Opinion | Would Russia or China Help Us if We Were Invaded by Space Aliens?

Instead of an arms race or space race, what we need is a race for the earth – a competition between the great powers to see which country will rise the fastest and the furthest to enable a world with net zero carbon emissions for men and women to be here on Earth can thrive. I would love to see Biden deliver a real blow to Xi and Putin in his Glasgow speech for this race.

Biden could say, “I know that climate change is a global problem and that if we clean our air and you don’t yours, there is no solution. But we’re not going to use that as an excuse or let our oil and coal industry use it as an excuse not to do anything until you do. Because there are 7.9 billion people on the planet today and by 2030 there will be 600 million more – 600 million more! That means, whether climate change or no climate change, only when so many more people are to be fed, housed and transported, it is guaranteed that clean electricity, clean water and energy-efficient buildings and cars will be the next big global industry. Otherwise we will all suffocate from pollution. So if you all want to keep burning coal and give our clean industries a five-year head start in the next big global industry, make my day. I myself will declare America’s intention to win the race for the earth, make America the first to invent and use the cleanest energy technologies and drive them down the cost curve so everyone in the world can afford them. ”

Challenging China and Russia, who can produce the most tools for global resilience, not just resistance, is a way for America to regain some moral leadership on the world stage and to align our economy and our competitors with the major industries of the future. If we humans don’t want to be a bad biological experiment, a zero-carbon grid, zero-emissions transportation, zero-carbon / zero-net-energy building, and zero-waste production will – and must – actually be the next big thing be global industry.

By the way, while Russia isn’t a player in this competition right now, I wouldn’t bet against China.

Hal Harvey, who heads climate analyst firm Energy Innovation and advises governments on moving to clean energy, notes that the United States has set a very clear target of when to achieve a zero carbon economy – 2050 – and Biden is now trying to fill in the details with specific plans. Unfortunately without a single vote of support from the Republicans.

In contrast, Harvey added, China is creating incredibly detailed decarbonization plans that Beijing could expand very quickly – but it was less detailed in setting tough deadlines for fulfillment.

With Xi currently focused on sustaining the growth of the Chinese economy as he seeks to secure his third term as president, he will do nothing to curb growth in China in ways that could affect its popularity. So China will burn a lot of coal for a while. But don’t be fooled: Beijing is also building huge amounts of solar, wind, hydro and nuclear power. It’s game on.