At stuffy United Nations media briefings, in luxurious halls and at crowded progressive dance parties, one word was on all minds at this year’s New York Climate Week: cost-effectiveness.
The American energy chief, Chris Wright, stated that under President Trump the United States is “reverting to practical energy policies that concentrate on affordability”. The former energy secretary, Jennifer Granholm, emphasized Democrats must center on renewable power’s ability to shrink power bills to secure elections. And advocates of the almost certainly future New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani, promoted their efforts to connect green policies with actions to cut city residents’ rent and ensure transit cost-effective.
The effort to tie everyday cost issues to global warming is longstanding. The idea was a central part of the Green New Deal, a forward-thinking policy platform popularized by young climate group the Sunrise Movement and New York representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2018. Joe Biden adopted the approach in the White House, naming his signature green carbon-cutting policy the Inflation Reduction Act, from 2022.
Now, as utility bills soar around the country, Americans on all sides of the ideological divide are framing their energy and climate plans as ways to protect everyday citizens’ pocketbooks.
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Spotlight
Annually, Climate Week in New York City unites public leaders, corporate actors, scholars and activists for a wide range of environment-centered events, timed to coincide with the United Nations general assembly.
This year, the Trump administration’s environment-deregulating campaign threw a massive shadow over the event. In speeches through the week, White House officials aimed to frame its rule-cutting agenda as a victory to reduce Americans’ bills, with Trump labeling green energy a “scam” and Wright declaring: “The more people have gotten into so-called climate action, the more expensive their energy has become.”
Climate advocates attempted to reveal those claims as inaccurate while persuading Americans on board with green policies on the grounds that they can lower costs. For instance, two Democratic representatives, from Illinois and California, unveiled a plan to speed new power-line construction and restore green energy incentives which Trump canceled earlier this year. Its title: the Cheap Energy Act.
It’s a strategy that Jennifer Granholm, who acted as US energy secretary under Biden, said she expected as climate falls down the list of public priorities for Americans, while financial anxieties rise. “My guess is you’re not going to see a lot of politicians using the word ‘climate’, because people see that as a secondary [concern], not a essential, and right now they’re in the critical mode,” she told reporters over avocado toast one morning. “Affordability is key.”
Those well to Granholm’s progressive side also called for a emphasis on affordability in the climate fight. But many called for more ambitious solutions that provide more quick benefits. Instead of merely tinkering with the tax code to incentivize green technology buildout – a hallmark of Biden’s climate efforts – politicians should focus on less technical, “green economic populist” initiatives such as no-cost transit and the development of low-carbon public housing.
“These kinds of programs do have decarbonization benefits, but they’re highly important for starting to build up a mass base [who have] faith in public institutions and confidence in the government,” Batul Hassan, workforce lead at the progressive thinktank Climate and Community Institute, remarked at a panel.
Mamdani, the left-wing who secured a remarkable win in the New York City mayoral primary this summer, embodies this kind of agenda, said Hassan. On Wednesday of Climate Week, progressives assembled for a dance party at the legendary Sounds of Brazil music venue to celebrate the candidate’s success.
“It has long been understood that if we’re going to build a broad coalition, people need to see the connection between the shift to renewable energy and spending less money,” New York City comptroller Brad Lander said in an interview at the party, speaking over the thrum of Charli xcx.
Messaging is important, but merely speaking about affordability is insufficient, Alexa Avilés, a New York City council member and democratic socialist, told the Guardian at the Mamdani event. Trump, for instance, has failed to deliver on his promise of reducing bills as giving massive benefits to oil giants and other corporations. And many Democrats are also culpable of favoring their business backers’ interests, Avilés said.
“Some people talk about everyday folks, but then they make policies that are designed for the rich. We’ve been dealing with that disappointment for a long time,” she said. “We need to concentrate on actually providing relief to people. And we see that when we really prioritize people over profit, people react to that. People can tell who is sincere.”
Further Reading:
- US energy department cracks down on workers’ use of climate crisis language
- Trump administration spending $625m to resurrect dying coal industry
- Los Angeles vowed to host the Olympics without straining the bank and environment. Can it?
