The fight against climate change must remain a priority

Two months after Donald Trump’s return to power, his administration’s attack on the green transition has been of rare virulence: promises to reopen coal-fired power plants, the facilitating of oil and gas production, the hindering of renewable energies. Not to mention his offensive against electric vehicles, procedures to dismantle environmental standards, and exit from the Paris climate agreement. The 47^th US president, a climate skeptic who calls global warming a “hoax,” is striking fast and hard.

This purge also involves the demolition of scientific knowledge on climate, with massive lay-offs, budget cuts, frozen programs and bans on researchers from taking part in conferences. “We are entering a golden age of ignorance,” American science historian Robert Proctor rightly warned.

A first offensive had been carried out in 2017, during Trump’s previous term in office, against which many countries had managed to band together. None had followed the United States in leaving the Paris Agreement, while the European Union had committed to carbon neutrality.

Prerequisite for better living

This time, alas, far greater damage is to be feared. As the world’s biggest polluter, second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases and biggest oil producer, the US is hampering the global fight against climate change at a time when the window of opportunity for meeting the Paris Agreement targets is closing. Not only will the country be unable to meet its 2030 climate targets, but it is slowing down the transition in developing countries by cutting off financial aid, and risks fueling the rise of climate skeptics.

In eight years, the international context has changed radically. Wars in Ukraine and Gaza, tensions over energy prices and budgetary austerity have undermined multilateralism, including on climate issues. In many countries, environmental awareness, instead of rising, has become unpopular, fueling protests against regulations. In France, environmental agencies and research institutes have been blocked by farmers, NGOs have been branded as “terrorists,” and the term “agroecology” has disappeared from the law on agricultural orientation. In Europe, the legislation on nature restoration has been watered down, and the directives on duty of care and corporate transparency with regard to environmental and social impact have been postponed. There is no guarantee that the new target of a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 will be adopted by EU member states and the European Parliament.

At a time when the EU is looking to strengthen its sovereignty, it would be a serious mistake to relegate the environment to second place. Like defense, investment in clean energies helps reduce our dependence on Russia and the US. It ensures that China, the leader in decarbonized energies, does not have a monopoly on innovation. It is a prerequisite for better living. Everywhere on the planet, the recurrence of extreme climate events affecting the safety, health and prosperity of populations is proof that, without climate security, security in Europe will be impossible. Rather than giving up in the face of obstacles, leaders must aim to overcome them.