Inside the Greenhouse is a monthly update on FCNL’s environmental advocacy and the climate crisis.
Trump Administration Targets Climate Policy
In his first month, President Donald Trump has signed over 60 executive orders, impacting migration policy, foreign assistance funding, and the federal government.
The administration has also targeted climate and environmental policy and justice, overturning policies introduced by the Biden administration. This included rolling back several of President Joe Biden’s executive orders that directed climate research, overturning emissions standards, and pausing off-shore wind projects.
The Trump administration also attacked international climate efforts by freezing foreign assistance and withdrawing from the historic Paris Agreement. These actions have wide-reaching implications on domestic and international efforts to address the climate crisis.
Funding Freezes Leave Climate Spending in Limbo
One of Pres. Trump’s first actions was an executive order freezing all U.S. government grant spending. The White House rescinded this freeze after federal courts blocked it. However, there is still widespread confusion about what is frozen and what work should continue.
This chaotic environment has effectively left all funding from the Inflation Reduction Act (P.L. 117–169) and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (P.L. 117-58) still frozen, including grants for solar panels in low-income and tribal communities and reimbursements for farmers who transitioned to cleaner energy.
In addition, $20 billion of already awarded funding from the Inflation Reduction Act are also under scrutiny. Ed Martin, interim U.S. Attorney for Washington, DC, ordered a criminal probe into climate funding, leading to the resignation of Denise Cheung, a top Department of Justice prosecutor.
International climate programs are some of the thousands of programs affected by the foreign aid freeze and the dismantling of the U.S. Administration of International Development (USAID).
At FCNL, we know that the freezing of promised funds and foreign assistance halts long-term programs for peace, stability, and climate resilience. We are lobbying Congress to condemn these attacks on international aid and assistance.
The U.S. Withdraws from the Paris Agreement
On January 20, the Trump administration announced that it would withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement and stop international funding. The agreement, signed in 2015, is an international treaty under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It aims at reducing global greenhouse gas emissions to help prevent catastrophic global warming.
This is the second time the U.S. has withdrawn from this agreement. Its withdrawal will go into effect one year after written notice to the UNFCCC Secretariat. As this administration steps away from international climate commitments, billionaire Michael Bloomberg, with other funders, has promised to fulfill the U.S. funding gap to the UNFCCC.
FCNL is deeply concerned by this decision to leave the Paris Agreement and remains committed to advocating for the United States’ commitments.
News and Updates
EPA Places Environmental Justice Division Employees on Leave
Employees of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continue to face uncertainty over their jobs and the direction of the EPA. On February 6, over 1,000 employees were warned that they could face immediate dismissal. Since then, the EPA has fired 388 recently hired employees, demoted career employees in charge of scientific research. It also put 168 employees working on environmental justice on administrative leave. This move reflects the Trump administration’s efforts to eradicate environmental justice from the agency’s mandate.
Representative Chellie Pingree (ME-1) is the most senior Democratic member of the subcommittee responsible for funding the EPA. She has emphasized that the work of maintaining clean water, clean air, and public health requires EPA staff. In a letter to the newly appointed EPA administrator, Lee Zeldin, she wrote: “Any efforts by the EPA to purge these employees undermines the Agency’s mission to protect human health and the environment, putting communities and individuals across the country at great risk.”
Global Investments in Clean Energy Continue to Rise
Despite the slew of executive actions by Pres. Trump, the environmental transition marches on.
Recent research reveals that investments in the global energy transition away from fossil fuels reached $2.1 trillion in 2024. This is a 20% increase over 2023, with the two major recipients being the electrified transportation and clean energy sectors. While research indicates that more money is being invested in the energy transition than the fossil fuel industry, more investment is needed to prevent further catastrophic global global warming.
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