On September 23, 2025, the President of the United States delivered a series of false statements about climate change at the United Nations. The following day, I attended Climate Forward, the New York Times’ annual day of live journalism held during New York Climate Week.
Despite the inauspicious timing and increasingly concerning ways in which climate change is being politicized, everyone I chatted with was hopeful and energized. The tone of most of the live interviews and panel discussions was also positive and pragmatic. Here are some of my takeaways.
Public companies are still betting big on sustainability technologies
A climate event in NYC is exactly where you’d expect leaders like Kate Brandt, Chief Sustainability Office at Google and Melanie Nakagawa, Chief Sustainability Officer & Corporate VP at Microsoft to flex their sustainability initiatives and share encouraging data and progress. However, the full story outside the walls of the Times Center paints a more concerning picture: AI has emissions soaring for both companies, and changes to net zero goals have led to accusations of “greenstalling” or “greenhushing.”
When Brandt and Nakagawa sat down with NYT’s David Gelles, he didn’t pull any punches on this topic. Both women spoke candidly about the challenge of balancing climate and business goals and admitted that the “all of the above” energy strategy being promoted (and yet, contradicted through action) by today’s Department of Energy might be a necessary one.
Brandt and Nakagawa also promoted their companies’ respective partnerships and investments into emerging climate technologies and projects. Microsoft came into the event having just announced a zero-emissions steel supply agreement with Stegra. Google signed a corporate PPA with Baseload Power for geothermal and announced support for long duration energy storage (LDES) pilot projects developed by Salt River Project, both within the last six months. If big tech companies are still willing to use some of their influence and purchasing power to drive innovations in climate tech, the whole industry (and planet) stands to benefit.
Freedom of the Press
The President’s UN remarks loomed large over the entire event, coming up in some capacity during every single live interview I saw. But the NYT editorial team didn’t sensationalize these statements. They instead sought out honest reactions from sources in business, finance, national security, and elsewhere, giving these experts space to refute, condemn, or downplay the claims.
The reporters and editors who took the stage at Climate Forward are covering the impacts of climate change, the solutions and ideas being introduced to mitigate it, and the seemingly ceaseless efforts to discount its very existence. All at once. Without letting their personal persuasions influence their coverage.
September was a busy month for people who have strong thoughts about the First Amendment and I guess I’m joining those ranks a bit in this writing today. Access to honest, fact-based reporting on life-threatening issues like climate change is a right that needs to be protected. As I learned during Climate Week, live journalism is one of the best ways to be reminded of this fact.
Distributed actions and ideas will lead us through this moment
What does climate leadership look like in 2025? From where I sat – physically, in NYC and mentally, in the middle of a divisive political moment for the U.S. – it became clear that we can no longer look to one single country, business, or political party to lead on climate issues. Instead, much like energy itself, ideas and actions that further climate change mitigation, policy, and activism should be distributed. That’s not to say leaders can’t be from those groups – the NYT assembled a diverse group of speakers for this year’s event and many brought well-informed, actionable ideas and strategies to the table.
California Governor Gavin Newsom highlighted the dangers (economic and future innovation among them) of the U.S. ceding what little leadership role we have on EV and energy tech manufacturing to China. He also pointed to policy wins and progress still being made in his state. Dwight from The Office reflected on why reconnecting with nature could inspire more of us to get involved with climate change causes. Former National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan called on future U.S. presidents to consider stronger executive action on climate change, citing the national security risks inaction will present. Nearly every business leader who took the stage discussed the workforce and local economic benefits of clean energy projects.
We need all these voices and more to take up the mantle and use their resources, platform, and knowledge to present a distributed yet united front if we want to secure a cleaner, safer future for ourselves and our children. As Super Bowl Champion and future NFL Hall of Famer Jason Kelce once said, “it’s the whole team.”
Want to talk climate media relations or receive future Philly sports musings? Connect with Erin Hadden on LinkedIn.
