Mike Bloomberg is no stranger to pushing the climate envelope. In 2017, he chaired the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures, and he’s consistently partnered with U.S. environmental organizations on successful campaigns Beyond Coal and Beyond Carbon. He has repeatedly leveraged his financial status and influence to elevate climate discussions and drive change, illustrating how billionaires have the potential to serve as key players in the fight against climate change.
Most recently, after President Trump withdrew from the Paris Agreement (for a second time), Bloomberg Philanthropies stepped up, committing to fund the U.S’s financial contribution to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) alongside other U.S funders (also for a second time). This raises important questions: In the increasingly political battle to protect communities from the worst impacts of climate change, can we rely more on the private and social capital of wealthy individuals than elected officials sworn to act in our best interest? Is this a sustainable path forward?
Bloomberg is not the only billionaire we’ve seen make waves in the climate-sphere. Elon Musk’s contributions to the uptake of electric vehicles are undeniable, and he once advocated for advancing renewable energy and reducing reliance on fossil fuels. However, Musk’s early remarks now feel overshadowed by his recent controversial actions. While Bloomberg is helping fill the gap left by the U.S. in the Paris Agreement, Musk eggs on the very figurehead responsible for that gap.
Private capital and advocacy are certainly pieces in the net-zero puzzle, and while they can be found in the hands of billionaires, we cannot rely solely on their goodwill to deliver missing pieces.
I’ve spent some time feeling hopeful about Bloomberg’s commitment, but, like that fleeting emotion, it’s not sustainable in the long term. Private funding is valuable, there is no question about it, but systemic change won’t come from goodwill alone. Goodwill is wavering and unreliable. However, with the current political climate in North America, are actions like Bloomberg’s our only option to continue making progress until the next political cycle?
By Lauren Patterson, Outreach Coordinator