Current:Home > MarketsVideo: In New York’s Empty Streets, Lessons for Climate Change in the Response to Covid-19 -MacroWatch
Video: In New York’s Empty Streets, Lessons for Climate Change in the Response to Covid-19
View
Date:2025-04-15 08:15:48
The world is reeling from yet another week of the coronavirus pandemic, with death counts rising, economies spiraling downward and half the global population under orders to stay at home.
But there are also lessons from the response to Covid-19 that can be applied to the climate crisis, and opportunities for cities to take the policies implemented to deal with the pandemic and apply them to their efforts to slow climate change.
Some of the similarities between the two crises are obvious, such as the benefits of acting early, the consequences of delay and the importance of heeding scientists’ warnings. Others, like the long-term economic impacts of the crises and the ways that infrastructure improvements can make communities more resilient to their impacts, are more nuanced or won’t be clear for some time.
“Climate change has the potential eventually to be an even greater threat to humanity than the coronavirus,” said Michael Gerrard, director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia Law School. “With the virus, you have a very fast moving, devastating impact, and the mortality from it is quite clear, and people are almost overnight changing their behavior to try to cope with it. With climate change, it’s a problem that has been building up for decades and will take even decades more to reach its fullest extent.”
One similarity, Gerrard notes, is the way in which both climate change and Covid-19 disproportionately affect low income and marginalized communities. New York City Councilwoman Carlina Rivera, who serves the Lower East Side community of Manhattan, agreed. “When you think about our historically marginalized, disenfranchised communities,” she said, “I think that you will see how those inequities [have] really been brought to light” by weather events related to climate change and by the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a matter of days, governments, industries and individuals across the country reacted dramatically to the Covid-19 threat, shuttering schools and businesses; turning entire workforces into telecommuters; pivoting industries to the production of ventilators and protective equipment, and protecting themselves with hand sanitizers, face masks and isolation. And some of these practices could also have lasting impacts in the fight against global warming.
Many U.S. cities and states have enacted climate change initiatives, particularly since President Trump decided to pull out of the Paris Agreement in 2017. Perhaps the most ambitious of these plans is in New York City, currently the epicenter of the U.S. Covid-19 outbreak. Amy Turner, a fellow at the Cities Climate Law Initiative at Columbia University, helps cities achieve their climate goals. She sees “an opportunity to marry some of the elements of climate policy and Covid policy, as we think about our response to both crises.” Turner cites increasing bicycle infrastructure, tackling building efficiency and increasing public transportation as some of these opportunities.
Councilwoman Rivera sees possibilities for transportation changes to increase bus ridership, and the opening up of green spaces. “When it comes to climate change, and to how things are changing and affecting us, we know as a coastline community that we’re going to continue to be affected,” she said. “But I really want to see investment in some of these communities to change things once and for all.”
Our journalism is free of charge and available to everyone, thanks to readers like you. In this time of crisis, our fact-based reporting on science, health and the environment is more important than ever. Please support our work by making a donation today. |
veryGood! (349)
Related
- Why we love Bear Pond Books, a ski town bookstore with a French bulldog 'Staff Pup'
- Jessica Biel and Justin Timberlake & More Couples Who Broke Up and Got Back Together
- Sophia Bush Responds After New Pics With Ashlyn Harris Spark Engagement Rumors
- Drowning is a top cause of death for young children. Here's what parents should know.
- The city of Chicago is ordered to pay nearly $80M for a police chase that killed a 10
- Bear shot dead by Arizona game officers after swipe attack on teen in mountain cabin
- Theater show spotlights the stories of those who are Asian American and Jewish
- Lionel Messi’s Vancouver absence is unfortunate, but his Copa América run is paramount to U.S.
- San Francisco names street for Associated Press photographer who captured the iconic Iwo Jima photo
- Q&A: New Legislation in Vermont Will Make Fossil Fuel Companies Liable for Climate Impacts in the State. Here’s What That Could Look Like
Ranking
- Federal hiring is about to get the Trump treatment
- List of winners at the 77th Cannes Film Festival
- Every Time Taylor Swift Shook Off Eras Tour Malfunctions and Recovered Like a Pro
- Lawsuit filed in the death of dancer with a peanut allergy who died after eating mislabeled cookie
- Tree trimmer dead after getting caught in wood chipper at Florida town hall
- UFL schedule for Week 9 games: Times, how to stream and watch on TV
- Globe-trotting archeologist who drew comparisons to Indiana Jones dies at age 94
- MLB's five biggest surprises: Are these teams contenders or pretenders in 2024?
Recommendation
Why Sean "Diddy" Combs Is Being Given a Laptop in Jail Amid Witness Intimidation Fears
After George Floyd's death, many declared racism a public health crisis. How much changed?
Gen Z is redefining what workers should expect from their employers. It's a good thing.
Bird flu virus detected in beef from an ill dairy cow, but USDA says meat remains safe
Scoot flight from Singapore to Wuhan turns back after 'technical issue' detected
2024 Indianapolis 500: Start time, TV, live stream, lineup and key info for Sunday's race
On California’s Central Coast, Battery Storage Is on the Ballot
Horoscopes Today, May 23, 2024