HAIC, Education, Scholarship & Philanthropy Committee Co-Chairs Presenting

HAIC, Education, Scholarship & Philanthropy Committee Co-Chairs Presenting

 

HAIC, Education, Scholarship & Philanthropy Committee Co-Chairs presenting ITEP Executive Director, Amy Grat, with a $1,500 check to help fund the ITEP’s Global Environmental Science Academy (GESA), Catalina Environmental Leadership Program (CELP). Some 70 students and chaperones in the GESA program visit Catalina for a few days to study the plant and animal life of the kelp ecosystem, and learn about its connections to the terrestrial ecosystems, and the important role that the ocean plays in the biosphere. Focus is centered on each student’s role within these systems and the impact of human beings on our environment. Emphasis is placed on the responsible use of limited resources and the development of goals for future sustainable living. During this program the fundamental principles of life are taught, which apply to both nature and humanity while infusing opportunities for social emotional, and academic growth.

The Financial Assault, Part 2: RAN is at it again

The activists at the Rainforest Action Network have ramped up their campaign against the banks financing the Dakota Access pipeline. Last month, RAN called on Citigroup to “halt all further loan disbursements for the Dakota Access pipeline and ensure that the project sponsors immediately halt construction, unless all outstanding issues are resolved to the full satisfaction of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.”

RAN cited Citigroup’s involvement with the Equator Principles—a set of rules adopted by financial institutions “for determining, assessing and managing environmental and social risk in project finance”—as they reason they should stop funding DAPL.

When that didn’t get the desired response, RAN and 500 other activist groups—including 350.org, Greenpeace and the Sierra Club—sent an open letter last week to the CEOs of 17 banks that are financing DAPL, demanding an “immediate halt to financing the DAPL.” And once again, they cited the Equator Principles as justification for their actions.

“The undersigned organizations,” they wrote, “are closely watching how the banks providing financial support to the project are acting on the ever worsening situation on the ground, including your bank.” (Emphasis added.)

This recent action is one part of a coordinated, multifaceted effort to pressure financial services companies—including insurance providers, institutional investors and their advisors—into defunding or divesting from oil and natural gas projects. Following the results of the presidential election, environmental activists have shifted their focus away from federal regulatory and legislative battles toward more unconventional fights on the state and local levels, as well as online. Unfortunately, it looks like this campaign against the banks financing DAPL is a harbinger of things to come.

 

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Hydraulic fracturing has no “widespread, systemic” impact on US drinking water

An Important Statement by Gov. Brown regarding Goods Movement

Wednesday, July 22nd, 2015
Original Article Here

On Friday, Governor Brown issued Executive Order B-32-15 requiring a balanced, integrated plan to improve the economic competitiveness and the environmental performance of California’s goods movement sector.  This was a welcomed and important statement by the Administration regarding a critical part of the California economy.

Goods movement has long been one of California’s largest and most important economic sectors.   Taken collectively, its components – shipping, port operations, rail, trucking, warehousing, etc. – represent roughly one third of the economic activity and one third of all jobs in California’s massive economy.  By far, more goods flow through California’s ports than any other state in the nation.  Indeed, the United States’ overall trade economy relies upon on California’s success in goods movement.

However, in an ever competitive global supply chain, California is under intensifying pressure to maintain and grow market share.  The massive project widening the Panama Canal will be completed soon enabling goods to bypass California altogether to serve eastern U.S. markets.   This, coupled with additional competition from improved port operations in Canada and Mexico, along with eastern U.S. states eager to poach our business, should give all Californians pause as we consider the long term implications to that one third of our economy mentioned above.

And if that weren’t complicated enough, California’s goods movement sector must operate within the nation’s strictest emissions regulations.  Accordingly, industry has responded to state mandates by modernizing operations in order to meet and exceed emissions targets.  A great example is the technological marvel that is the new Middle Harbor at the Port of Long Beach that will both boost productivity and reduce emissions through automation and low carbon operations.  It represents the kind of major investment and commitment that industry is prepared to make when it is confident that the state is a willing partner.

