TCP President & CEO Ellis Yan Delivers Address at The U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Summit
The following is the text TCP , Inc. President and CEO Ellis Yan's Address at The United States Conference Of Mayors Climate Protection Summit in Seattle.
"It is a great honor to be joining all of you today as you continue your significant journey and your commitment to reduce carbon emissions in your communities. The impact of your work, to protect our planet, will be felt generations from now. That is powerful. That excites me. That makes me hopeful for the future.
"Energy efficiency - energy efficient lighting - has been my passion for more then 20 years. But today, I feel so excited because everybody in this room has the same passion as I do. It is also the foundation TCP was built on. Today we are the largest manufacturer of compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) in the world. Everyday, we manufacture more than one million CFLs. I’m so proud to tell you, the CFLs we are making, account for a reduction in greenhouse emissions of 50,000 tons per day. Think about that - 50,000 tons per day.
"And, we are also responsible for 70 percent of the market, so we are responsible for 70 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions reductions in this country contributed by CFLs. Just think and imagine what our one-day production capacity can do for your city. I want to challenge every city to take one day of our capacity. It will make a huge change. That means every day you take 50,000 metric tons of CO2 out of the air.
"Lighting is one of the easiest things we can do to have a big impact on our environment. It does not require a major lifestyle change. It starts with getting our businesses, our residents within our communities, to change a century old buying habit to turn off Thomas Edison’s Incandescent light bulbs, and turn on more energy efficient CFLs. It is a choice that will not only save money but our planet too.
"We are partnering with cities from coast to coast. In Seattle, we are providing all the CFLs for the Seattle City Lights project. In New York, more than 5,000 TCP CFLs are now lighting the historic New York Public library, saving nearly $250,000 per year in energy costs, and reducing 1.5 million metric tons of CO2 per year.
"In Chicago, TCP is providing nearly 300,000 CFLs in a give-away for low income residents in the city. From Denver to Cleveland, from San Francisco to Boston, we are actively working on a number of projects at the municipal level to help reduce energy consumption.
"The news is good. More Americans are making sustainability a priority at work and at home. But the challenge is great. Education is a critical element in changing our lifestyles to benefit our environment. TCP has developed an education program aimed at our children, perhaps the generation to be most effected by climate change. Our nationwide education program Bright Town kicked off last month in Long Island. More than 700 elementary school students learned that the choices we make today will impact our world tomorrow.
"As a member of the Business Council, TCP stands with you to help the residents of your community reduce effects of climate change.
"Remember, the journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. As you have already committed to this journey, I challenge all of you to do everything possible to finish it. Act on a chance to change your life and the lives of people around you. It is very easy to do. Change a light bulb; change the world.
"And, if we all work together, and I feel so good about this today, we will make huge differences in our cities, for our children and the world."
Read a biography about Ellis Yan.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloom chats with TCP President Ellis Yan during the Climate Protection Summit.