Among the headlining speakers that included Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, Sierra Club Executive Chair Carl Pope, and U.S. Senator John Kerry at the Good Jobs, Green Jobs National Conference was Jim Cicconi, AT&T’s Senior Executive Vice President for External & Legislative Affairs. AT&T offered a unique perspective among an array of green activists and politicians, by talking about the important contributions that broadband is making to our green economy and low carbon future.

Cicconi began by thanking fellow conference participants, including the Blue Green Alliance for their recent report, Networking the Green Economy: How Broadband and Related Technologies Can Build a Green Economic Future. The report talks about the potential of broadband to spur job growth through the development of smart buildings, smart grids, telehealth, teleconferencing, and digital education. Cicconi also referenced the Smart 2020 report, which found that the large-scale adoption of broadband in the United States can reduce CO2 emissions by 13 to 22 percent by 2020 “by transforming the way people and businesses use technology.”

Cicconi touted the $55 billion that AT&T has invested in their networks over the past three years, and outlined plans to invest between $18 and $19 billion this year, an increase of 5 to 10 percent over last year. It is precisely this level of investment that will power our green job future. Finally, Cicconi reminded the audience of the need to maintain the kind of climate conducive to these kinds of capital investments, which are so critical in increasing deployment and adoption of the green technologies that were highlighted at the event.

Click below to watch archived footage of Cicconi’s remarks.

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