This is why the Governor’s executive order matters so much.  It sets forth a clear policy that we must achieve a proper balance between economic, environment and infrastructure needs.  It reinforces the critical principle that the term sustainability must mean both environmentally and economically sustainable.

Indeed that policy has been evident thus far in the California Air Resources Board’s approach to the development of a new Sustainable Freight Plan that seeks to move the entire goods movement sector to zero or near zero emissions.   A transformation of that scale can only happen through thoughtful, public and private collaboration and investment.

So as the Administration and Legislature now consider our future transportation funding and priorities, and as they determine how best to reinvest the proceeds of the AB 32 Cap and Trade program, they would do well to advance the policy outlined in the Governor’s Executive Order, and commit to creating the conditions in which California’s preeminence in goods movement can endure for generations to come.

Paramount 21st Century Threat Meets Critical Workforce Demand

$15.4 million – Average cost to a company from a cybercrime

100 million – Number of Cyberattacks directed at Los Angeles City government departments

209,000 – Cybersecurity jobs in the U.S. that are unfilled

FF Cyber Security

On December 14th, the LAEDC will host its seminal series, Future Forum, where Cyber Security will be the issue in focus. In the last five years we have seen a serious uptick in cyber attacks – in all its manifestations – across wide swaths of key industry clusters, from entertainment, defensegovernment, retail, transportation, and financial and insurance services. Even politics is not off limits to cyber attacks as demonstrated by the Presidential election when news broke that the Democratic National Committee was infiltrated by malware planted by two Russian hacking crews. The impact and consequences of a cyber attack have never been more concerning. For Los Angeles, a region that encompasses many leading industries, universities, businesses, and vital access points for national and international trade, securing these assets and infrastructure has never been more paramount.

But what methodologies and best practices exist to counter the cyber threat? How do public and private sector organizations prepare their workforce for an ever-evolving threat? What is the current state of job growth and employment demand for IT and cyber security professionals?

Research and data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to well-respected global information security and management firms such as CISCO and Kaspersky Lab, indicate significant job growth and in-demand positions by both public and private sector employers for this burgeoning field of information technology. The federal government, in its Cybersecurity National Action Plan, budgeted more than $62 million for cyber security personnel and recruitment of the next generation cybersecurity workforce through the following incentives:

  • National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education
  • Expansion of the Scholarship for Service program
  • Establishing a CyberCorps Reserve
  • Development of a Cybersecurity Core Curriculum
  • Increasing and bolstering investment in, participating universities in the National Centers for Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity Program
  • Enhancing student loan forgiveness programs for cybersecurity experts joining the Federal workforce

As a region, Southern California is well-positioned to heed the call by federal government employers as our region is home to many leading colleges and universities including four which are accredited as National Centers for Academic Excellence by the Department of Homeland Security and the National Security Agency: Cal Poly Pomona, CSU San Bernardino, CSU Dominguez Hills, and UC Irvine. 

Future Forum on Cyber Security, while serious in topic, presents the ideal opportunity to gather key stakeholders, students, and public and private sector professionals from throughout LA County to come together to discuss how best we can combat the cyber threat and be at the cusp of innovative cybersecurity tactics and best practices. 

SCAG Summit includes LAEDC Economic Update for L.A. County

scag-econ-update-coverAn economic update for L.A. County has been published, including updates on growing industries and occupations, providing an objective look at the jobs created since the Great Recession.  The report identifies the importance of fostering job growth in our region’s export-oriented industries where we have regional competitive advantage, such as aerospace, entertainment and digital media, bioscience, advanced teransportation and others.  The report also notes our current trajectory, which includes a high percentage of job growth in low-paying occupations, which is a stark reminder of the importance of focused economic development to create better paying jobs that are critical to raising standards of living for L.A .County.

The report is part of a group of reports published by Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), and SCAG generously commissioned the report as part of it’s Seventh Annual Southern California Economic Summit, which took place on Dec 1st, 2016.

Read the Report HERE. 

Read media coverage HERE.

Report: Foreign Direct Investment in SoCal

Today, LAEDC affiliate World Trade Center LA released a report on the role of Foreign Direct Investment in the Southern California region.

