“Hours
after the stunning U.S. presidential election returns showed an avowed climate
change denier chosen for the nation's highest office, environmentalists around
the world grappled with what a Donald Trump presidency will mean for the
planet.
“Trump
has vowed
to renege on the Paris climate
pact, reinvest in fossil
fuel infrastructure, and to bring in a new
era for the coal industry, not to mention repeatedly
denying the reality of climate change. ‘The next four years are critical
for getting on the right pathway, and the disastrous election of Trump serves
as a solemn reminder of the path ahead of us’ [said] Becky Chung, SustainUS.
“‘Africa
is already burning. The election of Trump is a disaster for our continent. The
United States, if it follows through on its new President's rash words about
withdrawing from the international climate regime, will become a pariah state
in global efforts for climate action. This is a moment where the rest of the
world must not waver and must redouble commitments to tackle dangerous climate
change,’ said
Geoffrey Kamese of Friends of the Earth Africa.
“‘[S]adly,
while Trump campaigned as a political outsider, his transition team is filled
with corporate lobbyists,’ observed
Food & Water Watch director Wenonah Hauter. ‘His agriculture advisors are agribusiness
insiders. He has called climate change a
hoax, and his energy
advisor is a lobbyist for the Koch Brothers. His reported top pick for
energy secretary is Harold Hamm, a modern-day oil tycoon.’
“And
as Grist pointed
out, ‘Most of President Obama's efforts on the clean energy front were made
using his executive powers—powers that will now allow Trump to
fulfill many of his promises to completely defund climate action and
gut environmental protection.’
“The
environmental outlet added: ‘He's pledged to pull the United States
from the Paris
climate agreement. He's vowed to cut
all federal climate spending. He is going to appoint a known climate
denier, the Competitive
Enterprise Institute's Myron Ebell, to head the Environmental Protection
Agency's transition team. Under Trump's appointees, the EPA's powers will
be rolled back, with weaker enforcement of regulations mandated by the
Clean Air Act and upheld by the Supreme Court. Of course, Trump will have his
pick on the Supreme Court, too—which could soon decide the fate of Obama's
central climate accomplishment, the Clean Power Plan.
“Scientists,
too, fear the coming Trump presidency. ‘This is
terrifying for science, research, education, and the future of our planet’
[said] María Escudero Escribano, Stanford University.
‘Trump will be the first anti-science president we have ever had,’ Michael
Lubell, director of public affairs for the American Physical Society in
Washington DC, told
Nature. ‘The
consequences are going to be very, very severe.’
“‘This
is terrifying for science, research, education, and the future of our planet,’ tweeted María
Escudero Escribano, who is ‘a postdoc studying electro-chemistry and sustainable
energy conversion at Stanford University in California,’ according to Nature.
“‘You're
talking about an individual who is not informed by data, whether it's from
climate change or anything else, and is poorly read,’ Evan Snyder, a stem cell
biologist in California, told
BuzzFeed. ‘So
clearly science is not a priority for him.’
“‘Donald
Trump is a climate menace, no doubt about it. He wants to pull out of the Paris
Climate Agreement, stop funding clean energy research and drill for extreme
oil. But together we are more powerful than he is,’ said
John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace UK, to the Guardian. ‘Fear may have won this election, but bravery, hope and
perseverance will overcome’ [said] Annie Leonard,
Greenpeace USA. Indeed, many environmentalists are vowing to stay the
course, unify, and assert new pressure on the incoming Trump administration as
well as the international community in an effort to avert complete climate
chaos.
“‘Our
hearts go out today to the millions of people who voted against bigotry and
hate and now have to accept the fact that the man who ridiculed and threatened
them for months is the President-elect of the United States,’ Greenpeace USA
executive director Annie Leonard said.
‘Fear may have won this election, but bravery, hope, and perseverance will
overcome.’
“‘As
a young woman and first-time voter I will not tolerate Trump's denialism of the
action needed for climate justice. Our country must undergo a systemic change
and just transition away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy within my
lifetime,’ said
Becky Chung from the youth network SustainUS. ‘The next four years are critical
for getting on the right pathway, and the disastrous election of Trump serves
as a solemn reminder of the path ahead of us. As young people and as climate
justice movements we will be demanding real action on climate for the sake of
our brothers and sisters around the world and for all future generations.’
“‘Now is the time to take a deep breath and fight
like never before’ [said]
May Boeve, 350 Action. ‘Greenpeace and millions
of people around the world have all the power we need to combat climate change
and create a just world for everyone,’ Leonard added. ‘Let's use this moment to
re-energize the fight for the climate and the fight for human rights around the
world.’
“And
350 Action executive director May Boeve told
supporters Wednesday: ‘Our work becomes much harder now, but it's not
impossible, and we refuse to give up. The hateful rhetoric promoted by Trump’s
party will only strengthen the ties between progressive groups and make our
movement stronger. Together, we will put everything on the line to protect the
progress we've made and continue to push for bold action. We refuse to leave
the future of our climate in Trump's hands. Now is the time to take a deep breath
and fight like never before.’”
Does President-Elect Trump Spell Doom for the Planet? By Nika Knight, Common Dreams
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