Right before Donald Trump’s inauguration last Friday, more than four hundred American architecture firms—such as Leers Weinzapfel Associates, Smith-Miller + Hawkinson Architects, Lorcan O’Herlihy Architects, Lake Flato, and ZGF Architects LLP—signed an open letter addressed to the incoming president regarding climate change, writes Allison Meier of Hyperallergic. The campaign was organized by the Chicago-based organization Architects Advocate, which formed in September.
The letter asks that Trump, who has denied that climate change exists, commit himself to finding more sources of renewable energy, providing funding for renewable energy technologies, and honoring the Paris Climate Agreement. Right before leaving office, Barack Obama transferred $500 million to the Green Climate Fund. This subsidy goes toward the $3 billion Obama promised on behalf of the agreement—the US currently owes $2 billion more, according to The Guardian. It is now up to Trump as to whether or not the full agreement will be met.
In the letter, the architects state that they “are dedicated to creating healthy, productive, and safe communities for all” in a “way that is economically viable, socially equitable, and environmentally sustainable.” Trump nominated Scott Pruitt to head the Environmental Protection Agency. Pruitt has spoken out against the government regulating water and air pollution
