Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley is Founding Partner of Global Alliance For Clean Cookstoves; Will Help Combat 1.9 Million Premature Deaths from Traditional Cookstove Use

Sep 21, 2010

Morgan Stanley to Seek Market-Based Solutions and Fund Study of Health Impacts from Low-Emission Biomass Cookstoves

New York —

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) today announced that it is a Founding Partner of the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves.  The Alliance, convened by the United Nations Foundation, is a private-public partnership that aims to save lives, empower women, reduce climate change emissions and improve livelihoods.  Morgan Stanley along with its fellow Founding Partners will work to foster a thriving global market for clean and efficient stoves, and their adoption by 100 million households by the year 2020.

Exposure to smoke from traditional cookstoves and open fires causes 1.9 million premature deaths each year.  As the primary cooking and heating tool for nearly three billion people, traditional cookstoves not only endanger lives - mainly those of women and children - but also contribute to climate change at the regional and global level. 

As a Founding Partner of the Alliance, Morgan Stanley seeks a strong, market-based foundation for future deployment of clean cookstoves.  Specifically, Morgan Stanley will fund a study of the health impacts for children when low-emission biomass cookstoves are used, with the purpose of assessing the predicted impact on child pneumonia and other health risks like low birth weight.  The study is also intended to lay the foundation for a large-scale program with direct evaluation of pediatric health benefits. 

Morgan Stanley along with its Alliance partners will also strive to:

  • Overcome market barriers that impede production, deployment, and use of clean cookstoves in the developing world
  • Develop a business plan to address the prerequisites for large-scale adoption of clean cookstoves
  • Identify target markets and implement a specific operational strategy emphasizing women's participation and market-based solutions 

"Given our long track record of supporting pediatric health initiatives and our commitment to protecting the environment, we are very proud to be a Founding Partner of the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves," said Tom Nides, Chief Operating Officer of Morgan Stanley.  "We look forward to committing our intellectual capital to this effort and working with our Alliance partners to address this pressing issue in the months and years ahead."

A number of developments indicate that there is increasing momentum for the dangers of traditional cookstoves to be successfully addressed.  These include advances in stove design, testing and monitoring; the potential of carbon financing to reduce stove costs; and commercial entrants with significant production capacity. 

"While the harmful and tragic effects of traditional cookstoves have long been known, we believe the right conditions are in place to address this problem more effectively than ever before," said Audrey Choi, Head of Global Sustainable Finance at Morgan Stanley.  "We look forward to contributing Morgan Stanley's intellectual capital to solving environmental and health problems that require market-based solutions and economic insight."

Coinciding with Morgan Stanley's 75th anniversary year, this commitment marks another milestone in the Firm's global advocacy on behalf of children's health and its support for initiatives addressing climate change. 

"Morgan Stanley has long supported efforts to improve pediatric health and children's welfare through our Global Alliance for Children's Health," said Joan Steinberg, President of the Morgan Stanley Foundation.  "We are excited that through the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, we can work on a larger scale to prevent millions of children from facing unnecessary death and disease due to cookstove and smoke-related illnesses." 

Morgan Stanley is a leading global financial services firm providing investment banking, securities, investment management and wealth management services.  The Firm's employees serve clients worldwide including corporations, governments, institutions and individuals from more than 1,200 offices in 42 countries.  Through its Global Alliance for Children's Health, the Firm is dedicated to improving the lives and welfare of the world's youngest citizens.  For more information about Morgan Stanley, please visit www.morganstanley.com or www.morganstanley.com/globalcitizen.    

For additional information about the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, please visit www.cleancookstoves.org.

Morgan Stanley Media Relations

Sandra Hernandez

212.761.2446