliable interests of the market.
Christophers highlighted the limited support available for renewable initiatives in the Global South, where clean energy infrastructure is urgently needed but is often neglected due to insufficient funding. Tooze mirrored these concerns and emphasized that while these regions experience the highest need for renewable solutions, their potential remains underfunded in a market system focused on profit.