College News
Climate Action
Climate Action Harvey Mudd supports innovative climate solutions
President Maria Klawe joined more than 200 leaders in higher education and the nonprofit Second Nature in signing a letter to then President-elect Trump and the United States Congress regarding climate action. The letter recognizes the role and responsibility of higher education institutions in “developing and deploying innovative climate solutions that provide a prosperous future for all Americans,” and requests that President Trump and Congress support the science-based targets outlined in the Paris Climate Agreement, related research at higher education institutions and investment in a low-carbon economy.
![Hixon Court, Harvey Mudd College.](https://magazine.hmc.edu/spring-2017/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2017/05/college-1-1.jpg)
The Hixon Center for Sustainable Environmental Design stated, “By signing this letter, President Klawe reminds us of Harvey Mudd’s responsibility to address the consequences of climate change, both inside and outside the classroom.”
Higher education institutions across the country and around the world recognize their academic and ethical responsibilities to take aggressive climate action by supporting and increasing interdisciplinary climate and environmental education, researching the earth’s climate system and by reducing carbon emissions.
Letter from Higher Education Leaders on Climate Action
“A Clean Energy Future is Needed for the Success of Our Students”
This letter was collaboratively developed by a diverse group of higher education institutions and Second Nature and released on Dec. 19, 2016.
Dear President-elect Trump and Members of the United States Congress,
We, the undersigned leaders of higher education institutions throughout the United States, recognize our academic and ethical responsibilities to current and future generations to take aggressive climate action; to reduce our sector’s carbon pollution, to support interdisciplinary climate education, and to continue research that expands our understanding of rapidly changing earth systems. We are committed to developing and deploying innovative climate solutions that provide a prosperous future for all Americans.
We join our colleagues in the business and investment communities in supporting the science-based targets outlined in the Paris Climate Agreement. In fact, many of our institutions have voluntarily set even more aggressive carbon reduction goals to lead our sector forward and to demonstrate what is possible for others.
Therefore, we ask that you support the following:
- Participation in the Paris Agreement, with the resulting national carbon reduction and clean energy targets, to protect the health of our current communities and our future generations.
- Research in our academic institutions and in federal agencies to ensure that our national climate, energy, and security policies are based on leading scientific and technical knowledge.
- Investments in the low carbon economy as part of a resilient infrastructure to ensure the country can adapt to changing climate hazards. These investments will also help grow American jobs and businesses.