Leonardo DiCaprio called out the Trump administration and members of the political establishment who've been responsible for policies that undermine the scientific community's warnings on climate change, on Tuesday, September 19. During his delivery of the keynote address at the Yale Climate Conference, the Oscar Award-winning actor and environmentalist noted denial of the issue and revision of policy passed to address it, by the likes of Energy Secretary Rick Perry and Florida Gov. Rick Scott, as detrimental to America's ability to play a role in saving the money, energy, and lives that are at stake as the fate of the planet hangs in the balance. But more specifically, he urged the President to reflect on the destruction recent storms has caused in hopes that it will motivate him to confront the matter.
“Quite simply, we are knowingly doing this to ourselves, to our entire planet, and we’re risking our very future. And the cost of our inaction these past couple weeks has become even clearer,” DiCaprio told the YCC audience. He then called upon business people to invest in renewable energy, while encouraging those who have their time and commitment to giving, to get busy organizing voters to elect environmentally conscious leaders into office in the coming elections. “Time is up. The current events have become a global wake-up call that must be heard all the way from you to the private sector, all the way to Washington, D.C. It is too late for any of us to be too timid, or too ignorant or too silent. We all have to take action together, now,” said DiCaprio.
DiCaprio made mention of how he did his part in meeting with Trump in order to present a plan that he had faith would bolster economic opportunities in clean-energy while fighting climate change but conceded to the realization that their one-on-one fell on deaf ears after witnessing the anti-environment appointments he made to his cabinet. DiCaprio expressed how disheartened he has been by the direction Trump has taken, but said he remains optimistic about the nation's future on the issue of climate change. “I still believe that the United States has the potential to lead the world on this issue. We can only hope that the president begins to see it too before it is too late for all of us,” he told the conference audience.
Source: huffingtonpost.com
