# Climate Forward Live Updates: Responding to Trump’s Retreat From Climate Action
The New York Times’s annual Climate Forward event includes interviews with Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, among others.
## Here’s the latest.
The Climate Forward live event is underway. We will be talking to top world leaders, policymakers, business leaders and activists throughout the day.
On everyone’s mind this year, of course, is the Trump administration’s approach to climate policy.
In the event’s first session, **André Corrêa do Lago**, the Brazilian diplomat in charge of this year’s United Nations climate negotiations, said U.S. Energy Secretary **Chris Wright** would be welcome at the conference despite the Trump administration’s move to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement. Mr. Wright will be a guest at the Climate Forward event later on Wednesday.
The United States, which just last year had positioned itself as a climate leader under the Biden administration, now has retreated from those efforts. Under President Trump, the United States is dismissing the threats of climate change and promoting fossil fuels.
The stakes couldn’t be higher. After another year of record global temperatures and climate-fueled disasters, world leaders are confronting not only a rapidly changing planet, but also a drastically altered political landscape.
All of this comes at a time of rising energy demand, fueled in part by the growth in artificial intelligence, and at a time when China is dominating the race to build clean energy technologies, including batteries and solar power.
The event will include conversations with Gov. **Gavin Newsom** of California and **Bob Mumgaard**, the chief executive of Commonwealth Fusion Systems, which is working on building the world’s first commercial fusion power plant. Here is the full speaker lineup, the day’s schedule and a little bit about each panel.
Here’s what else to know:
* **Financing**: Clean energy financing will surpass $2.2 trillion this year, but only 15 percent of the funding will go to the developing world and only 2 percent will reach the African continent, according to **Damilola Ogunbiyi**, the chief executive of Sustainable Energy for All, an international nonprofit organization that works on energy access.
* **A.I.:** Microsoft and Google executives said both companies remained committed to achieving net-zero emissions or better by 2030, despite the fact that emissions from both have risen in recent years, driven by investments in artificial intelligence and data centers.
* **National security:** Jake Sullivan, former national security adviser under President Biden, said the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle federal policies to study and address the risks of climate change could pose a security threat to the United States.
* **Criticizing Trump**: Andrew Forrest, executive chairman of the mining company Fortescue, assailed Mr. Trump for his refusal to accept climate science and said the elimination of renewable energy tax credits by Republicans was a factor in Fortescue’s decision to cancel plans for a $210 million electric vehicle battery factory in Michigan.
* **Climate Forward is also a podcast**. Our first episode features a conversation with former Vice President **Al Gore**. We spoke to Mr. Gore about where the climate movement stands nearly 20 years after he starred in “An Inconvenient Truth,” an Oscar-winning documentary that helped spur a global conversation about climate change. Listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
* **Your questions:** You sent us dozens of excellent climate-related questions you’d like us to ask onstage. Read some of them here.
* **The Climate Forward newsletter.** Here is how to sign up.
## Actor Rainn Wilson Shares a Simple Rule for Reconnecting with Nature
*Image: Rainn Wilson, environmentalist and a star of “The Office,” at the Times Center in New York City.*
Ever heard of the 20-5-3 rule?
Spend 20 minutes outside three times per week. Add five hours per month somewhere a little wild, like a forest or a lake. And three days per year, try to go off the grid and spend time in nature without a cellphone.
Onstage at the event, accompanied by live musicians, Rainn Wilson, an actor, environmentalist and a star of “The Office,” shared this idea as one way to start changing our relationship with nature. The idea was first developed by the scientist Rachel Hopman-Droste. Mr. Wilson said he had lost half of his home in the Los Angeles fires this year, and just last month he evacuated his family from a cabin in Oregon to escape another fire threat.
He said that in order to address climate change, we must transform our relationship with nature. “We need to value nature as profoundly sacred,” he said. “Spiritual, even.”
Read his full Times opinion piece here.
## Marshall Islands President Pleads for Global Action as Her Nation Sinks
*Image: Hilda Heine, president of the Marshall Islands, onstage at the Climate Forward event.*
Hilda Heine, president of the Marshall Islands, expressed disappointment in President Trump’s United Nations speech, where he dismissed climate science as a “hoax” created by “stupid people.”
“The Pacific Island Forum, comprising all Pacific countries, has repeatedly declared climate change the greatest security threat to the region,” she stated, emphasizing that its reality is *unquestionable*.
