Combating the Climate Crisis and Pursuing Environmental Justice
The 2024 Democratic platform recognizes climate change as a pressing global emergency that requires immediate action to protect American lives and futures. Recent years have witnessed severe weather events, including devastating storms, wildfires, and floods, which have disproportionately affected communities of color, low-income families, and Indigenous peoples. Democrats are committed to building a clean energy economy that prioritizes equity and environmental justice.
Key initiatives include:
- Investing in Clean Energy: Mobilizing public and private investments to create millions of family-supporting jobs in clean energy and infrastructure. This includes expanding solar and wind energy, enhancing energy efficiency, and ensuring that all jobs in this sector provide opportunities for union membership.
- Environmental Justice: Establishing an environmental justice fund to address legacy pollution that harms marginalized communities. This will support clean water initiatives, eliminate lead exposure, and remediate contaminated sites.
- Achieving Net-Zero Emissions: Committing to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, with actionable goals such as eliminating carbon pollution from power plants by 2035 and incentivizing energy-efficient building retrofits.
- Protecting Public Lands: Restoring protections for national parks and monuments, banning new oil and gas permits on public lands, and promoting responsible conservation measures.
- Resilience and Disaster Preparedness: Enhancing communities’ resilience to climate impacts through infrastructure upgrades and better support for disaster response, prioritizing vulnerable populations.
- Innovation and Accountability: Investing in technology to decarbonize industries and requiring companies to disclose climate risks while holding polluters accountable for environmental harm.
Through these comprehensive measures, Democrats aim to foster a sustainable future that benefits all Americans and preserves the environment for generations to come.