Green New Deal Explained Part 1

     The Green New Deal is a way of challenging the real threat of climate change while providing economic security to all Americans. First the Green New Deal is a resolution not a piece of legislation. Even if passed it has no power. Nothing will happen if it is passed. Its more of a wish list that says we should do this. It is meant to be built on with an actual plan. It in itself is just a guideline. This is part one of a two part series explaining the Green New Deal. This part breaks down what the Green New Deal actually does. Part two explains one report that breaks down the cost and the economic impact that the Green New Deal would actually have. To generalize what the Green New Deal does it makes the transition to 100% clean renewable energy in 10 years while providing the economic security and new jobs to workers during the transition. This is in the effort to save us from climate change and the extinction that follows it.

    Intro

 First it mentions the 2018 report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change findings. 

1. Human activity is the dominant cause of climate change
2. Climate change leads to rising sea levels, increase in wildfires, severe storms, droughts, and other extreme weather event that damage that can kill and destroy entire communities.  
3. That warming at or above 2 degrees Celsius will cause 

• Mass migration 
• 500 billion dollars lost in annual economic output by year 2100
• Wildfires that will burn twice as much forest area by 2500 in western USA
• A loss of more than 99% of all coral reefs
• 350 million people will be exposed to heat stress
• 1 trillion dollar of damage to infrastructure especially to coastal areas

      4. Global temperatures must remain lower than 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid severe impacts of climate change

• Global reduction in greenhouse gases of 40 to 60 percent by 2030
• Net zero emissions by 2050

The resolution then says that the USA emits 20% of all emissions in the world. It calls for the USA to take a leading role with all its technology to solve this crisis. 

The resolution then mentions issues that the USA is facing. It quickly points out that life expectancy is declining while basic needs is not be given to a substantial parts of the population such as

1. clean air
2. clean water
3. healthy foods
4. healthcare
5. housing
6. transportation
7. education

It also talks about economic policies that have led to

1. wages to not grow since the 1970s even thought workers productivity growing
2. 3rd worst level of economic mobility or ability for someone to move up economic status even before the Great Recession
3. The slow destruction of wages and power of American workers
4. No where enough funding to face the real crisis of climate change at all levels of government

It also reports that we are also facing the biggest income inequality since the 1920s

1. We saw that the top 1% gained 91% of all new income after the Great Recession
2. A large racial wealth inequality with the average white family having 20 times more income than the average African American family.
3. A gender wage gap that leads to women earning about 80 cents for every dollar a man makes

The report then goes to report that climate change disproportionately  hurts indigenous peoples, communities of color, migrant communities, deindustrialized communities, depopulated rural communities, the poor, low-income workers, women, the elderly, the unhoused, people with disabilities, and youth.

Climate change is a direct threat to national security by 

1. by destroying the stability of our economy, environment, and our society
2. By multiplying all threats making them increasing more likely to happen and in a bigger scale

It therefore goes on to give the idea that we need to mobilize our economy and society as we did during WW2 and the New Deal which created the what is known as the greatest middle class the world has ever seen.

1. Calling that the GND (Green New Deal) would create millions of high wage jobs
2. Create prosperity and economic security for all Americans 
3. Fight against systematic injustices

Policy Ideas

1. It calls for us to reach net zero greenhouse gases emissions through a transition that protects our workers.
2. Create million of high wage jobs and create prosperity and economic security for all Americans
3. Invest in infrastructure to face the problem of this century
4. To secure the right to clean air and water, protection from climate change, healthy foods, access to nature, and a sustainable environment
5. Promote equity and justice by stopping current, preventing future, and repairing historic oppression of 

• indigenous peoples
• communities of color
• migrant communities
• deindustrialized communities
• depopulated rural communities
• the poor
• low-income workers 
• women
• the elderly
• the unhoused
• people with disabilities 
• youth.

      6. To create a 10 year mobilization that calls for

• To build resistance for extreme climate disasters by funding investments into our communities
• Upgrading and repairing our infrastructure by eliminating pollution and emissions as much as technologically possible, guaranteeing clean water access,  reducing risk of climate change, and meeting 100% energy demand through clean, renewable, zero emission energy sources

      7. Building a smart power grid to create energy efficiency and create access to affordable power to all Americans

    

  8. Upgrade all existing buildings in the USA and build new buildings to have maximum energy efficiencies

   

   9. Removing as much pollution as technology allows in the manufacturing industry and investing in clean manufacturing.

    

 10. Working with farmers and ranchers to remove as much as technologically possible from the agricultural sector

    

 11. Invest in family farming and sustainable farming

    

 12. Transforming our transportation system to remove as much pollution and emissions as technologically possible by investing in zero emission vehicle infrastructure, clean affordable public transit, and high speed rail

    

 13. Decreasing the effects of climate change and pollution in health, economic, and other effects through community projects

    

 14. Removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere through proven low tech solutions that increase soil carbon storage, such as land preservation or afforestation (the process of creating a forest in area where one did not stand)

   

  15. Restoring and protecting threaten and endangered ecosystem using science to increase biodiversity and increase resistance to climate change

    

 16. Cleaning up hazardous waste and abandoned sites promoting economic development and sustainability in those places

   

 17. Identifying other pollution and emission and figuring out solutions to remove them

  

 18. Promoting international trade on green tech, making the USA the leader of green energy and helping other nations do their own GND

 19. The GND must be achieved with working with communities, labor unions, worker cooperatives, civil society groups, academia, and businesses

20. To achieve the GND it must make sure that all areas is given the funding, technical help, training, and all other needed assistance. That the federal government takes into account the cost of all existing and future programs related to the GND.

21. Provide the training and education to all Americans. Which would include free college.

22. Making investment into researching and developing new clean and renewable tech and industries

23. Using democratic processes to lead the charge to implement the GND in local areas

24. Create millions of high wage union jobs that are guaranteed jobs especially to those affected by the transition

25. Guaranteed family sustaining wage jobs to all Americans with family and medical leave, paid vacations, and retirement security.  

26.  Protect the right for workers to unionize and bargain without any abuse, harassment, or intimidation

27. Strengthen safety, antidiscrimination, wage, and hour standards.

28. Change trade rules to stop the transfer of American jobs oversea and grow domestic manufacturing

29. Protect public land, water, and oceans.

30. Get the consent of indigenous people for all matters that affect them and upheld all agreements with them 

31. Ensure that all business is free from unfair competition from monopolies

32. Provide all Americans with high quality healthcare (Medicare for All), affordable housing, economic security, clean water and air, healthy affordable food, and access to nature

The actual Green New Deal: https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/hres109/BILLS-116hres109ih.pdf