Hecklers & Protestors Shout Down Trump’s “Laughable” Coal Sideshow At COP24
First hinted at back at the beginning of November, the Trump Administration followed through with its intention to host a pro-fossil fuel event on the sidelines of the COP24 UN climate talks currently being held in Katowice, Poland, much to the mockery of observers and attendees, and the jeers and protests of climate campaigners.
News agency Reuters broke news of the plans over a month ago and specifics began to filter through to the media last week. Intended speakers included Wells Griffith, Trump’s adviser on global energy and climate issues; Steve Winberg, assistant secretary for fossil energy at the Energy Department; Rich Powell, executive director of the ClearPath Foundation, a nonprofit working on cleaner energy technologies from a conservative perspective; and possibly someone from the natural gas industry.
In the end, the event — entitled “U.S. Innovative Technologies Spur Economic Dynamism” — included panelists Wells Griffith, Steve Winberg, Patrick Suckling, Australia’s Ambassador for the Environment, Rich Powell, and a representative from Sempra LNG. You can watch the full event here, including the disruption created by the protest — though, the broadcast does cut off for a few minutes.
Amidst attendees outright laughing at statements made by Wells Griffith — such as, “If we are serious about eradicating poverty… it is clear that energy innovation and fossil fuels will continue to play a leading role” — and protestors chanting “Keep it in the ground” and essentially taking over the event for a few minutes with a sign and group of protestors lining up in front of the panelists, neither the United States nor Australia — the only other country to be represented and attached to the event – came away smelling like roses.