WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to the Obama administration’s announcement of a $500 million contribution to the Green Climate Fund, Friends of the Earth U.S. Deputy Director of Economic Policy Karen Orenstein issued the following statement:
Friends of the Earth applauds President Obama for providing this urgently needed money to the Green Climate Fund as one of his final acts before leaving office. Republicans in Congress should never have made it so difficult for the world’s wealthiest country to assist the world’s poor as they struggle daily to feed their families and make ends meet on a warming planet.
The incoming Trump administration and Congress must not play politics with the moral and legal obligation of the U.S. to provide assistance through the Green Climate Fund for those whose lives and livelihoods are today being devastated by climate change. This must not be twisted into some kind of game to score anti-science political points; the health, well-being and even survival of children and their families are at stake here.
We do not know what the Trump team is planning for the Green Climate Fund in 2017, but if it is not prepared to play a constructive role, then it should play no role at all.
Friends of the Earth fights to create a more healthy and just world. Our current campaigns focus on promoting clean energy and solutions to climate change, ensuring the food we eat and products we use are safe and sustainable, and protecting marine ecosystems and the people who live and work near them.