Opinion

Schwarzenegger: Beyond Copenhagen, global warming requires grassroots action

A major international agreement at Copenhagen would be great. But much of the progress against climate change must take place at a local level.

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Right now a foundation in the San Francisco Bay Area is investing in efforts to help upgrade cement factories in China.

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Rajendra Pachauri, a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, has started an initiative to replace kerosene lanterns with solar lights for 1 billion rural people.

Electric utilities are installing millions of square feet of solar panels on warehouse rooftops.

Four of the world's largest meat producers have agreed not to buy cattle from deforested areas of the Amazon.

And this movement is about much more than just protecting the environment. It is also about seizing an incredible economic opportunity.

We can create a new economic foundation for the 21st century that is built on clean fuels, clean cars, and clean energy.

Today, California leads the United States with more than 125,000 green jobs. In fact, over the past decade, green jobs in California have grown at nearly triple the rate of total job growth.

And it's not just happening in California.

Green jobs in Idaho have jumped 126 percent; in Kansas, 51 percent; in New Mexico, 50 percent.

Texas, which produces the most wind power of any state, has enjoyed a 16 percent increase.

One hundred and fifty years ago, the Industrial Revolution changed the world and ushered in a new era of prosperity. Today, the Green Revolution can do the same.

And to make that happen, we need everyone to come together and sacrifice for the common good, including the environmental community.

Environmentalists must stop letting the perfect become the enemy of the possible. They cannot oppose coal-fired power plants and at the same time block transmission lines for solar fields and wind farms. They cannot oppose safe and controlled offshore drilling, while also opposing nuclear energy.

If we all work together – environmentalists, businesses, activists, ordinary citizens, and subnational governments – we can push our nations and the world toward a clean, sustainable future. And regardless of what happens in Copenhagen, we will continue pushing ahead toward that future, because we know we must succeed.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is the Republican governor of California.

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