MARK FULTON, Deutsche Bank: It's a call to action for the
policymakers, for the people to think about asking their governments to
continue doing action on this topic.
HEIDI CULLEN: The carbon counter was modeled on the debt
clock, which tracks the nation's debt.
KEVIN PARKER, Deutsche Bank: Many of us from the city who
have visited the city are familiar with the old deficit counter. It just had a
profound impact on people of making them aware of the federal deficit.
HEIDI CULLEN: That rang true for one New Yorker.
NEW YORK
WOMAN: Yes, the numbers remind me of the national debt. It's only now that
people are really thinking about the national debt, because everyone is really
being impacted economically.
HEIDI CULLEN: Still, the deficit has soared in recent years,
despite efforts to publicize it. And some people in New York are skeptical that a carbon counter
will make much difference, either.
NEW YORK
MAN: A lot of people see that number and won't even know what it means or won't
even pay attention to that, because that's how New Yorkers are. They just walk
and go about their business.
NEW YORK
WOMAN: I don't really want to see it, because I kind of enjoy living in my
ignorant bliss at times.
HEIDI CULLEN: The scientists and economists who consulted
with Deutsche Bank on the project had two prime motives: awareness and policy
changes.
JOHN REILLY, MIT:
Thank you. I'm very pleased to be here today.
HEIDI CULLEN: MIT's John Reilly.
JOHN REILLY, Massachusetts Institute of Technology: We need
a cap-and-trade system that will create a price on carbon. Once that's in
place, then we need institutions to bring investors with money to projects that
can solve this problem.
And that's the role that Deutsche Bank, I think, hopes to
play. Obviously, they hope to make money out of that, but that's the way the
market system works, by creating opportunities.
ROB SOCOLOW, Princeton
University: I have hopes
that this counter will find its way into high school classrooms, into the
discussion of the general public. If we start becoming more conscious of the
fact that we're changing the planet, if we can get that into our heads, then
this isn't Republican or Democrat. This is just how it is.
HEIDI CULLEN: Deutsche bank is considering installing
similar carbon counters in other locations around the globe. But for now, it is
waiting to see whether this billboard has any impact on greenhouse gas
emissions.
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