There’s a New Way the U.S. Is Committing to Paris

It’s been a week since President Trump announced he was pulling the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement.  In that time, a remarkable transformation has taken place.

As the federal government abdicates its responsibility to address climate change, a groundswell of support has sprung up at the state, city and corporate levels.  Those sub-national actors are making the case on the international stage that the U.S. will meet its Paris Agreement commitment.

That includes a first-of-its-kind effort called America’s Pledge, spearheaded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, that’s been dubbed a “societally nationally determined contribution.”  States, cities and other groups can sign on to meet the U.S. pledge to the Paris Agreement of reducing carbon pollution 26-28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025.

David Hart, a political scientist at George Mason University, said that the new initiative bears some similarity to the 1980s anti-nuclear movement when cities and states declared themselves “nuclear-free” zones, but it’s the only time he can recall sub-national action in the U.S. being linked to an international treaty.

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