Bloomberg pledges $15M to UN to cover US climate share

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I) has pledged $15 million from his philanthropy efforts to the United Nations to pay the United States’ contribution under the Paris climate accord.

In a press conference Friday, Bloomberg promised to coordinate contributions from the U.S. to the climate fund after President Trump announced that he would withdraw from the accord.

“The United States, through strong action from local leaders, businesses and investors, remains committed to fulfilling the Paris agreement,” said Bloomberg, who serves as the U.N. special envoy for cities and climate change.

“I look forward to working with [French President Emmanuel Macron] and [Paris] Mayor [Anne] Hidalgo to ensure that the Paris Agreement remains in full force.”

A Bloomberg spokesperson said the $15 million would cover the United States’ share of the U.N. climate body’s operating budget and it would come from Bloomberg Philanthropies and its partners, according to CNN.

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Bloomberg said on CNN Friday that action on climate change now falls to local leaders, echoing calls from former President Barack Obama and others calling for local governments to pursue policies combatting climate change in the wake of the Trump administration’s decision.

“Local governments and businesses and individuals can do their part. If states can do something, that’s great. We need action,” Bloomberg said.

In addition to the financial pledge, the former New York City mayor announced that his philanthropy will meet the reporting requirements of the 2015 Paris deal that require nations to report their progress on reducing carbon emissions.

“What we want to do is to show concrete things that are going to reduce what we’ve been doing that’s hurting and changing our environment,” Bloomberg said.

Bloomberg joins many other private-sector figures who have denounced Trump’s decision to exit the Paris agreement. On Thursday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Disney CEO Bob Iger both condemned the decision, and pledged to quit Trumps economic advisory council.

“Climate change is real. Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world,” Musk tweeted Thursday.