***Formal Statement*** regarding the US withdrawal from the Paris Accord

Today, the Trump Administration decided to withdraw from the Paris Agreement; our earth is in trouble. Without participation by the United States to curb carbon emissions, our planet will continue to warm and experience irreparable harm. Needless to say, we at ASI are massively disappointed in the Trump Administration.
 
At ASI, we are committed to continue the fight against climate change and enable communities to have the best resources to be resilient and adapt. We have personally experienced the adverse impacts of climate change, living through Hurricane Irene, Superstorm Sandy, massive droughts, intense heat waves and major flooding. We know families and individuals around the world who already live with more intense storms, rising seas and frequent king tides, and abnormally long and higher heat waves. Climate change is a global problem with a global solution. However, climate change has very real, local effects here in the United States.
 
America cannot simply OPT OUT of its responsibility to protect the health of our global commons and the rights of people living on this earth to pursue life, liberty, and happiness. The leadership of ASI have traveled extensively around America and the world. We know first-hand what the consequences are for millions: loss of key marine resources such as the loss of ancestral lands in the Gulf of Mexico, loss of habitable space in New York City, loss of culture in the Pacific Islands, and loss of life from extreme weather events.
 
The Trump Administration’s decision to have the United States exit the Paris Agreement is extremely short sighted, obtuse, and places every day Americans in a precarious situation. This decision reduces the United States’ international standing and diplomatic credibility. Withdrawing from the Paris Agreement places us on a path dependent on old ideas that will cause irreparable damage to others and future generations. We at ASI condemn this decision.
 
Nevertheless, we remain optimistic. ASI will continue assisting governments - at all levels- with equitable solutions for long term societal adaptation. Given the current political climate, ASI will have a lot of  work to do, more lives to touch, more need for cooperation - here in the United States and abroad. We know that many other Americans share our sentiment and we take great pride in that the majority of Americans understand the perils of climate change and the need to address it immediately.
 
-With hope,
Andrea, Jacqueline, and Heather