Read the report HERE

Read media coverage:

LA Daily News:  What growing global trade means for Los Angeles area businesses

KPCC:  Which country invests most in LA? The answer might surprise you

FDI cover

WTCLA Report: Foreign Direct Investment Plays Significant Role in SoCal

 LOS ANGELES, CA – (June 17, 2016) Today, at the SELECT LA Investment Summit, the World Trade Center Los Angeles (WTCLA) published a new report on the impact of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to the Southern California (SoCal) economy, revealing the number of foreign-owned establishments in the region and the jobs created by those employers, and ranking countries based on investment levels in the SoCal region.

The report, sponsored by Chair of L.A. County Board of Supervisors Hilda L. Solis in collaboration with JPMorgan Chase and other firms, underscores the tremendous amount of international connections that are essential to economic activities and jobs here in SoCal and L.A. County.  The research was conducted by WTCLA affiliate LAEDC.

Findings of the report include:

  • There are 9,105 foreign owned firms in SoCal, which directly employ 366,415 people, who receive estimated wages of $23.6 billion/yr. The economic impact of this activity sustains 8.1% of all jobs in SoCal (direct, indirect, and induced jobs).
  • Manufacturing is the sector in which foreign owned firms employ the most workers in SoCal, with 116,721 workers, providing $6.8 billion in estimated wages.
  • Foreign-owned enterprises in SoCal most commonly originate from 1) Japan with 2,440 firms and 79,421 jobs, 2) United Kingdom with 1,145 firms and 54,910 jobs, and 3) Germany with 825 firms and 32,594 jobs.
  • Over the period of study, China was a relatively minor source of investment in SoCal until 2013 and 2014, years when investment rose dramatically to $1.1 billion and $1.5 billion, respectively. A. County received the bulk of that investment.
  • In 2015, California had the most foreign investment “greenfield” projects of any state in the U.S., with 230 projects. New York ranked second (192) and Texas ranked third (147).  In terms of total project value, California ranked fourth ($4 billion), with New York ranked first ($8.8 billion).
  • Foreign investments in “greenfield” projects in SoCal totaled more than $29 billion from 2003-2015.
  • The report also isolates the data specifically for the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino, Riverside, and Ventura.

“In this global economy, the L.A. region is uniquely suited and appealing to foreign investors,” said Supervisor Solis. “Our draw combined with our international connections result in jobs and economic opportunity that provide benefits locally and throughout Southern California.”

As part of its commitment to foreign-direct investment in the region, JPMorgan Chase contributed $230,000 to WTCLA today to advance this effort.

“It’s eye opening to learn there are almost 10,000 foreign-owned firms in SoCal, employing more than a quarter of a million people,” said Joni Topper, Managing Director, JPMorgan Chase Commercial Bank Los Angeles. “Los Angeles is competing on a global stage and our competitors for jobs and investment are putting their best feet forward as regions, with solutions. We too must understand and embrace that when investment comes to Riverside and San Bernardino, to Ventura, or to Orange and San Diego Counties – Southern California benefits as a whole.“

The report release coincides with the 2016 SELECT LA Investment Summit, hosted by LAEDC affiliate World Trade Center Los Angeles.

In addition to the FDI report, WTCLA affiliate LAEDC also released its annual International Trade Outlook at SELECT LA.  For details, visit www.LAEDC.org.

About World Trade Center Los Angeles (WTCLA)

As the leading international trade service and promotion organization in the Los Angeles region, WTCLA supports the development of international trade and business opportunities through our business assistance, matchmaking and educational services, and promotes Los Angeles as the premier destination for international trade and foreign investment. WTCLA has led or assisted in the attraction of more than $1 billion of foreign investment into Los Angeles County. The WTCLA is an affiliate of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC).  www.WTCLA.org

About the LAEDC

The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) provides strategic economic development leadership to promote a globally competitive, prosperous and growing L.A. County economy to improve the health and wellbeing of our residents and communities and enable those residents to meet their basic human need for a job.  We achieve this through objective economic research and analysis, strategic assistance to government and business, and targeted public policy.  Our efforts are guided and supported by the expertise and counsel of our business, government and education members and partners.  www.LAEDC.org

Media Contact:   Lawren Markle / 213-236-4847 / [email protected]

Report: International Trade Outlook for Los Angeles region

LAEDC has released the 2016-2017 International Trade Outlook, providing and overview and forecast for this important industry in the Los Angeles region.

