The Trump administration has announced it will no longer enforce environmental laws and regulations related to greenhouse gases. It is a destructively foolish move that threatens the health and welfare of all living creatures and illustrates contempt for our sacred duty to be good stewards of creation.
With that in mind, it is worthwhile to remember that the administration, as powerful as it is, remains only a small part of the country’s economic and political fabric. Families, neighborhoods, cities, and states can continue to be good stewards, doing everything they can to protect the environment. We can collectively continue to obey the laws and follow the regulations without regard to the administration’s unwillingness to enforce them.
The same is true for corporate America. Corporations need only choose to do the right thing. Will they? It depends entirely on the moral courage of senior executives and the owners of smaller businesses. Corporations themselves are neither ethical nor moral beings. They exist within the framework of laws that enable them. Moral decisions can be made only by those who lead them. Tax laws, investor demands for higher returns at any cost, and personal desires for greater riches are powerful forces working against systemic ethics and personal morality. It takes considerable courage to resist them, and I hope we will see at least some measure of that courage among the leaders of corporate America.
It would be especially gratifying to see such moral courage exhibited by leaders in the fossil fuel industries. Who knows? It could happen. It seems unlikely, however, because industry leaders have publicly proclaimed their allegiance to expansion and the pursuit of enormous profits regardless of the greater costs imposed on people and places now and for generations to come.
It does not have to be that way. If enough public pressure is applied, if enough conscientious investors demand change, and if reputations carefully cultivated as respected leaders are exposed for what they truly are, even entrenched industries can be compelled to act with greater responsibility.
Thank you for the courage to write these articles!