Climate leaders should work with oil companies to put a price on carbon

Six oil companies are calling for a global carbon pricing system. You may be skeptical, but here's why the idea is no joke

As Pope Francis visits the US, and the UN Summit on Sustainable Development and Climate Week kick off in New York City this week, government leaders, businesses, activists and global citizens will be discussing new ideas to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Here's one: take up the European oil industry on their surprising, and so far largely ignored, offer to pay for the carbon their products create.

In June, six large European oil companies - BP, Shell, Statoil, Total, BG and Eni - called for an international price on carbon. Citing a desire to reduce business uncertainty, the companies asked world governments, and December's UN Conference on Climate Change in Paris, for country-by-country carbon prices and a framework to link them into a global system.