Climate change isn’t sexy, but Leonardo DiCaprio is.

The actor shocked the thespian community in his recent Oscar acceptance speech after winning Best Actor for “The Revenant,” when he took advantage of his long-anticipated face time as an opportunity to address the issue of climate change rather than acknowledging Hollywood’s running joke about his lack of Oscar wins.

After explaining how the production of “The Revenant” had to move to the southernmost tip of the planet in order to find snow for filming during the hottest year on historical record, DiCaprio blatantly stated that climate change is real and ended with a call to support leaders who work to combat it.

And with the United States in the midst of a contentious election season, one might wonder: Who would Leo endorse?

The answer may have emerged when presidential hopefuls former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders met yet again for Sunday night’s seventh Democratic debate. The CNN debate was moderated by Anderson Cooper at the University of Michigan’s Flint Campus. Flint, Michigan — a city in the national spotlight due to its lead-ridden tap water crisis — offered the change of setting needed to facilitate discussion on previously sidelined topics.

While Flint is primarily regarded as a public health issue, it demonstrates a dearth of environmental provisions in political decision-making. And with climate change on the minds of many millennials, it was finally time for a more in-depth conversation about the candidate’s respective environmental records that could set them apart in the election.

 

Hillary Clinton: Current Democratic Frontrunner

Flint Response:

Clinton was among the first to respond to the Flint water crisis stating that there had not been an adequate sense of urgency and that it would not have occurred had Flint been a rich suburb of Detroit. She has dispatched two of her top aides to assist Flint Mayor Karen Weaver and has influenced Michigan’s call for federal help and emergency declaration by chastising Gov. Rick Snyder’s (R-Mich.) response.

During Sunday’s debate, she criticized Michigan’s lack of financial support for Flint’s crisis stating, “It is raining lead in Flint and the state is derelict in not coming forward with the money that is required.” Clinton said that as president, she would work to rid the United States of lead nationwide, in soil and in the paint of older homes as well as water infrastructure.

But her record on clean water policy is questionable. In 2005, Clinton opposed a bipartisan effort to ban a carcinogenic fuel additive that was linked to the contamination of water supplies nationwide. To Sanders’ disadvantage, he did not mention this vote in Sunday’s debate.

The Big Picture:

According to the League of Conservation voters, an organization that assesses political candidates environmental voting records, Clinton has an 82 percent lifetime score, meaning that 82 percent of the time, she has voted in favor of policy beneficial to the environment.

Clinton’s five-year stalemate on taking a position on the Keystone XL pipeline has come under fire in previous debates, which calls into question the role of corporate campaign contributions in the formation of her political agenda. At Sunday’s debate, Sanders claimed, “I don’t take money from the fossil fuel industry,” which was an obvious dig at Clinton’s corporate ties.

When pressed about the controversial natural gas extraction method of fracking during the debate, Clinton claimed she supported it only under stern regulation and instead emphasized her promise to deploy half a billion more solar panels by the end of her first term as president.

 

Bernie Sanders: A Fierce Challenger

Flint Response:

Renowned environmental activist and lawyer Erin Brockovich has supported Sanders’ early call for the resignation of Snyder — a stance that Clinton adopted at Sunday’s debate — claiming that his “outrageous” irresponsibility contributes to the Flint crisis. However, Snyder still has not resigned.

Like Clinton, Sanders has stated that he wonders if the response in Flint would have been different if it were a white suburban community. Reflective of his grassroots-style campaign, Sanders has even established a campaign office in the economically-depressed downtown Flint.

Sanders made a promise Sunday night to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure, including water systems in Flint, instead of giving tax breaks to the wealthy. Sanders stated that as president, his appointed Environmental Protection Agency director would ensure that every water line in the United States be tested and that communities know the quality of their water.

The Big Picture:

Sanders has a 95 percent lifetime score on environmental legislation and a 100 percent score in the past year as a Vermont senator, according to voters in the League of Conservation. He is also a member of the Senate’s Committee on Environment and Public Works.

Sanders, an ardent crusader of campaign finance reform, has said that fossil fuel corporations and lobbyists have compromised congressional environmental policy and have contributed to the overwhelming climate change denial within the Republican party. Sanders’ overall environmental policy is more intersectional, encompassing the roles of institutional racism and terrorism.

When pressed about the topic of fracking during the seventh Democratic debate, Sanders declared his fierce opposition, which garnered significant applause from the Flint live audience — likely due to the fact that fracking is strongly linked to groundwater contamination. Sanders also said the U.S. must transform its energy system to efficient and sustainable sources, adding in his characteristic Brooklyn accent, “We’ve gotta’ do it yesterday.”

 

The Bottom Line:

Clinton’s pragmatic approach may be more adequate in addressing localized and short-term issues like Flint’s water crisis. But Sanders, who continually addresses fundamental issues in all areas of his campaign and has the stronger overall environmental voting record, is the best candidate for combatting an issue like climate change.

Clinton has strong ties to the fossil fuel industry, which may make it difficult for millennial voters to trust her with their future on this planet. And while many environmentalists have dramatically stated that this election is United States’ last chance of electing an environmentally-conscious leader, the reality is that no leader can solve or mitigate the monumental issue of global climate change on their own.

“No matter who gets elected, it will be difficult to make the significant change that is needed unless there is a social movement that addresses the issue,” said Jack Manno, a professor in the environmental studies department at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

Sanders is the only candidate that has reiterated this sentiment throughout his campaign, calling for a political revolution among voters. And millennials are providing that momentum with the belief that Sanders is the best champion of their future.

During the debate Clinton said, “It’s important that people understand that a president can’t go ordering folks around.” And she is right. Overwhelming and complex matters like climate change require a collaborative effort, an initiative that Sanders’ campaign better addresses.

So while it may sound counterintuitive, if you’re experiencing the heat of climate change, you may just want to “Feel the Bern.”

Mia Tomasello is a junior environmental communications major at SUNY-ESF. Her column appears weekly. She can be reached at atomasel@syr.edu and followed on Twitter @MiaTomasello1.

Published on March 7, 2016 at 1:23 am