Now Comes the Hard Part: Environmental Advocacy in the Age of Climate Disruption

Abstract

This essay is based on the remarks made in connection with the 34th Annual Environmental Distinguished Visitor Lecture at Lewis and Clark Law School in September 2022. After briefly reviewing the successes and shortcomings of the first 50 years of the modern environmental movement the essay pivots to address the unprecedented challenges and the "dangerous opportunities" presented by the climate crisis.The essay cites the growing number of catastrophic events linked to anthropogenic climate change and stresses the need for urgent and sustained efforts to decarbonize the global economy through effective and equitable policies and programs at every level of government. The essay discusses promising developments such as the rapid expansion of renewable energy and electric vehicles, the increasing public and private sector investments in sustainable development, the emergence of ESG (environmental and social governance) movement, and the enactment of the first piece of national climate legislation in the form of the Inflation Reduction Act.Challenges to federal climate regulation from a more conservative Supreme Court in the West Virginia v EPA decision are noted.

Keywords: climate crisis, inflation reduction act, sustainable finance

JEL Classification: K 32