Today, President Trump will issue a series of Executive Orders that deny the climate emergency facing our country in favor of a phony “energy emergency”. These performative acts show the pervasive influence that the fossil fuel industry will have in the United States over the next four years. But make no mistake, the global Sustainability Revolution is unstoppable.
As was the case in 2017, withdrawing the US from the Paris Agreement is a shortsighted abdication of leadership that will only serve to put our nation at a disadvantage. Clinging to the industries of the past instead of embracing the industries of the future may boost the short-term profits of fossil fuel companies, but it will come at the expense of the broader American economy - including American workers who risk being left behind.
This is the first of what will be many attempts to ignore reality and try to stall the world’s unstoppable and irreversible move to a clean energy economy. But these proclamations are not reflective of our political and economic reality. These efforts to roll back progress – particularly the hugely popular clean energy investments in the Inflation Reduction Act – will be met with opposition from both political parties.
That’s why, in the coming weeks, months, and years, climate leaders and activists must not be deterred or distracted. From extreme weather disasters like Hurricane Helene and the still burning Los Angeles wildfires, to the growing number of climate refugees, to competitiveness in the global economy, the climate crisis will have profound consequences for the United States over the next four years.
If the new Administration won’t lead on this issue, it is up to all of us. Now is the time for Governors, Mayors, business leaders, investors, and activists to put their heads down and do the work that will advance the climate solutions our nation and the world so urgently need. We were able to keep up the pace of climate action during the first Trump Administration, and it is urgent that we take up the mantle once again.
80,000 people told to evacuate.
Blazes 0% contained.
Eight months since the area has seen rain.
The scale of damage and loss is unimaginable.
Climate change is real, not “a hoax.”
Donald Trump must treat this like the existential crisis it is.
For climate advocates across the country, the outcome of this election means that all of us must find ways to redouble our efforts and find bipartisan solutions to the climate crisis that create jobs, promote prosperity and safeguard the future of humanity.
In a moment such as this, it is important to remember that all major reform efforts, from civil rights to the climate movement, suffer dark days. And this is surely one. We can mourn a loss, but we can’t linger in despair. Our planet doesn’t have time for that. Now more than ever, this movement needs engagement and leadership from all corners of the country.
During a down moment in the struggle for civil rights, Martin Luther King, Jr. said something about overcoming days like this: “If you can’t fly, run; if you can’t run, walk; if you can’t walk, crawl; but by all means keep moving.”
We know the line to solutions is never straight or easy. But we have won major victories in tackling the climate crisis and reducing climate pollution in our country, and we will again.
My greatest source of hope comes from the courage and commitment of grassroots leaders and advocates in the U.S. and around the world who are relentlessly pushing for progress. Onward.
Warm ocean waters due to human-caused climate change helped fuel Hurricane #Milton to become a powerful Category 5 storm.
Sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico were well above average for this time of year as Milton churned toward Florida. https://t.co/p4WvGdpcWE
@GeneralMCNews on the contrary, geo engineering, which is what they would love to blame this on, is in fact not to blame and claims like this are absurd.
@GeneralMCNews this is indeed true: anthropogenic climate change (yes, amplified by humans…) is largely to blame for the increase in frequency of events we are seeing. glad these Representatives agree this event isn’t totally “natural.”
BREAKING: we just shut down Greg Gianforte, the coal-loving, climate-denying Governor of Montana.
We invoked his four children by name: David, Richard, Rachel, and Adam.
This is who he incinerates.
We’re canceling all remaining oil and gas leases issued under the previous administration in the Arctic Refuge and protecting more than 13 million acres in the Western Arctic.
As the climate crisis warms the Arctic, we have a responsibility to protect this treasured region for all ages.
As Vivek Ramaswamy called climate change a “hoax,” our independent dial participants’ attitudes dropped across the board, particularly among women. #GOPDebate
Our children deserve a safe climate future to grow up in. Fossil fuels harm our health, our families, and our lives. @POTUS it's time to declare a climate emergency.
📢 @ClimateFamsNYC
Thank you to these brave young people who today won an enormous victory against climate change in their home state of Montana. It's time for the fed gov to follow their example and file lawsuits to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for their role in the climate crisis.
A Montana judge on Monday sided with young environmental activists who said state agencies were violating their constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment by permitting fossil fuel development without considering its effect on the climate. https://t.co/4hTJ9WArEf