Ms. Heine extended an invitation to Mr. Trump to visit the Marshall Islands, playfully suggesting he might enjoy a unique golf course spanning two islands.
The population of the Marshall Islands has dwindled to 37,000 from 50,000 a decade ago, as residents flee rather than rebuild homes after relentless floods. Ms. Heine recently warned The Times that her nation could be submerged by 2050 if global efforts to combat climate change fall short.
Small island nations like the Marshall Islands are facing severe climate threats from rising sea levels and extreme weather. Their leaders are powerful advocates in global climate negotiations, urging a swift phase-out of fossil fuels and demanding that wealthy, high-emission countries bear the financial burden for adaptation measures like sea walls.
“When we talk about climate finance, we’re not talking about charity; we’re talking about compensation for what is due,” Ms. Heine asserted.
## Australian Magnate Andrew Forrest Challenges Trump: “Come See What’s Happening to My Land.”
*Video Summary: Andrew Forrest, the executive chairman of the mining company Fortescue, invited President Trump to see the damage Australia is experiencing as the planet heats up.*
Andrew Forrest, executive chairman of the mining company Fortescue, strongly criticized President Trump’s denial of climate science and extended an invitation for Mr. Trump to witness the climate damage firsthand in Australia.
“Your president is propagating a complete myth that global warming isn’t happening, causing real damage to people’s lives worldwide,” Mr. Forrest declared.
He added, “I feel genuine pain when I hear your president dismissing global warming as a huge con. As a fellow businessman, I own millions of acres in Australia. Come and see what’s happening there. Dive on these reefs, once the most beautiful environments on Earth, now devastated and covered in moss.”
Fortescue recently canceled plans for a $210 million electric vehicle battery factory in Michigan, attributing the decision in part to Republicans’ elimination of renewable energy tax credits.
“All those plans to employ thousands of people to produce batteries for the American people — shattered,” Forrest stated on Wednesday.
“The tragedy of this rollback,” Mr. Forrest continued, “is a ‘one-horse bet’ in a multi-horse race that your administration is making now. It’s a bet on the oldest, tiredest horse of the lot: fossil fuels.”
Mr. Forrest, a billionaire Australian mining magnate and founder of Fortescue Metals Group, has become an unexpected champion for climate action.
In 2021, he committed his company to achieving net-zero carbon emissions and transforming into a renewable energy powerhouse. Since then, he has leveraged his global mining platform to advocate for a faster transition from fossil fuels to wind, solar, and other clean energy sources.
Fortescue is currently constructing a $50 million green iron plant in Western Australia’s Pilbara region, which will utilize hydrogen, and is exploring another project in Brazil. However, earlier this year, the company canceled two green hydrogen projects, raising questions about the future of this clean fuel.
## Former Biden Official Warns Trump’s Climate Denial Poses U.S. National Security Risk
*Image: Jake Sullivan, President Biden’s former national security adviser.*
Jake Sullivan, former national security adviser in the Biden administration, stated that the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle federal policies on climate change research and risk assessment could create a national security threat for the United States.
“The United States will be less prepared and capable to confront this challenge because we’ve chosen to blind ourselves to what is a truly critical national security threat with numerous cascading consequences,” Mr. Sullivan remarked at The New York Times’ Climate Forward event on Wednesday.
Under the Biden administration, the Department of Defense and the U.S. intelligence community had issued multiple reports concluding that global warming could intensify risks such as food shortages, mass migration, and international conflicts.
These crucial analyses are now being halted. Last month, Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, announced the closure of the group responsible for the annual U.S. government’s Global Trends report, which previously assessed the national security implications of climate change. Ms. Gabbard justified the closure by claiming the group held “a political agenda that ran counter to all of the current president’s national security priorities.”
Mr. Sullivan sharply criticized this decision, arguing, “You don’t just have to ask the intelligence community. You go to any man or woman with stars on their shoulders or general officers, and they will tell you the climate crisis is real and has an operational impact on them.”
The Trump administration has also significantly curtailed federal support for various clean energy technologies, including solar panels, wind turbines, and electric vehicles. Mr. Sullivan cautioned against ceding these vital industries to China, which currently leads in the deployment and production of most such technologies.
“These core clean energy technologies, including batteries, are crucial for everything we do, including the artificial intelligence revolution,” he emphasized. “Therefore, the United States cannot simply dismiss clean energy as someone else’s concern.”
