Donald Trump's election to the presidency of the United States arrived like a bolt from the blue at the United Nations world climate conference (Cop 22). In particular, the environmental organisations gathered in Marrakech for the international summit were quick to reaffirm their determination to press on with the fight against climate change. During his electoral campaign, the newly elected American president had gone so far as to announce his intention to "cancel the Paris Agreement" reached at the close of Cop 21. An extremely worrying stance, one backed up by numerous other statements in which Trump showed himself to be particularly sympathetic to the positions of the so-called "climate sceptics" — those who deny the existence of global warming.

"We will fight with no holds barred"

"Trump's election is a disaster, but it cannot mark the end of the international climate process," explained May Boeve of the American non-governmental organisation 350.org, which has launched a major campaign calling for an end to investment in fossil fuels.
"The new president will certainly try to put the brakes on the action set in motion in Paris," the activist added, "and that means we will have to push even harder on the accelerator." Boeve also issued an appeal to the rest of the world "to look beyond the White House in the US and work with civil society, with businesses and with local authorities."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVxAOBlRqcw

"Trump will have to choose: either he will listen to the voice of the American people and honour the commitments made on the fight against climate change, or he will be remembered as the president who paved the way for ecological disaster," thundered Micheal Brune of the NGO Sierra Club. And should the magnate choose the latter path, "we guarantee him that ours will be a battle with no holds barred."

The spectre of Myron Ebell at the environment agency

Meanwhile, Laurence Tubiana — France's "ambassador" tasked in practice with handing over the negotiating baton to Morocco — also stressed, speaking to the AFP agency, that "around 60 per cent of Americans believe climate change is a danger. Global warming is a reality that cannot be altered by the US election." The official nevertheless said she was optimistic and convinced "that all countries will continue to play their part."
The domestic policy choices that the Trump administration will make will, however, need to be watched closely. The billionaire has in fact proposed appointing Myron Ebell to head the American Environmental Protection Agency, himself a well-known climate change sceptic. This would send an unmistakably clear signal, all the more so given that Ebell has always firmly opposed the Clean Power Plan, one of the cornerstones of the Obama administration's environmental commitment.