President Donald Trump announced that the United States was to pull out of the Paris agreement, an agreement that was created to find environmental solutions in order to reduce the ever increasing climate change with the international community. Historically, New York State has been at the forefront of environmental policy and according to lawmakers on the city and state level, it will continue to do so. Both Mayor DeBlasio and Governor Cuomo have sought to enact executive orders as soon as possible to show New York’s commitment to the Paris agreement.

New York City specifically, has been considered to be the most energy efficient community in the nation in which New York consumers intake less than half as much energy as average Americans. For example, the attempt to decrease the city’s greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050 came from the OneNYC plan introduced in 2015. Along these lines, the city also is aiming to eliminate waste to landfills by 2030 by expanding its recycling program. This counter towards the Trump administration will result in a surge in environmental policy initiatives in both the public and private sector. An awareness in climate change education will also, in the long run, encourage younger generations to get involved politically and invest in innovative solutions for the New York State and City community.