Åbning af OECD-konference om grøn it

Mister Secretary-General. Ladies and gentlemen. It is an honour to welcome you all here in Denmark to this OECD conference on ICTs, the environment and climate change.

Many of you will know the town of Helsingør as "Elsinore" from Shakespeare's "Hamlet". Inspired by Hamlet, I think we can sum up the theme of this conference as: To be or not to be – green – that is the question.

The historic setting of this conference must inspire us to think about the future. Because there is no doubt that the world is facing an emerging climate crisis.

However, the global agenda is currently also occupied with a deep economic crisis. The economic crisis has very serious short term effects. People lose jobs, businesses close and property prizes are falling.

The effects of the climate crisis, on the other hand, are primarily long term. That does not mean that we can ignore the climate crisis. No. We can, we must and we will address this crisis.

The climate crisis must be addressed immediately – along with the economic crisis. Otherwise, climate change may reach a level where damages cannot be undone. And, where the world is left in a state of emergency. That will certainly be worse for the economy. Therefore, we must act. Now!

Fortunately, we can deal with both the economic crisis and the climate crisis at the same time. At this conference we talk about the role of ICTs in fighting climate change.

Certainly, technology will also play a vital role in any strategy to overcome the economic crisis. In fact, green ICT opens a door to new opportunities to growth and a low carbon society. Through green innovation we can create new technologies, new markets and new jobs. The goal, in short, is green growth.

Green ICT

In the years to come, green ICT will become more important. CO2 emissions from the use of ICTs are a cause of concern. With more than a billion computers worldwide, we are all responsible for huge emissions.

But as you all know, ICTs are also a vital part of the solution. I believe that we can only reach a high growth, low carbon society through intelligent use of modern technologies.

The OECD countries are the richest and most advanced economies in the world. This status comes with great opportunities and great responsibilities.

We must lead. If we do not, no one will follow. We must focus on new, low carbon technologies. And we must spread the belief that thinking green leads to black numbers on the bottom line.

So fighting climate change and fighting recession are not opposites. No, they supplement each other. In fact, together they can lead to new opportunities for growth.

The future belongs to those that realize this. And we must direct our efforts towards the challenges of the future. Challenges such as global warming and climate change.

COP 15 and Green ICT

In December this year, Denmark will be hosting the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP15. The Danish Government will work hard to secure a binding agreement on CO2 reductions.

The conference here in Helsingør will promote the role of ICTs as a way of reaching a low carbon society. Thanks to new technologies we can create a future where living standards will continue to rise. And importantly, rise without damaging the global ecosystem. Therefore this conference must reach a better understanding of the relationship between ICTs and the challenges of the environment.

I trust you will all enjoy the conference and your stay here in Denmark. Thank you.