Patricia Newman
Because all Trump wants to do is “Drill, baby, drill”
In the US, 14 percent of our population believes climate change is a hoax. When it comes to climate education in schools, nearly half of our fifty states earned a grade of C+ or worse, with six states earning an F. Yet, increased carbon dioxide in our atmosphere continues to raise our air temperatures; melt sea ice, submerging many coastal communities; warm our ocean, ravaging fisheries; and cause devastating floods and wildfires, forcing many of us to flee our homes as climate migrants. No matter how hard we try, we cannot disconnect from nature.
It has never been more important to elect candidates who will commit to the long-term conservation of our natural resources. The clear choice in 2024 is Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.
Vice President Harris played a key role in advancing the Biden administration’s climate agenda, which includes significant clean energy investments. As a US senator, she cosponsored the Green New Deal resolution in 2019, signaling her support for ambitious climate action. She is also focused on making clean energy and climate solutions affordable and accessible to working families. In Minnesota, Governor Walz has signed laws to slash fossil fuel use and utilize renewable energy to power the state.
Conversely, Donald Trump emphasizes fossil fuel dominance. In 2017, he reneged on the US pledge to support the Paris Climate Agreement and will continue to roll back what little progress we’ve made to the chants of “Drill, baby, drill.”
Although Harris and Walz have not yet outlined a detailed climate plan, their past actions and statements suggest they would likely continue and potentially expand climate initiatives. With the future of our natural resources at stake, we need out-of-the-box thinking that translates climate science into meaningful ideas that expand environmental policy.
A Harris-Walz administration is our best hope for the future.
Patricia Newman’s award-winning environmental books for youth encourage readers to understand their connection to nature.