Washington, D.C. – In response to the IPCC Working Group II report release today, highlighting the urgency of action, the impacts of climate change we are already seeing and those to come, and the disparities of those impacts domestically and internationally, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) released the following statement from President Gene Karpinski:

“The latest report from the IPCC makes clearer than ever that the time for action on climate and environmental justice is now. More than any prior iteration, this report highlights the severe and costly impacts that climate change is having and will increasingly have on our ecosystems, water and food systems, industry, infrastructure, security, and overall health and well-being. It also reaffirms the unjust and well-documented reality that the worst impacts of this crisis are already and will continue to be borne by the least developed countries and low-income communities and communities of color around the world who have contributed the least to climate change but are nonetheless most vulnerable to its most devastating effects.

“The imperative is clear. Combating this crisis will require transformative action in the next decade and the United States has a responsibility to lead in the global fight against climate change, and to ensure that all our efforts are centering environmental and racial justice at home and abroad. Internationally, we must honor our commitments in climate finance. At home, the U.S. Senate must begin by quickly passing a comprehensive revised reconciliation package that includes the agreed-upon $555 billion investments in climate, jobs, justice, and our clean energy future. Not only will these investments put us on a path to meet our climate goals and advance environmental justice, they will also create good-paying union jobs, help lower costs for working families, and improve the health and resiliency of our communities.”

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