## Tech Giants Microsoft and Google Assert Achievability of Climate Goals Amid Rising AI Emissions
*Video Summary: Speaking at The New York Times’s Climate Forward event, the chief sustainability officers of Microsoft and Google said that their goals to achieve net-zero emissions or better by 2030 are still achievable.*
Microsoft and Google executives reiterated their commitment to climate goals on Wednesday, even as their emissions have recently increased due to massive investments in artificial intelligence and data centers.
Both companies have pledged to reach net-zero emissions or better by 2030.
When asked by The Times’s David Gelles about Microsoft’s ambitious climate targets, Melanie Nakagawa, Chief Sustainability Officer, acknowledged that the “moon has gotten farther away,” but stated, “You have to build a faster rocket ship.” She highlighted the company’s substantial investments in carbon removal.
Both Microsoft and Google have committed millions to advancing nuclear energy sources.
Kate Brandt, Google’s Chief Sustainability Officer, emphasized strategies like more efficient data centers. Last year, emissions from Google’s data centers decreased even as electricity consumption rose, demonstrating their ability to “disaggregate that growth.”
However, Ms. Nakagawa admitted that Microsoft might consider building new data centers powered by natural gas or coal, but assured that the company would offset these emissions by purchasing carbon-free energy elsewhere.
Addressing a situation in Omaha, Nebraska, where a utility planned to keep a coal plant running to power Google and Meta data centers, Ms. Brandt underscored the critical need for developing more clean, reliable energy.
For years, tech companies positioned themselves as leaders in corporate sustainability, announcing major investments in emission-free power and pledging to combat climate misinformation.
Yet, the exponential growth of artificial intelligence, which already consumes vast amounts of electricity and is set to demand even more, presents a significant hurdle. Google’s greenhouse gas emissions rose by 11 percent in 2024, while Microsoft’s, despite a slight dip, remained 10 percent higher than in 2021. Other leading tech firms have experienced similar trends.
## Bridging the Energy Divide: Providing Clean Energy to Billions for a Productive Future
*Image: Damilola Ogunbiyi, chief executive of Sustainable Energy for All, at the Climate Forward event.*
Globally, over 2 billion people lack access to clean cooking fuel, and hundreds of millions live without electricity. Despite the booming renewable energy sector in developed nations, experts highlight a critical shortfall in investment for bringing electricity to developing countries.
“Climate finance isn’t scarce,” asserted Jacqueline Novogratz, chief executive of Acumen, an investment fund dedicated to poverty alleviation. “It’s scared.”
Clean energy financing is projected to exceed $2.2 trillion this year; however, only 15 percent of this funding will reach the developing world, and a mere 2 percent will go to the African continent, according to Damilola Ogunbiyi, chief executive of Sustainable Energy for All, an international nonprofit focused on energy access.
The World Bank and the African Development Bank are spearheading an ambitious initiative to provide electricity to 300 million Africans by 2030, supported by at least $35 billion in investment commitments and endorsed by African leaders in a January summit.
“There’s no way you can develop a society and say low-energy, high-productivity,” Ms. Ogunbiyi stated. “So it’s really, really important that we need to get enough energy to people to live a productive life.”
## Rethinking Strategy: Does the Environmental Movement Need a New Approach in the Trump Era?
*Video Summary: In a panel on the future of climate activism, the author Bill McKibben said the U.S. risks falling behind on green tech due to the Trump administration’s rollbacks on environmental initiatives.*
During a panel discussion on the future of climate activism, environmental leaders firmly rejected the notion that the 2024 presidential election served as a referendum on climate issues. Nevertheless, they acknowledged the necessity for activists to refine their communication strategies.
“A crucial lesson from 2024 is that we must improve our ability to connect climate and clean energy issues with the everyday concerns that matter most to people,” stated Manish Bapna, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Activist and author Bill McKibben warned that President Trump’s energy policies—which champion fossil fuels while impeding renewable energy projects—will place the United States at a severe strategic disadvantage globally, especially against China.
“The Trump administration is actively trying to decelerate this transition in the U.S., even as it rapidly advances elsewhere,” Mr. McKibben remarked. “If this continues for much longer, then, in a decade, the U.S. will become the ‘Colonial Williamsburg of internal combustion,’ where foreign visitors come to marvel at how things used to be.”
The U.S. environmental movement arguably achieved a significant milestone during the Biden administration with the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the nation’s largest-ever federal legislation targeting climate change.
