You can be on Entrepreneur’s cover!

4 Reasons Business Leaders Should Support the Paris Climate Accord Entrepreneurs see problems as opportunities. Avoiding a climate catastrophe is the biggest business opportunity in the world.

By Tom Alexander

entrepreneur daily

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Michael Nigro | Getty Images

Whether you live an environmentally-conscious green lifestyle or just like green in your pocket, there are myriad of reasons why business leaders must act swiftly in support of the Paris Climate Accord.

Recently, the U.S. Conference of Mayors became the latest political group to pledge support for the Accord independent of the federal government. American big businesses have also come out in full force. Apple, Google, HP, JP Morgan and many other large companies took out full page ads in the New York times and Wall Street Journal urging the president to reconsider withdrawal from the Accord for business reasons that included strengthening competitiveness, creating job growth and reducing risks that come with an unstable and erratic climate.

The business community has an unrivaled ability to affect change when it bands together to wield the power of the purse. Just ask Bill O'Reilly, the FOX News cash cow who was terminated when advertising dollars dried up amidst multiple allegations of sexual harassment.

We cannot afford to let our multinational corporations fight this fight alone. Businesses of all sizes must lend support in whatever form they can. In our case, we just launched the first service that delivers ads based on weather conditions in real time. Though we know it is just a drop in the proverbial bucket, we are offering this service – a critical piece of our Q3 business plan -- for free through the end of summer as our way of showing support.

Related: Business Leaders Slam Trump's Decision to Withdraw From Paris Climate Accord

For a variety of macro and micro reasons, American business leaders must understand that any short-term losses will pale in comparison to the long-term implications of inaction. Here are four reasons business leaders should support the Paris Climate Accord:

1. To remain the economic superpower instead of falling behind China and India.

The PWC report: The World in 2050 projects that China and India will overtake the United States as world's economic superpower sooner than later. If that happens, it will be a devastating blow to our economy.

While the Trump administration is boasting about adding 6,600 coal jobs in May -- a disputed number, incidentally -- it is abundantly clear that bringing back a relatively few coal jobs is not going to stave off India and China in the long run. In fact, the U.S. Department of Energy's January report showed solar has more than twice as many U.S. jobs than coal -- 374,000 versus 160,000. If we want to remain the world's economic superpower, we must continue to innovate and lead the global economy.

Related: Companies That Care About Climate Change Make More Money

2. To sell your products from Pittsburgh to Paris.

Although Trump said he was elected to represent the people of Pittsburgh and not Paris, it is ironic because the rise of ecommerce, digital and social media has allowed companies to overcome geographic limitations that previous generations could not. The U.S. Census Bureau noted that 408,000 companies in the United States traded goods internationally in 2015. The majority are small and medium-sized enterprises with fewer than 500 employees. By cooperating with other nations, it will ensure our ability to make products in Pittsburgh and sell them in Paris.

Related: Gates, Bezos and Others Invest $1 Billion in Clean Energy

3. To create business plans for 2050, not 1950.

Following Trump's speech, Tesla CEO Elon Musk resigned from the president's business advisory council. "Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world," he tweeted.

The low-carbon economy championed by the Paris Agreement represents the fastest growing energy sector for job growth. That is why more than 280 institutional investors are pushing to honor the agreement. To experience long-term growth, companies must be forward-thinking and focus on planning for 2050 and not 1950.

Related: Tech Giant Amazon Wants To Run On Solar Energy

4. To save America's brand and help your own.

Our country's brand reputation is taking a big hit on the world stage. Withdrawing from the Paris Climate Accord aligns us with only two United Nations countries -- Syria and Nicaragua. Companies that act will receive positive publicity which helps boost profits.

"For consumer-facing companies in particular, it's not popular to oppose the Paris agreement," Bill McKibben, a Middlebury College professor and globally famous climate activist, said correctly on CBS.

Related: Forget Solar Panels -- Elon Musk Wants to Build Solar Roofs

The bottom line is that whatever your position is on climate change, there are too many critical business reasons to not be on the right side of history on this issue. American companies of all shapes and sizes must band together for the environmental and financial health of our country and planet.

Tom Alexander

Founder and CEO, PK4 Media.

Tom Alexander is founder and CEO of PK4 Media, a true omnichannel media company located in El Segundo, Calif. With more than 13 years of experience in digital advertising, Alexander has a keen understanding of the industry and the voids in the marketplace. As a result, in PK4 Media’s platform, XPS, he has developed a single system that controls delivery and optimization -- providing advertisers an effective and efficient way to achieve results.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Growing a Business

To Achieve Sustainable Success, You Need to Stop Focusing on Disruption. Here's Why — and What You Must Focus on Instead.

Instead of zeroing in solely on disruptive innovation, embrace a pragmatic approach to innovation, recognizing and leveraging the potential within ongoing industry shifts.

Business News

Mark Zuckerberg Says This CEO Is the 'Taylor Swift' of Tech

Meta's CEO posed with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang on Instagram Wednesday.

Real Estate

3 Emerging Trends Shaping the Future of Real Estate

These three innovations are reshaping the real estate industry — discover tips for effectively covering these trends.

Leadership

What We Have to Gain By Talking About Grief and Loss At Work

I lost my husband to cancer during Covid — here's how it changed how I lead at work.

Side Hustle

This Mom Started a Side Hustle After a 'Shocking' Realization in the Toy Aisle. Her Product Was in Macy's Within the Year — Seeing Nearly $350,000 in Sales.

Elenor Mak, now founder of Jilly Bing, didn't plan to start a business — but the search for a doll that looked like her daughter inspired her to do just that.

Fundraising

Avoid These 9 Pitch Deck Mistakes When Asking Others For Money

Crafting an efficient pitch deck requires serious effort, but at least it's not wandering in the dark since certain rules are shaped by decades of relationships between startups and investors.