Is Bill Gates a hypocrite?

[theking]

Bill Gates will keep flying in private jets, campaigning on climate change — because he's 'part of the solution.' Here are 3 actions he wants you to take

Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates has been a vocal advocate for addressing climate change. But like many of the ultra-rich, he also travels in a private jet, which emits quite a bit of greenhouse gas.

Does that mean he’s a hypocrite? BBC journalist Amol Rajan confronted Gates with the question in an interview last month.

Don't miss
You could be the landlord of Walmart, Whole Foods and CVS (and collect fat grocery store-anchored income on a quarterly basis)

UBS says 61% of millionaire collectors allocate up to 30% of their overall portfolio to this exclusive asset class

Owning real estate for passive income is one of the biggest investing myths — but it can work if you're smart. Find out how in 2 easy steps

“What do you say to the charge that if you are a climate change campaigner, but you also travel around the world in a private jet, you’re a hypocrite?” Rajan asked bluntly.

“Well, I buy the gold standard of, funding Climeworks, to do direct air capture that far exceeds my family’s carbon footprint,” Gates replied. “And I spend billions of dollars on climate innovation. So you know, should I stay at home and not come to Kenya and learn about farming and malaria?”

“I'm comfortable with the idea that not only am I not part of the problem by paying for the offsets, but also through the billions that my Breakthrough Energy Group is spending, that I'm part of the solution,” the Microsoft co-founder added.

Of course, you don’t need to be a billionaire to help fight climate change. In his book How to Avoid a Climate Disaster, Gates detailed the actions that we, as consumers, can take to move humanity closer to a zero-carbon future.

Here’s a look at three of them.

Reduce your carbon footprint at home
Gates suggests that you can lower your home’s emissions by making it more energy efficient.

“Depending on how much money and time you can spare, you can replace your incandescent lightbulbs with LEDs, install a smart thermostat, insulate your windows, buy efficient appliances, or replace your heating and cooling system with a heat pump (as long as you live in a climate where they can operate),” he writes.

[theking]

Bill Gates Says He Isn't a Hypocrite for Flying Around the World in a Private Jet While Preaching Climate Change

Microsoft Corp. Founder Bill Gates fielded charges of hypocrisy in a BBC interview after a broadcaster asked how he squared his extensive and carbon-heavy use of private jets to travel with his dire warnings of climate change.

Gates answered that his funding of clean energy projects and climate initiatives more than offsets his own carbon-intensive lifestyle. “I buy the gold standard of funding Climeworks to do direct air capture that far exceeds my family’s carbon footprint.”

Gates also uses his fund, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, to invest billions into companies helping to reduce carbon emissions.

Gates isn’t the first climate crusader to face criticism for sounding the alarm on climate change despite a personal carbon footprint far larger than the average American. Former Vice President Al Gore frequently flies a private jet while living in a luxurious mansion with a large carbon footprint. Gore, a vegan, says he offsets his travel emissions with a program that balances out this behavior by funding tree planting and other carbon-negative activities.

As long as fringe activists urge the public to give up hamburgers and air travel, this carbon-intensive behavior from elites will keep rankling a lot of people. But from an investing standpoint, it doesn’t matter whether they’re hypocrites or not. As Gore and Gates know from experience, clean energy is one of the most lucrative sectors in the world today.

In 2013, Forbes estimated Gore’s wealth at $300 million, or $70 million richer than fellow presidential contender Mitt Romney, who was derided as a plutocrat. In 2004, Gore co-founded Generation Investment Management LLP, a $36 billion fund that invests in companies that are aggressively decarbonizing.

Whether he’s partly motivated by sincere environmentali sm isn’t the point. What matters is that Gore knows that clean energy stocks, as a group, have outperformed the broader markets since 2009, when clean energy stimulus boosted solar power by 2,500%, tripled wind power and created Tesla Inc. as we know it, according to Bloomberg. The three best-performing S&P 500 stocks over the last five years have all been solar plays.

Gates and Gore’s fund isn’t going after large-cap companies like Tesla Inc or SolarEdge Inc. Instead, many of these funds target high-growth startups. Previously, Gates invested in Heliogen Inc. after the company raised millions from retail investors on StartEngine-Owned SeedInvest. The company has since gone public. But there are still plenty of startup investing opportunities. For example, Qnetic has already raised over $500,000 from retail investors for its innovative power storage solution. And there are dozens of opportunities on platforms like StartEngine and Wefunder.