Freedom of Movement in a Zero-Carbon World

As a committed citizen and Chief Executive of a global automaker, Carlos Tavares actively participates in the societal debate on Freedom of Movement in a Zero-carbon World.

To deepen the debate, Carlos Tavares agreed to answer questions from Politique Internationale in a Special Issue which extends the discussion on mobility beyond individual transportation and questions current modes of consumption.

“I am conscious that the climate emergency is threatening the durability of the operations of an industrial group like ours.

If nothing is done to correct the current climate situation which is marked above all by the rise in temperatures, the environment and all its components – water, air, biodiversity – run the risk of one day being so changed that human activities will have to be stopped.”

Carlos Tavares, CEO Stellantis

image of Carlos Tavares

This Special Issue offers a multi-perspective view on the Freedom of Movement in a Zero-carbon World through interviews with six well-known, qualified figures from different fields contributing complementary viewpoints for a comprehensive discussion on the issue.

“In a general way, the use of the car in towns must certainly be reconsidered, but does this mean depriving ourselves of the automobile in modern civilisation? I simply put this question, which is at the very source of a societal reflection: can the freedom to move around exist without the automobile? And must we look at mobility in an identical way in city centres and in the countryside?”

“From a societal point of view, this year of sanitary crisis has shown the harshness of being confined to home for those who found themselves under lockdown. And that was only for a limited time! We measure well the growing value that citizens from now on accord to their liberty of movement. Imagine what life without cars would be for inhabitants of rural or suburban territories: it would be house arrest for life and the inability to work.”

“Before taking public decisions on mobility, you have to first know why people move, with whom and how often and propose solutions that guarantee at one and the same time security, flexibility and acceptable costs.”

“Diving into an economic dossier as big as the creation of Stellantis does not prevent us keeping in mind the environmental concerns with the pooling of our knowhow. Thanks to the addition of our strengths, we are going to increase the surface of this innovative brick.”

READ THE FULL INTERVIEW