If we’re doing this right, every edition of one5c will answer the question, how can I have an impact? That’s why we keep you informed, break down complex topics, and offer tips for actions like quitting paper towels or switching to a bank that doesn’t fund fossil fuels. We report the facts behind the acts to ensure they’re worth your time and effort. You’ve read the subject line up top. You know where I’m going with this email. Stay with me for a little bit of context—I promise I’ll keep it short.
We don’t really do politics here. We prefer to stay out of that minefield unless political action is the only practical action we can recommend. That’s the situation right now. Tomorrow’s presidential election will determine how the United States—the world’s second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases—manages its massive carbon footprint. The U.N. just issued a report stating that we are not decarbonizing quickly enough, that we need to cut our emissions by 42% before the end of 2030 if we want to dodge the worst impacts of human-caused global warming. The next administration will be in power until 2029. It will determine whether the United States meets that goal. Period, end of point.
I had a whole thing drafted about my kid and your kids (if you have any) and how no issue matters if they don’t have a habitable planet to live on and blah blah blah. But when I started one5c, I promised to go easy on the doomsauce. So I’m skipping to the good part:
The one5c answer is that the action with the highest impact is to vote Harris. She has a realistic chance of winning, and she sees the climate emergency for the emergency that it is.
You and I can steer this thing away from the abyss. If the U.S. angles its economy, innovation, and culture toward environmental stewardship instead of exploitation, the rest of the world will follow.
Kamala Harris has put forth policies that, while not perfect, will point the U.S. in that direction (PDF, p. 28). She cast the deciding vote for the most important environmental legislation in American history. Her vice presidential pick has a legit track record of serious climate wins, too. I am voting for them. Meanwhile, when former President Trump was in the White House, his administration pursued a policy of aggressive fossil fuel expansion, which included drilling on protected federal land. They quashed more than 100 rules that protected the environment. He reportedly promised a room full of oil executives that he’d dismantle the Inflation Reduction Act if they paid him enough, and analysts expect that a second Trump term would be catastrophic for U.S. emissions.
I know there are other issues at stake. You might be on the other side of them from Vice President Harris. You might not love either major-party candidate. You might be thinking of sitting this one out or casting a protest vote. The one5c answer is that the action with the highest impact is to vote Harris. She has a realistic chance of winning, and she sees the climate emergency for the emergency that it is. Be a single-issue voter with me. Let’s elect the candidate with the best chance of saving the world. Then we can get to work on everything else.
I’m not delusional: I get that a climate-focused newsletter endorsing a progressive presidential candidate isn’t going to swing the election. But I wrote this because I’m following the charge that Corinne, Sara Kiley, and I ask of you every week: to do what you can. Because lots of little acts will add up to big change. And voting for a livable future is the biggest little thing you can do right now.
Take care of yourselves—and the rest of us, too.