--- title: Robert Redford: To Fight Climate Change, Start Small description: Local representatives in our cities, towns and neighborhoods are on the front lines of the U.S.'s effort to stem the tide of global warming canonical: https://time.com/4865265/climate-change-paris-accord-g20-summit-president-donald-trump-robert-redford/ author: Robert Redford article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-07-19T21:13:26.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T16:37:47.636Z article:section: Ideas og:title: Robert Redford: To Save the World, Start Small og:description: Climate change leaders are right next to us og:url: https://time.com/4865265/climate-change-paris-accord-g20-summit-president-donald-trump-robert-redford/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt40c389870f66a4a8/6988b519bc6cfc7d0f3dfbfa/planet-earth.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: planet-earth og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Robert Redford: To Save the World, Start Small twitter:description: Climate change leaders are right next to us twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt40c389870f66a4a8/6988b519bc6cfc7d0f3dfbfa/planet-earth.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Robert Redford: To Save the World, Start Small > Sponsored content. 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Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent.  by [Robert Redford](https://time.com/author/robert-redford/)  ## Robert Redford Jul 19, 2017 9:13 PM UTC  NASA/NOAA/GSFC/Suomi NPP/VIIRS/Norman Kuring  by [Robert Redford](https://time.com/author/robert-redford/)  ## Robert Redford Jul 19, 2017 9:13 PM UTC It’s hard to know at times what the big story is. In a 24/7-news society — and with an [Administration](http://time.com/4864891/donald-trump-senators-health-care-bill/) that lurches from one [controversy](http://time.com/4864666/voter-fraud-election-integrity-commission-donald-trump/) to another — it’s easy to get distracted by the story of the moment and ignore the story of the month. Or the year. Or the decade. Consider the recent [G20 Summit](http://time.com/4851103/donald-trump-ivanka-g20-summit-seat/) meeting. Much was made of the protests in the streets and the tensions between Donald Trump and the leaders of the other 19 nations. Under-reported was something deemed all but impossible for decades: A global climate agreement was cemented with no leadership from the United States. The other 19 countries all reaffirmed their participation in the [Paris Climate Accord](http://time.com/4858221/donald-trump-emmanuel-macron-paris-climate-agreement/). Even a few years ago, people would have thought a global climate agreement without U.S. participation was a joke. Though our government won’t be participating in the Paris agreement, most of our citizens don’t support the withdrawal. A majority of [Americans believe](https://www.washingtonpost.com/page/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2017/06/05/National-Politics/Polling/question%5F18757.xml?uuid=4yijsEohEeeYfEKrV0XbLg) that our climate is changing and that we should do something about it. There is much made of the “debate” about climate change. But the scientific, insurance, financial, academic and military communities have all moved on from _Is this happening?_ to _How are we going to adapt?_ And: _Who are the leaders we can look to?_ As global citizens, we can certainly applaud the leaders who are sticking with the Paris Accord and support them in any way we can. But domestically, too often we look — futilely — to the federal level. Meanwhile, in more and more places in America, the answer is right next to us. For decades, the [local representatives](http://time.com/4339495/donald-trump-golf-courses/) in our cities, towns and neighborhoods have been on the front lines of our nation’s effort to stem the tide of climate change. We will need them. Washington, D.C., has no leadership to offer. The economic argument the Trump Administration is offering is not even true anymore. Our choice is no longer the economy vs. the environment. It is now the economy _and_ the environment. Addressing [climate change](http://time.com/4858987/defense-bill-climate-change-military-spending/) will help both. Ignoring it risks both. This is not a revelation in many of our cities and towns. There, the idea that [climate change](http://time.com/4801811/donald-trump-paris-agreement-climate-change-cities/) is “political” is dissolving. If you are the mayor of a coastal town that now floods regularly or a farming town that just experienced several “once-in-a-hundred-years” droughts within a couple years, politics is the furthest thing from your mind. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. Mayors are usually our most direct connection to government. They see the immediate ways in which our communities are threatened and reinvented. Fighting climate change can be opportunity for such reinvention. [Clean energy](http://time.com/4446667/cities-clean-energy-climate-change/) is officially a growth industry in America. It’s providing good jobs that can put people to work and revitalize American manufacturing, in “blue” _and_ “red” states.” Mayors and other local leaders are working together to support the Paris agreement, too. We’re Still In, led by Mayor [Michael Bloomberg](http://time.com/4606056/washington-failure-progress-cities/) and Mayor [Eric Garcetti](http://time.com/4657662/california-president-donald-trump/), seeks to keep the commitments we made to the Paris Agreement, even though we’re no longer participating as a nation. We _can_ radically transform our society. It is doable. If you want to help, find out what your town, city or state is doing about climate change and support positive steps. Learn about the statements and actions of corporations, and support those doing the right thing. 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