Obama heads climate change conference in Porto

The 44th President of the United States will land in Portugal, to help companies solve environment issues.

Yes he can (come to Porto)! Barack Obama will headline a major event in Porto, Portugal, the “Climate Change Leadership Porto”, which will focus on climate change and solutions to tackle this problem. The 44th President of the United States is giving a talk in the city’s Coliseu, on the 6th of July, in a highly anticipated speech, moderated by Advanced Leadership Foundation’s Juan Verde, called “A Conversation with Barack Obama: The impacts and challenges of climate changes in the World”.

Other renowned speakers are Mohan Munasinghe, the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Irina Bokova, former head of UNESCO.

The organisation is a partnership between several entities, including Taylor’s Port, Porto City Hall, Associação Comercial do Porto (a local trade association), Instituto da Vinha e do Vinho (an entity that oversees wine production), the American College in Spain, and also the Advanced Leadership Foundation, that was responsible for bringing Obama to the event. Many other companies have also joined as organisers or sponsors.

Adrian Bridge, from Taylor’s Port, said, during a press conference, that during the summit the “Porto Protocol” will be signed, a “commitment with the future” for companies to fight against climate change. This document is also a call for action and a sort of “data base” for less harmful environment solutions, according to Adrian Bridge.

The event’s costs with the star speaker are around one million euros, half of which for Obama’s fee, according the Portuguese newspaper Expresso. The President was last in Portugal in 2010, for a NATO summit.