Patagonia’s Chouinard honours Jimmy Carter
Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard has issued a statement on the death of former US president Jimmy Carter, who died on December 29 age 100.
He said Mr Carter was so far ahead of his time we are only now getting around to finish (or resume) much of what he started that his successors unravelled.
He said: “Ronald Reagan took down the solar water-heater panels President Carter installed on the White House roof. The Department of Energy President Carter established in 1977 devoted serious research funds to getting us past fossil fuels, reflecting his goal that, by 2000, 20 percent of our energy should come from renewables. That was scrapped by his successor; we’re only just past 20 percent now."
Overall, his administration protected more land and water than any since Theodore Roosevelt’s. The Alaska National Interest Conservation Act (ANICA) he signed into law in 1980 preserves more than 104 million acres, including 57 million acres as designated wilderness.
Chouinard added: “He could see the threats to the planet caused by greed and heedlessness. He had both the courage to look reality in the face and the foresight to see a path toward a better future.”
Mr Carter's body will lie in state in Washington for two days before a state funeral service on Thursday. President Joe Biden has declared a national day of mourning, while US flags will fly at half-mast on all federal buildings for 30 days.
