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During formal United Nations press conferences, in swanky halls and at sticky progressive celebrations, one word was on all minds at this year’s New York Climate Week: affordability.

The US energy secretary, Chris Wright, stated that under President Trump the United States is “returning to practical energy policies that concentrate on affordability”. The former energy secretary, Jennifer Granholm, said Democrats must focus on renewable power’s ability to shrink power bills to secure elections. And advocates of the likely future New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani, promoted their initiatives to connect green policies with efforts to cut city residents’ rent and make transit cost-effective.

The attempt to link everyday cost issues to climate change is longstanding. The concept was a central part of the progressive climate plan, a forward-thinking policy platform popularized by youth-led climate group the Sunrise Movement and New York representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2018. Joe Biden picked up the framing in the White House, calling his flagship green carbon-cutting policy the Inflation Reduction Act, from 2022.

Now, as energy costs rise around the country, Americans on every part of the ideological divide are framing their energy and climate plans as ways to safeguard ordinary people’s pocketbooks.

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Spotlight

Annually, Climate Week in New York City brings together government officials, corporate actors, scholars and campaigners for a vast array of environment-centered events, scheduled to coincide with the United Nations general assembly.

This year, the Trump administration’s anti-environmental blitz threw a massive shadow over the event. In speeches through the week, White House officials sought to peg its rule-cutting agenda as a win to lower Americans’ bills, with Trump labeling green energy a “fraud” and Wright declaring: “The more people have gotten into so-called climate action, the more expensive their energy has become.”

Environmental supporters attempted to reveal those statements as false while getting Americans on board with green policies on the grounds that they can lower costs. For instance, two Democratic representatives, from Illinois and California, unveiled a plan to speed new power-line construction and reinstate green energy incentives which Trump canceled earlier this year. Its name: the Cheap Energy Act.

It’s a framework that Jennifer Granholm, who acted as US energy secretary under Biden, noted she anticipated as climate falls down the list of public priorities for Americans, while economic worries rise. “My guess is you’re not going to see a lot of politicians using the word ‘climate’, because people see that as a nice-to-have [concern], not a essential, and right now they’re in the must-have mode,” she told reporters over avocado toast one morning. “Affordability is key.”

Those well to Granholm’s progressive side also advocated a focus on affordability in the climate fight. But many demanded more far-reaching solutions that deliver more immediate benefits. Instead of merely tinkering with the tax code to encourage green technology buildout – a hallmark of Biden’s climate efforts – politicians should prioritize less wonky, “green economic populist” initiatives such as no-cost transit and the build-out of low-carbon public housing.

“These kinds of programs do have emissions-reduction benefits, but they’re highly important for starting to build up a mass base [who have] trust in public institutions and trust in the government,” Batul Hassan, workforce lead at the left-leaning thinktank Climate and Community Institute, remarked at a panel.

Mamdani, the left-wing who secured a remarkable win in the New York City mayoral primary this summer, embodies this kind of agenda, said Hassan. On Wednesday of Climate Week, progressives assembled for a dance party at the legendary Sounds of Brazil music venue to celebrate the candidate’s success.

“It has long been understood that if we’re going to create a mass movement, people need to see the connection between the transition to renewable energy and paying less money,” New York City comptroller Brad Lander said in an interview at the party, shouting over the thrum of Charli xcx.

Messaging is important, but merely talking about affordability is insufficient, Alexa Avilés, a New York City council member and democratic socialist, told the Guardian at the Mamdani event. Trump, for instance, has failed to deliver on his promise of lowering bills while giving huge benefits to oil giants and other corporations. And many Democrats are also guilty of prioritizing their corporate donors’ interests, Avilés said.

“Some people speak about working-class folks, but then they make policies that are intended for the rich. We’ve been dealing with that disappointment for a long time,” she said. “We need to concentrate on actually bringing relief to people. And we see that when we genuinely center people over profit, people react to that. People can tell who is for real.”

Further Reading:

• US energy department tightens rules on workers’ use of environmental emergency language
• Trump administration allocating $625m to resurrect declining coal industry
• Los Angeles pledged to host the Olympics without breaking the bank and environment. Can it?