Actor Leonardo DiCaprio, singer-actor Lady Gaga, filmmaker Lin-Manuel Miranda, and singer Camila Cabello, along with over 60 other Hollywood celebrities, wrote a letter to entertainment and social media giants on Thursday, seeking their support to influence the US Congress into passing the climate change agenda.
Additional notable signatories of the letter include Chris Evans, Joaquin Phoenix, Cate Blanchett, Ellen DeGeneres, Billie Eilish, Lilly Singh, Ryan Reynolds, Selena Gomez, show hosts Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel.
“California is on fire, record-breaking and deadly storms are flooding New York City, hurricanes are devastating the Gulf. This summer alone, nearly one in every three people in the United States experienced an extreme weather event,” read the letter which was addressed to the heads of companies like Apple, Facebook, Netflix, Amazon, Walt Disney, Discovery, AT&T (WarnerMedia), and Sony, among others.
The letter was written in partnership with the Natural Resources Defense Council Action Fund, an off-shoot of the parental environmentalist organization NRDC.
Titled ‘Build Back Better Now’, the letter called on the organisations addressed to demand the passing of the “robust climate action” that President Biden called for in his Build Back Better agenda. It added that this will be Congress’ once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in a clean, just, and equitable future.
The Build Back Better agenda is US President Joe Biden’s “ambitious plan to create jobs, cut taxes, and lower costs for working families – all paid for by making the tax code fairer and making the wealthiest corporations pay their fair share.”
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“The plan currently before Congress will protect people’s health and clean up our drinking water,” the letter added. “It will create a just transition away from dirty fossil fuels and create millions of new jobs. It will protect communities from climate change through investments in clean energy, clean transportation, and infrastructure upgrades. And it will make sure we finally prioritize and invest in the low-income communities and communities of colour that are hit hardest by both fossil fuel pollution and climate impacts.”
It is to be noted that US reportedly produces the second-highest carbon emissions, after China, and has been responsible for about 14.5% of the total global emissions according to a 2019 report.
After the letter was released, Netflix shared a statement explaining the measures it will be taking to achieve “net zero greenhouse gas emissions by the end of 2022, and every year afterwards.”