GM CEO Agrees to Review Funding of Climate Skeptic Group

GM CEO Dan Akerson told the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco that he is a believer in global warming and is committed to "taking another look at" the money that GM gives to the Heartland Institute, a libertarian organization based in Chicago known for its denial of climate science.

The GM-Heartland connection came to light when internal Heartland documents were leaked by the Pacific Institute's Peter Gleick. From them, it became known that the General Motors Foundation (GM's charitable arm) made a $15,000 donation in 2011. In San Francisco, Forecast the Facts spurred the Commonwealth Club to ask Akerson about the connection through a Facebook campaign and in-person activism that generated thousands of complaints from GM customers.

In response, Daniel Souweine, the director of Forecast the Facts, issued the following statement: "We are encouraged that CEO Dan Akerson has committed to review GM's funding of the Heartland Institute. We hope that review leads to the result that more than 10,000 GM owners have been asking for a public commitment by GM to stop funding Heartland immediately."

insideclimatenews.org