Monthly Newsletter
September 2017 | Climate
When I was Secretary of the California EPA in 2003, we developed a Climate Action Plan for the state that aimed to address the frightening scientific predictions about a future of super storms, prolonged drought, year-round wildfires, and other consequences of the world’s growing greenhouse gas pollution.
Those predictions were dramatically proven to be accurate this year, as the US suffered those exact impacts. But we were not alone. Unprecedented flooding in Asia, droughts in Africa, and wildfires in Europe galvanized world leaders to renew their commitments to address climate change – with the notable exception of the USA.
As communities and ecosystems around the world recover from current disasters and fear those yet to come, this can still be a time of exceptional hope. Crises have a way of galvanizing action, from youth activists suing the federal government for stealing their right to a sustainable future; to innovative technology companies inventing and implementing the low-carbon economy of the future. From state and local political leaders enacting climate mitigation and adaptation policies that go farther than their own national governments; to farmers discovering the power of regenerative agriculture to improve yields and sequester carbon.
The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation is proud to announce its recent awards of over $20 million in grants to organizations solving complex environmental issues on the ground. These organizations, both large and small, global and local, are leaders in conservation, education, innovation, and action. But each of us – as individuals and citizens of the Earth – can take steps to make a difference for our planet.
The message is clear. Every one of us needs to be involved and take action. It’s too late for anyone to be on the sidelines. Want to get started? Read on!
Terry Tamminen, CEO
Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation
Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation awards $20 million in environmental grants
LDF recently announced its largest-ever portfolio of environmental grants, increasing the organization’s total direct financial impact to over $80 million since 1998. The new grants, $20 million to more than 100 organizations, have been awarded for wildlife and habitat conservation, to aide in the defense of indigenous rights, and to support innovative grassroots efforts aimed at combating climate change and solving complex environmental issues. Read More >
Solar panel dunes. Creative Commons: BLM Nevada, 2015.
The benefits of 139 countries switching to 100% renewable energy
Stanford University and the University of California at Berkeley have released a new scientific study that produced 100% renewable energy roadmaps for 139 individual countries, representing more than 99% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. The study’s 27 co-authors show how available solar, wind, and water resources can be rapidly scaled to create a global energy system that relies entirely on clean, renewable energy for all purposes. Read More >
Flooding from Hurricane Harvey in Port Arthur, Texas. Creative Commons: SC National Guard, 2017.
Top fossil fuel companies are driving half of global warming
A first-of-its-kind scientific study links global climate changes to pollution from specific fossil fuel producers, including ExxonMobil and Chevron. Focusing on the largest gas, oil and coal producers, the study calculated the amount of sea level rise and global temperature increase resulting from the carbon dioxide and methane emissions from their products as well as their extraction and production processes. The result: they are responsible for about one-half of the rise in average global temperatures and close to one-third of sea level rise. Read more >
LDF Grantee SpotlightsSolar panel in Nepal. Creative Commons: Satyam Joshi, 2016.
Empowered by Light
Across the globe, over 1.5 billion people do not have access to electricity and often their only options are expensive and dirty diesel or kerosene. LDF grantee Empowered by Light (EBL) aims to improve the lives of these communities, through the introduction of renewable energy technologies. In many instances, these communities live in the surrounding areas of critical habitats (known as buffer zones) that are at risk of exploitation or degradation from industry, therefore EBL hopes to also empower these individuals to protect their native lands. Read more >
The Salton Sea. Creative Commons: Kevin Dooley.
Comite Civico del Valle
As climate change causes the Salton Sea to shrink, dust from the exposed lakedbed pollutes the Imperial Valley’s already dirty air and intensifies a public health crisis. To address this complex issue, LDF grantee Comite Civico del Valle (CCV) launched the largest air monitoring network in the U.S., a project that fills in gaps in the data collected by government agencies and allows people to sign up for local air pollution alerts. Read more >
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