The co-organizers

The three co-organizers each have a different perspective on climate change: the Club of Madrid as a network of former heads of state and government from all over the world, the Bellona Foundation as a solutions-oriented environmental campaign organization and Hafslund as an energy company deeply committed to the development of renewable energy.

The Club of Madrid is an independent organization dedicated to strengthening democracy around the world by drawing on the unique experience and resources of its Members – 70 democratic former heads of state and government. In partnership with other organizations and governments that share its democracy-promotion goals, the Club of Madrid provides peer to peer counsel, strategic support and technical advice to leaders and institutions working towards democratic transition and consolidation. With offices in Madrid, Brussels and Washington DC, the Club of Madrid deliberates on major global issues affecting sustainable democratic development and identified climate change as one such issue. The organization also develops its Global Leadership for Climate Action (GLCA) Initiative, jointly with the United Nations Foundation, to mobilize political will for far-reaching, long-term action to prevent catastrophic climate change. In parallel, the Club of Madrid is also involved in ensuring direct contribution from business, legislators and civil society to the post Kyoto negotiations, through the Road to Copenhagen 2009 initiative.

The Bellona Foundation was founded in 1986 as a direct-action protest group, but has become a recognized technologically-oriented, solutions-oriented organization with offices in Oslo, Murmansk, St. Petersburg, Brussels and Washington D.C. Bellona seeks to find sustainable solutions to the world’s most pressing environmental problems. Climate change is an enormous challenge, one that requires a clear-cut body of laws and predictable framework conditions for industry and consumers. Bellona strives to build bridges between politicians and the business community by working closely with the latter to help them respond to environmental challenges in their fields, with particular emphasis on the development and commercialization of new, more environmentally friendly technology (www.bellona.no / www.bellona.org).

Hafslund ASA is Norway’s largest net owner, largest distributor of electricity, and a major producer of renewable energy. Hafslund is also one of the biggest owners of the solar energy company REC. Renewable energy and enhanced energy efficiency are key elements in the quest for a resolution to the challenges of climate change, and Hafslund has been producing electricity from environmentally friendly hydropower for more than a century. Now the company is heavily committed to the development of bioenergy, distance heating and solar energy in order to meet the energy needs of the future (www.hafslund.no).