Read the report HERE 

ITO coverRead media coverage:

LA Daily News:  What growing global trade means for Los Angeles area businesses

KPCC:  Which country invests most in LA? The answer might surprise you

This edition is the 11th Annual International Trade Outlook from LAEDC.  To learn more about this industry cluster visit LAEDC’s page HERE.

During 2016, LAEDC will also be producing an industry cluster report on the Trade and Logistics industry cluster of our region.

Carbon tax: Not what Robin Hood had in mind

There is often some fairly muddled logic spouted by those who work in the corridors of power on Capitol Hill, but even by Washington’s standards this one takes the cake: Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO) referring to a carbon tax as a “tax cut.”

As E&E Daily reported recently, in response to the House taking up a resolution opposing a carbon tax, Rep. Polis said “this is the first sign of momentum for a carbon tax cut — and you’ll hear me referring to it as a carbon tax cut because that’s essentially what it is: using carbon tax revenues to cut taxes for the American people.” By his logic, the carbon tax is like Robin Hood: robbing from the rich, giving to the poor.

Except that’s not quite true. To begin, the notion that raising taxes and then giving it back is somehow a tax cut is the sort of fuzzy thinking that could only take place in Washington, DC.

Second, does anybody really believe that 100 percent of this tax will be given back to the people? And finally, even if it is given back, it is highly likely that it will go to the government’s preferred group of consumers – the kind of affluent consumer that can afford to install solar panels and drive around in expensive (and subsidized) electric vehicles.

Rep. Polis can keep referring to a carbon tax as a “tax cut,” but repeating the same fallacy over and over again does not somehow make it true.

About The AuthorAFPM Communications provides insights from inside AFPM. To learn more about AFPM, visit AFPM.org.

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New Research Makes Divestment Folly Even Harder To Ignore

Further research from Arizona State University has been released today which highlights – yet again – just how damaging divestment will be for universities that bow to pressure from narrow-minded pressure groups, and shed their investments in fossil fuel companies.

Findings from Dr. Hendrik Bessembinder, a professor at ASU’s Carey School of Business, show that costs related to divestment have the potential to rob endowment funds of as much as 12 percent of their total value over a 20-year time frame. For large institutions, this could be as much as $7.4 billion, while medium-sized institutions could see a reduction of between $52 million and $298 million. For small institutions, the loss could stretch from $17 million to $89 million.

But the costs with divestment don’t stop at the loss of funds. Dr. Bessembinder’s findings show that heavy transaction and compliance costs will be incurred as fund managers sell off their fossil fuel holdings, as many of these are held in mutual funds, commingled funds and private equity funds. Substantial research and compliance costs will also be incurred as managers ensure their investments comply with their divestment goals.

Finally, the report also adds that the top 10 environmentally-focused funds charge management fees 10 basis points higher than their peers in the active management space, and 38 basis points higher than the passively-managed funds that long-term investors tend to favor.

As stark as these numbers are, they become even more grave when viewed in context. A 12 percent drop in endowment funds means a 12 percent drop in funds for the college. In turn, this means less money for research, fellowships, financial aid and professorships – among much, much more.

Although some reports state that the divestment movement has been “largely rebuffed,” pressure on campuses across the country to shed their fossil fuel investments still remains. However, while the divestment advocates claim to represent the best interests of American citizens, divestment merely politicizes energy production in favor of more expensive methods – harming the very people advocates think they are trying to save.

About The AuthorAFPM Communications provides insights from inside AFPM. To learn more about AFPM, visit AFPM.org.

 

Report: Foreign Direct Investment in SoCal

Today, LAEDC affiliate World Trade Center LA released a report on the role of Foreign Direct Investment in the Southern California region.

