Trump tells New York Times there is 'some connectivity' between humans and climate change
Mark Wilson/Getty Images
"Some, something," he said, according to accounts Times editors and reporters who attended a meeting with the president-elect. "It depends on how much."
The statement was an apparent departure from his previous sentiments, including a statement he made on Twitter in 2012 in which he called climate change a "hoax" perpetrated by the Chinese.
The meeting provided some insights into Trump's views on climate change and the Paris agreement the US signed this year to reduce carbon emissions.
Here are the key quotes we've seen:
Does Trump think human activity is linked to climate change? "I think there is some connectivity. Some, something. It depends on how much."
- Mike Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016
On climate change, Trump says he is also thinking about "how much it will cost our companies" & the effect on American competitiveness.
- Mike Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016
Tom Friedman asks if Trump will withdraw from climate change accords. Trump: "I'm looking at it very closely. I have an open mind to it."
- Mike Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016
Gavin Schmidt, a top climate scientist at NASA, told Business Insider earlier this month that our best science shows human activity accounts for all of the warming since the 19th century - and perhaps a bit more, because trends suggest we should be in a slow cooling period right now.
The questions Tuesday are among the first direct questions on climate change policy that Trump has faced. Critics of Trump's previous stances on climate change might detect reason for optimism.
Trump seemed to suggest at least an openness to engaging with science and policy issues around the climate. He also suggested he might not pull out of the Paris agreement, though he didn't lend any specifics or details.
The Trump transition website still contains a statement suggesting that current climate change policy is a "radical political agenda." And Trump has picked Myron Ebell, a man known for denying climate change, to head his Environmental Protection Agency transition.
- India is an oasis of growth amid a slower global economic landscape, witnessing a once-in-a-generation growth: G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant
- Mutual fund stake in NSE-listed cos at all time high; FPIs at 11-yr low
- Gold prices today: Yellow metal climbs Rs 230 while silver jumps Rs 700
- Indegene IPO: Company details to risk factors, all you need to know
- Indegene IPO subscribed 1.67 times on Day 1 of offer