Market, Policy and Technological Framework

At Ford, we accept that simply "not getting worse" is not good enough. The auto industry, along with suppliers, government, the fuel industry and consumers, need to work together to reduce CO2 levels from transportation so we can help bring down atmospheric CO2 concentrations. To achieve real and lasting results, all global stakeholders must make long-term commitments for a sustainable future.

It's important to note, though, that the auto industry is only one part of the problem and can be only one part of the solution. Addressing the linked issues of climate change and energy security requires an integrated approach – a partnership of all stakeholders, including the automotive industry, the fuel industry, other industries and enterprises, government and consumers. It will also require the best thinking from all of these sectors.

Ford is involved in numerous partnerships and alliances with universities, coalitions, NGOs and other companies to improve our understanding of climate change. For example, Ford is:

• A member of the United States Climate Action Partnership (USCAP), an alliance of major businesses and leading climate and environmental groups that have come together to develop an economy-wide, market-driven approach to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as discussed later in this section.
• Working closely with BP to explore vehicle and low-carbon fuel technologies.
• Working with the World Resources Institute on the EMBARQ Istanbul project to reduce vehicle emissions and traffic congestion in that city.
• A founding member of the Carbon Mitigation Initiative at Princeton University to study the fundamental scientific, environmental and technical issues related to carbon management.
• A charter member of the Sustainable Transportation Energy Pathways Program at the University of California-Davis Institute of Transportation Studies, which aims to compare the societal and technical benefits of alternative sustainable fuel pathways.
• A member of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Climate Change.

Our participation in these and other partnerships helps us to formulate improved strategies for products and policies that will in turn help to address climate change and energy security.

We try to bring these perspectives to our participation in public policy development. Climate change and the closely related concerns of energy security and fuel prices are global issues, but policy approaches vary regionally. Everywhere we operate, we seek to be a constructive partner in developing policies that will be effective and efficient in reducing GHG emissions. In this section, we describe our perspective and policy activities in the United States and Europe, two of our major markets.