Climate-policy

How can art inspire people to care about climate change? In the online panel “Actors from Witnesses,” two artists, one scientist, and an artist training to be a scientist hoped to answer this question.

With the world keenly focused on tackling the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s easy to forget other pressing issues at hand that need to be addressed. A Zoom webinar held by the Center on Global Energy Policy at the School of International and Public Affairs with Bill Gates on Feb. 23 brings our attention back to the climate crisis that is still ever-present.

One Instagram post, podcast, and TikTok, at a time, Lauren Ritchie, CC ’22, is on a mission to redefine sustainability, amplify marginalized voices, and gain traction for an inclusive climate action movement.

On July 10, University President Lee Bollinger announced the opening of the Columbia Climate School. He based the decision on Columbia’s commitment to public life, writing: “We are not free to ignore the issues of our age and pursue whatever we want. We are ultimately responsible to our societies and the world. To that end, we must answer the call to serve.”

High air pollution rates. Toxic waste plants. High temperatures. These are only some of the issues that West Harlem residents face as a result of the ever-worsening climate crisis, coupled with systemic neglect on the part of government officials, the New York City Housing Authority, and the disproportionate number of pollutant-producing entities in the area.

With former President Donald Trump out of office, it’s time to focus on what we want President Joe Biden to do during his administration. He undoubtedly has a lot on his shoulders. He is inheriting a country that is going through the worst pandemic in about a century, the worst depression since the 1920s, a high point in racial tensions and wealth inequality, and a climate crisis that is worsening. There are many things that Biden could focus on first, but I am advocating for him to prioritize expanding health care access for all Americans.

Now that the Democratic Party controls the executive and legislative branches of government and has taken responsibility for handling the unprecedented dual economic and public health crises of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is no excuse for half measures. Leftists should take advantage of this precarious political moment and implement many social-democratic policies that would reduce the hardships Americans currently face. A federal jobs guarantee—where the government provides a job to every unemployed person seeking one—should be of the highest priority.

About six weeks after the 2020 U.S. presidential election, the United States Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency released details of a widespread computer breach of over 250 U.S. agencies and businesses worldwide on December 17. This breach has affected roughly 18,000 individuals. According to CISA, this global breach was made by “an advanced persistent threat actor beginning in at least March 2020.” Contrary to the Russian foreign ministry classifying the events as “another unfounded attempt by the U.S. media to blame Russia for cyberattacks against U.S. agencies,” cybersecurity experts who cite the “highly-sophisticated” nature of said breach believe the hacking group known as “Cozy Bear,” or ATP29, from Russia’s SVR foreign intelligence service is responsible.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are inheriting the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression—though the stock market won’t tell you that. The United States’ K-shaped recovery, through which billionaires reap record profits while average families lose income, is symptomatic of an economic system that siphons money to the already wealthy at the expense of working Americans. The pandemic has only accelerated this trend.