Apple CEO Tim Cook on climate change: No trade-off between economy and environment

"We know we will not make enough of a difference if we only solve our little piece of the world," says Apple CEO, adding there is no credibility to the notion "there’s a trade-off between the economy and [protecting] the environment."
By Matt Bradwell  |  Sept. 22, 2014 at 3:45 PM
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NEW YORK, Sept. 22 (UPI) -- Apple CEO Tim Cook took the stage in New York to discuss sustainability, climate change and what his company is doing to make the world a greener place.

"There's no one out there who wants the planet to continue to go in the wrong direction," Cook said Monday to kick off of Climate Week NYC, which is being held to coincide with the United Nations' Climate Change Summit.

"Consumers are very smart and the vast majority of the world wants to do the right thing," added the self-described optimist.

For Apple, doing the right thing means environmentally efficient supply chains, products that meet a high standard of sustainability, and setting an example across the industry -- efforts Cook described as "dirty and detailed work."

"The long term consequence of not addressing climate are huge. I don't think anyone can overstate that ... Something like climate [change], human rights, and education -- we feel deeply about these, these are at the core of who we are, deep in our values! We know we will not make enough of a difference if we only solve our little piece of the world, that we need to be one of the pebbles in the pond that creates the ripple."

While those skeptical of climate change often cite the hypothetical economic risks of increased regulations, Cook wrote off those concerns as lacking innovation.

"You look at what are the root causes [of climate change], and you're not accepting that there's a trade-off between the economy and the environment. If you innovate and you set the bar high, you will find a way to do both and that you must do both, because the long-term consequences of not addressing the environment are huge."

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