Peter Barnes (born April 16, 1940 in New York City[1]) is an American entrepreneur, environmentalist, and journalist.
Barnes has stated the goal of Sky Trust would be to "promote climate stability by: limiting the amount of carbon that can be put into the atmosphere; allowing the free market to set a price on the right to emit carbon; collecting revenue from those who buy those rights; and returning earned revenue to the owners of the sky.
"[10] The Sky Trust was originally proposed as a report from the Washington, D.C.–based Common Assets Project of which Barnes is the founder.
The trust's mission is multi-pronged: Every American citizen including children would be the beneficiaries of such a program, receiving a lump sum.
[attribution needed] "Sky Trust" was rebranded as "Cap and Dividend"[14] in advance of the 2008 elections in order to raise its profile.