As the COP21 talks enter their final week, a key point that stands out for me is Elon Musk’s talk at the prestigious Sorbonne, and within that, his call for worldwide carbon taxation. The more I think back to his talk (which is well worth watching on its own), starting with the carbon cycle and how above-ground carbon differs from fossil fuels, and on through to the lengthy Q&A, the more sense it makes. Pulling carbon up from underground and putting it into the atmosphere has a negative effect on the planet and should be taxed to enable the implementation of offsets.
With that in mind, I’m rounding the corner to look at efforts to advocate, fund, and otherwise promote carbon taxes in a new light. Looking through those new lenses, I’m thrilled to share that the folks over at Climate XChange are pushing exactly this with a Tesla Model S or Model X Raffle and have kindly sponsored this post to get the word out. The raffle not only serves to raise funds for the group but also raises awareness for the importance of carbon taxation.
Its mission is to “reduce global warming pollution and strengthen the economy through comprehensive market-based carbon pricing in Massachusetts.” Check out its website, which has all of the details of the fantastic work the organization is doing in Massachusetts as well as the full detail on what you can do to get your name into the virtual hat for a new Tesla Model S or Model X set up just the way you want it.
Climate XChange has set up this raffle in a unique way to make it as “pain free” (as if winning a Tesla could be painful) as possible. The raffle prize is actually $110,450 in cash paid directly to Tesla to be used to purchase a new or Certified Pre-Owned Tesla, rather than a Tesla itself. That means you can set it up the way you want it, all the way down to the floor mats. You even have the option of putting the money towards a Model X — though, that may entail waiting for over a year for Tesla to work thro
ugh the lengthy backlog of orders first. Back to the pain-free part — the organization is looking out for you by including the full tax on the value of the prize paid directly to the IRS, so it will pay the tax the winner would have owed on the car, as well as a new charger and even $500 for the installation of the charger.
The odds are way better than your average lottery ticket as well, with a maximum of 2,000 raffle tickets sold, which gives each ticket a 1 in 2,000 chance of winning a brand new Tesla. Not a guarantee by any stretch of the imagination, but those are some pretty healthy odds for a prize of this magnitude.
There are a couple of other prizes up for grabs as well in addition to the Tesla, so check out the raffle website and purchase a ticket if you want to support a new carbon tax… and maybe win a Tesla while you’re at it.
*Full disclosure: This article has been kindly sponsored by Climate XChange. Also, Climate XChange has no affiliation with or sponsorship by Tesla Motors Company.