Climate activists troll Trump by projecting images of rising sea levels on one of his buildings
Following news on Friday that Trump would tap Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson to be his secretary of state, activists from the Sierra Club and the Illuminator, a stunt activist group, set up a projector outside of Trump's 40 Wall Street building, using the side of the building as a cavas to show rising sea levels.
Activists plastered messages on the front of the building that bears Trump's name, including "Don't Trump the Planet," and used the surrounding buildings for messages criticizing Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, Trump's pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency.
Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune pledged to continue to raise alarm about picks like Pruitt if he did not acknowledge the threat of climate change.
"President-elect Donald Trump will be the only head of state in the world to deny the science and dangers of the climate crisis, and he has followed through on that extremism by putting fossil fuel industry hacks and other climate deniers in the most prominent positions in his new administration," Brune said in a statement.
Brune added: "It's not just the American people who won't accept inaction on the climate crisis, it's a world united as one which came together through the Paris climate agreement."
Though Trump appeared to be slightly moderating his rhetoric on climate change, telling the New York Times last month that "there is some connectivity" between human activity and climate change, many activists saw his nomination of Tillerson and Pruitt as a sign that he does not plan to make curbing climate change a priority.
Other climate groups have also pledged to vigorously oppose Trump's nominations, and regroup for future races.
In an interview with Business Insider following the election, Billionaire investor Tom Steyer, said that his super PAC NextGen Climate plans to take time to reformulate a plan to oppose Trump's nominees and gear up for future races in 2018 and 2020.
"We're doubling down. We're getting the information and trying to come up with an effective plan," Steyer said. "We've got to sit here and figure out what is the right thing to do under the right circumstances."
He added, "Now our backs are to the wall, so we better have a lot more conversations."