Are you still an undecided voter? Polls suggest that your major issues are inflation and the economy, followed by immigration and health care. Climate change ranks a distant sixth.
If you are one of the 70% of people who express concern about climate change, but don’t think it affects you, think again about these linkages.
Increased heat and more frequent extreme weather events, manifestations of climate change, slow the economy and add to inflation, as I articulated on these pages (Herald, June 30).
Climate change adds to political instability and undermines incomes in tropical countries, leading desperate people to seek a better life in richer and more temperate counties. Consequently, the U.S. is not alone facing migration stress.
Likewise, climate change contributes to health challenges, especially through longer and more intense heat waves or through other extreme weather events, such as the wildfires that remain a perennial threat to Durango.
Climate change is a threat multiplier. Think of a cauldron simmering over the fuel of existing societal stresses. Climate change, both literally and figuratively, turns up the heat – and it will not stop!
Will you vote for a presidential candidate and a party that deny the relevance of climate change, rendering them incapable of addressing its growing risks? Or will you vote for the candidate and the party that already incorporates climate action into their broader policy agenda?
Vote for Kamala Harris for president, Adam Frisch for Congress and for Democrats in down-ballot races.
Richard E. (Dick) White
Durango