Read the report HERE

Read media coverage:

LA Daily News:  What growing global trade means for Los Angeles area businesses

KPCC:  Which country invests most in LA? The answer might surprise you

FDI cover

WTCLA Report: Foreign Direct Investment Plays Significant Role in SoCal

 LOS ANGELES, CA – (June 17, 2016) Today, at the SELECT LA Investment Summit, the World Trade Center Los Angeles (WTCLA) published a new report on the impact of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to the Southern California (SoCal) economy, revealing the number of foreign-owned establishments in the region and the jobs created by those employers, and ranking countries based on investment levels in the SoCal region.

The report, sponsored by Chair of L.A. County Board of Supervisors Hilda L. Solis in collaboration with JPMorgan Chase and other firms, underscores the tremendous amount of international connections that are essential to economic activities and jobs here in SoCal and L.A. County.  The research was conducted by WTCLA affiliate LAEDC.

Findings of the report include:

  • There are 9,105 foreign owned firms in SoCal, which directly employ 366,415 people, who receive estimated wages of $23.6 billion/yr. The economic impact of this activity sustains 8.1% of all jobs in SoCal (direct, indirect, and induced jobs).
  • Manufacturing is the sector in which foreign owned firms employ the most workers in SoCal, with 116,721 workers, providing $6.8 billion in estimated wages.
  • Foreign-owned enterprises in SoCal most commonly originate from 1) Japan with 2,440 firms and 79,421 jobs, 2) United Kingdom with 1,145 firms and 54,910 jobs, and 3) Germany with 825 firms and 32,594 jobs.
  • Over the period of study, China was a relatively minor source of investment in SoCal until 2013 and 2014, years when investment rose dramatically to $1.1 billion and $1.5 billion, respectively. A. County received the bulk of that investment.
  • In 2015, California had the most foreign investment “greenfield” projects of any state in the U.S., with 230 projects. New York ranked second (192) and Texas ranked third (147).  In terms of total project value, California ranked fourth ($4 billion), with New York ranked first ($8.8 billion).
  • Foreign investments in “greenfield” projects in SoCal totaled more than $29 billion from 2003-2015.
  • The report also isolates the data specifically for the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino, Riverside, and Ventura.

“In this global economy, the L.A. region is uniquely suited and appealing to foreign investors,” said Supervisor Solis. “Our draw combined with our international connections result in jobs and economic opportunity that provide benefits locally and throughout Southern California.”

As part of its commitment to foreign-direct investment in the region, JPMorgan Chase contributed $230,000 to WTCLA today to advance this effort.

“It’s eye opening to learn there are almost 10,000 foreign-owned firms in SoCal, employing more than a quarter of a million people,” said Joni Topper, Managing Director, JPMorgan Chase Commercial Bank Los Angeles. “Los Angeles is competing on a global stage and our competitors for jobs and investment are putting their best feet forward as regions, with solutions. We too must understand and embrace that when investment comes to Riverside and San Bernardino, to Ventura, or to Orange and San Diego Counties – Southern California benefits as a whole.“

The report release coincides with the 2016 SELECT LA Investment Summit, hosted by LAEDC affiliate World Trade Center Los Angeles.

In addition to the FDI report, WTCLA affiliate LAEDC also released its annual International Trade Outlook at SELECT LA.  For details, visit www.LAEDC.org.

About World Trade Center Los Angeles (WTCLA)

As the leading international trade service and promotion organization in the Los Angeles region, WTCLA supports the development of international trade and business opportunities through our business assistance, matchmaking and educational services, and promotes Los Angeles as the premier destination for international trade and foreign investment. WTCLA has led or assisted in the attraction of more than $1 billion of foreign investment into Los Angeles County. The WTCLA is an affiliate of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC).  www.WTCLA.org

About the LAEDC

The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) provides strategic economic development leadership to promote a globally competitive, prosperous and growing L.A. County economy to improve the health and wellbeing of our residents and communities and enable those residents to meet their basic human need for a job.  We achieve this through objective economic research and analysis, strategic assistance to government and business, and targeted public policy.  Our efforts are guided and supported by the expertise and counsel of our business, government and education members and partners.  www.LAEDC.org

Media Contact:   Lawren Markle / 213-236-4847 / [email protected]