However, earlier this year, Congress enacted Mr. Trump’s comprehensive domestic policy bill, which repealed many of the Inflation Reduction Act’s tax incentives for renewable energy. Mr. Bapna labeled this reversal a “Trump energy tax.”
“This legislation is essentially Robin Hood in reverse,” he commented.
President Trump has also intensified efforts to rollback environmental regulations beyond his first term, proudly promoting coal (the dirtiest fossil fuel) and pressuring other nations to purchase American oil and gas.
“In certain ways, it’s the darkest moment,” Mr. McKibben observed in a recent interview with The Times.
Environmental leaders have characterized the recent setbacks during Mr. Trump’s second term as a *generational setback*, prompting some to question whether a radical shift in strategy is now necessary.
## Can Global Climate Action Thrive Without U.S. Leadership?
*Image: André Corrêa do Lago at the Climate Forward event. He will lead global climate negotiations in November in Belém, Brazil.*
André Corrêa do Lago, the Brazilian diplomat overseeing global climate negotiations in November, confirmed that U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright would be welcome at the upcoming conference, despite the Trump administration’s withdrawal from the pivotal Paris Agreement.
Mr. Corrêa do Lago noted Mr. Wright’s skepticism, stating, “He denies the economics of the fight against climate change,” and that the energy secretary considers climate mitigation too expensive.
“I think this is precisely what we need to discuss,” Mr. Corrêa do Lago emphasized. “It’s what we must discuss with oil companies and many economic sectors that are understandably somewhat apprehensive about this transition.”
He also defended the long-standing rules requiring unanimous consensus on key climate targets but acknowledged that these rules often lead to immense frustration, as a few countries can impede progress.
This year’s COP30 climate conference, marking ten years since the Paris Agreement (a voluntary pact among nearly 200 nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions), will be held in Belém, Brazil, near the Amazon.
Negotiators are preparing for the meeting amidst a global retreat from climate politics. Beyond the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, policies aimed at cutting emissions and fostering renewable energy face fresh obstacles in Canada, Europe, and South America.
A U.N. report last fall revealed that the world had made no progress in reducing emissions and tackling global warming in the preceding year. These trends have prompted critics to question whether the entire system of climate diplomacy should be discarded and replaced with an entirely new approach.
## Al Gore Reflects on the Climate Movement’s Journey and Future Amidst Political Shifts
*Image: Former vice president Al Gore in April.*
*Audio: Listen to Climate Forward, “Al Gore on Trump and the Future of Climate Action”. The former vice president speaks to David Gelles about how the climate movement can move forward after President Trump’s rollback of key environmental regulations and where he finds hope as the planet continues warming.*
Few individuals have been more instrumental in bringing climate change into public discourse than former Vice President Al Gore, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate for his environmental advocacy.
He also famously starred in the Oscar-winning 2006 documentary “An Inconvenient Truth,” which played a crucial role in galvanizing global action on climate change.
However, President Trump’s administration has swiftly withdrawn the U.S. from the international climate fight. I spoke with Mr. Gore about the path forward in the battle to save our rapidly warming planet.
In this limited series from The New York Times, prominent world leaders, business executives, and policymakers gather to discuss the escalating threat of climate change live at the annual Climate Forward conference in New York City.
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## Spotlight on Speakers: The 2025 Climate Forward Conference Agenda
The 2025 Climate Forward conference will run from 9:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday. A livestream is available.
Below is the full schedule and a brief description of each of the panels.
### 9:15 a.m. – The High Stakes of COP30.
As the president of COP30, the United Nation’s climate talks taking place in Brazil in November, **André Corrêa do Lago** has described “economic denial” as the new front in the climate fight. With world governments set to gather in the heart of the Amazon in less than two months for COP30, and the U.S. retreating from climate action, global climate policy is at a tenuous moment.
### 9:40 a.m. – **The Future of Climate Activism in the Trump Era.**
As President Trump has rolled back climate regulations, environmental groups are changing tactics, retrenching and, in some cases, cutting back. In this conversation, we’ll speak to **Abigail Dillen**, the president of Earthjustice; **Manish Bapna**, the president of the Natural Resources Defense Council; and activist and author **Bill McKibben**.
### 10:15 a.m. – How to Bring Power to the World.
**Jacqueline Novogratz**, chief executive of Acumen, a nonprofit group that works on global poverty issues, and **Damilola Ogunbiyi**, chief executive of Sustainable Energy for All, will discuss what could help bring reliable, affordable energy to the tens of millions of people who lack it.
