Despair over climate crisis could inhibit necessary changes

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The ‘most important misconception’ about climate change: environmentalist Fred Krupp

Dylan Croll

November 3, 2022·3 min read

Americans’ concern over the environment remains near a two-decade high. Over 40% of Americans surveyed worry “a great deal” about climate change, according to a recent poll conducted by Gallup.

But they should not despair, says Fred Krupp, the president of the Environmental Defense Fund, an environmental advocacy non-profit.

“The idea that it’s hopeless is the most important misconception,” said Krupp when speaking about climate change during a recent episode of “Influencers with Andy Serwer.” “The whole world has to get on board in order to solve it, including China and India and the European Union and the US. Those are the four biggest emitting geographies. But it’s not hopeless.”

Though these three countries and the EU play a disproportionate role in exacerbating climate change, they’re also attempting to curtail emissions. For instance, China has pledged to be carbon neutral by 2060. India, in turn, has recently pledged to reduce the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33% to 35% by 2030 from levels in 2005 and draw 50% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030.

WASHINGTON, DC - August 06: Fred Krupp, of the Environmental Defense Fund, and Bill Fehrman, president and CEO of MidAmerican Energy Co., during the Senate Environment and Public Works hearing on climate change.  (Photo by Scott J. Ferrell/Congressional Quarterly)
WASHINGTON, DC – August 06: Fred Krupp, of the Environmental Defense Fund, during the Senate Environment and Public Works hearing on climate change. (Photo by Scott J. Ferrell/Congressional Quarterly)

The United States recently passed the Inflation Reduction Act, a landmark piece of environmental legislation. The bill will commit roughly $375 billion to fighting climate change over the next decade and should deliver a 41% reduction in emissions by 2030, according to an analysis by the Rapid Energy Policy Evaluation and Analysis Toolkit (REPEAT) Project at Princeton University.

“We are seeing real action in China, we’ve talked about their leadership and electric vehicles. We’re seeing real action in Europe now being speeded up by the tragic war in the Ukraine, we’re seeing the US take a big step forward with the passage of the IRA,” Krupp said. “And we’re seeing India having committed to having 50% of its electricity come from clean sources by 2030.”

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