General Motors (GM) is building on its zero-carbon goals, by launching a $25 million climate equity fund to support grassroots organizations, with the larger aim of making electric vehicles (EVs) more accessible to those most affected by climate change.
The philanthropic fund compliments the carmaker’s $35 billion investment in electric vehicle and autonomous vehicle programs, to build out its technology, manufacturing, and charging infrastructure.
“Climate change does not impact every community in the same way. So we have to implement solutions that make sure we don't leave someone behind or further the divide,” said GM CEO Mary Barra, speaking at the Aspen Ideas Festival.
The launch of the climate equity fund comes as GM looks to eliminate all tailpipe emissions from its vehicles by 2035. Earlier this year, the company announced a plan to be carbon neutral by 2040, while aligning itself with science-based targets of the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The new fund will be deployed to support organizations that help people and communities that have been disproportionately affected by warming temperatures, said Gerald Johnson, GM's executive vice president of global manufacturing.
“We want ideas to come from everywhere that aligns this future that we're outlining in this space of overlap of inclusion, and an all EV future,” he said. “That can be anything from clean energy job skills to community solar projects or programs that increase awareness and access to electrification or electrification infrastructure programs.”
Johnson said inclusivity is at the center of GM’s green transformation, in part because its success hinges on the accessibility and adaptability of its vehicles.
“We know 80% of EV owners today charge at home, but we also know a great deal of potential customers don't have a single family residence,” Johnson said. “We want to be a part of the solution, making sure that EVs are available to them which means the infrastructure needs to also be available.”
Separately, Johnson said that GM would support an EV tax credit incentive to make the vehicles more affordable to consumers, though he didn’t specify beyond that, saying he thinks the “whole ecosystem needs to wrap around this future.”
Barra said the company’s broader focus on climate action is rooted in a "holistic approach" rooted in four key areas: its workforce, improving EV access, infrastructure equity, and climate equity.
“We need to make sure that we're bringing along all of our stakeholders, our employees, our customers and our communities as well as our suppliers and dealers, and we need to ensure that we have equity in the solutions that we have developed to address climate change,” Barra said.
Akiko Fujita is an anchor and reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @AkikoFujita