While the environmental cause in the United States falters under the denialist stance of the Trump administration, Arnold Schwarzenegger chooses the opposite path: that of concrete action. Speaking candidly at the Austrian World Summit in Vienna, the former governor of California delivered a direct message to those feeling discouraged: “stop whining and get to work.”
In a historical context marked by the drastic rollback of environmental policies, including the repeal of landmark regulations, the cutting of climate project funding, and the boosting of fossil fuel production. the actor refused to indulge in defeatist rhetoric. On the contrary, he put forward a message of collective responsibility.
Having founded and supported R20 – Regions of Climate Action, an international network for climate protection, he said he is often approached by disillusioned activists and policy makers. Many, in fact, wonder whether it’s still worth fighting for the environment when the White House dismisses global warming as a hoax and promotes coal as the energy of the future. His answer, he explained, is always the same: stop whining and start working.
Schwarzenegger emphasized how local governments, regional administrations, and private companies have already shown that making a difference is possible. He cited the experience of his own administration in California as a positive example, noting that around 70% of pollution can be tackled through action at the regional level. In his view, it is at that field where the most concrete and effective battle is fought.
He then encouraged the audience to take charge: “Be the mayor that makes buses electric; be the CEO who ends fossil fuel dependence; be the school that puts up solar roofs.” Waiting for change to be imposed from above, especially by a president hostile to the cause, he explained, is a losing strategy.
While avoiding any direct attack on Donald Trump, in line with his rule not to criticize U.S. presidents while abroad, the former politician rejected any form of passivity. He argued that it’s unacceptable to sit back and make excuses simply because others do not share the environmentalist vision. Change, he stressed, is not won through complaints, but through example.