### 10:49 a.m. – **Will the A.I. Revolution Put Climate Goals at Risk?**
**Kate Brandt** and **Melanie Nakagawa**, the chief sustainability officers at Google and Microsoft, will discuss how A.I. is reshaping industries and accelerating innovation while also bringing new challenges for sustainability and energy use. As emissions rise at big tech companies, what will it take to power the A.I. revolution without risking the world’s climate goals?
### 11:13 a.m. – When Climate Change is a National Security Threat.
In a conversation with **Jake Sullivan**, former national security adviser under President Joseph R. Biden Jr., we will examine how the United States and its allies are preparing for a world where rising temperatures mean rising threats. And we’ll discuss the United States’ growing rivalry with China, which has a vast lead in the development of clean energy.
### 11:36 a.m. – **Has the World Turned Against Climate Politics?**
**David Wallace-Wells** will deliver remarks adapted from his recent New York Times Magazine cover story, “It Isn’t Just the U.S. — The Whole World Has Soured on Climate Politics.”
In his remarks, Mr. Wallace-Wells notes that progress is still being made to reduce climate harm. But he questions what values might replace the solidarity that once defined the Paris Accord — and which nations or interests will come to dominate this new era of climate action.
### 11:45 a.m. – **The Billionaire Betting on a Fossil-Free Future.**
**Andrew Forrest**, the executive chairman of Fortescue and one of the richest people on the planet, has a bold, perhaps unlikely vision to shift his gigantic mining company to net zero emissions by 2030.
### 12:05 p.m. – **The Nation That is Sinking into the Sea.**
The Marshall Islands face a stark reality: As sea levels rise, the entire nation is at risk of sinking into the sea. In this conversation, the nation’s president, **Hilda Heine**, will detail the urgent fight for survival, the limits of adaptation and what wealthier nations owe countries on the brink of climate catastrophe.
### 1:31 p.m. – Actor Rainn Wilson on Climate Change and Spirituality.
This summer in rural Britain, the actor **Rainn Wilson**, a star of “The Office,” attended a fire ceremony with Indigenous elders, a gathering that also included King Charles III and that was organized by Grounded, an environmental organization that he works with.
The experience helped Mr. Wilson take a more spiritually informed approach to the climate crisis. He will tell the story of how he sees climate change and spirituality as linked in a live performance onstage, accompanied by live orchestral music and original animations.
### 1:42 p.m. – **The Big Power Shift.**
**Scott Strazik**, the CEO of GE Vernova, a maker of gas infrastructure and wind power systems, is in the center of Mr. Trump’s energy and climate agenda. Mr. Trump has declared war on the offshore wind power industry, but is promoting oil and gas. Mr. Strazik will discuss his companies unique position amid all this change.
### 2:05 p.m. – Gavin Newsom on Mr. Trump, California and Climate.
Gov. **Gavin Newsom** of California will discuss California’s role in setting the standard for climate policy across the nation and what he’s doing to push back against President Trump’s environmental polices. Will state leaders be able to implement climate policy without federal funding?
### 2:52 p.m. – Secretary Chris Wright on Energy Politics Under Mr. Trump.
During his time in office, **Chris Wright**, the energy secretary, has promoted a Trumpian agenda defined by deregulation and fossil fuel expansion. Mr. Wright will discuss the impact of those policies and how his department is approaching energy policy, rising electricity demand and the challenge of climate change.
### 3:18 p.m. – **Are We on the Brink of a Fusion Breakthrough?**
Fusion energy has long been hailed as the ultimate climate solution — clean, limitless and just out of reach. In this conversation, **Bob Mumgaard**, the chief executive of Commonwealth Fusion Systems, which is working on building the world’s first commercial fusion power plant, will discuss how close we really are to bringing the technology to the grid.
### 3:44 p.m. – **Climate Change and Congress.**
In this conversation, Senator **Brian Schatz**, Democrat of Hawaii, will discuss the challenges of turning climate ambition into durable policy and what it takes to build political will in a divided Congress.
### 4:14 p.m. – Australia on the Forefront of Climate Change.
Prime Minister **Anthony Albanese** of Australia will discuss his country’s challenge in reducing emissions. Australia remains reliant on fossil fuels, including coal, which generates nearly half of its electricity. But Albanese has been outspoken in calling for Australia to be a global leader in lowering emissions and embracing renewables.