The Pittsburgh Foundation, Known for its Environmentalism, Shares a Lobbying Firm with the Oil and Gas Industry
By Kiley Bense
The Pittsburgh Foundation, a philanthropic organization founded in 1945, has a simple mission statement: “to improve the quality of life in the Pittsburgh region.” One of the foundation’s main priorities for its grants is environmental action, focusing on environmental justice, protecting “the health of our communities” from long-term industrial pollution, and support for initiatives that address “climate change and health inequities.”
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”