In 2016, climate change wasn’t a hot topic. In fact, candidates dedicated a total of just 5 minutes and 27 seconds to climate change in the last presidential debates. In the build up to 2020, things are playing out a lot differently. Polls have indicated that climate change is among the most important issues to democratic voters. Candidates are giving it much more attention in their platforms, and one candidate, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, is even running a campaign focused entirely on the climate crisis. Climate change is also likely to feature more prominently in this year’s debates, though the Democratic National Committee has so far rejected calls to hold a debate dedicated entirely to the issue.
Terra Verde host and Earth Island Journal Managing Editor Zoe Loftus-Farren talks with Jack Shapiro climate leadership project lead with Greenpeace USA, and Matt McKnight, Climate Change 2020 program director with the League of Conservation Voters, about how climate change is playing out in the democratic primaries, and what we can expect in the general election.