There Is Still Hope For The Paris Accord - Obama
Former U.S. President Barack Obama is still optimistic about the Paris climate agreement, despite Trump walking away from it last week, he told a sold-out crowd Tuesday.
Speaking to the Board of Trade of Montreal, Obama said: "In Paris, we came together around the most ambitious agreement in history to fight climate change. An agreement, even with the temporary absence of American leadership, will still give our children a fighting chance. "
An estimated 6,000 people were gathered at the Palais des Congr??s, a convention center in downtown Montreal to hear the former head of state.
Obama added that he "took great comfort" in hearing that U.S. states, cities, and companies still remain committed to the Paris agreement.
The former president never once mentioned Trump by name in his speech.
Obama also took the time to reassure the audience that the international order created after WWII will survive.
"We will have to replace fear with hope - that is the spirit that we need right now," he said. "When we lead with our hopes and not our fears, we are capable of doing things other nations cannot or will not do."
"At this time, we cannot stand still, we have to act with greater urgency and greater conviction. We have to acknowledge some very real problems that exist in our world today," Obama said.
He also pointed out that income inequality and economic insecurity created by the pace of globalization sometimes makes populism and the politics of nationalism very tempting.
"In some cases, that leads people to search for certainty and control and they can call for isolationism or nationalism or they can suggest rolling back the rights of others," he said. "Or simply they can try to retreat and suggest we have no obligations beyond our borders, or beyond our communities, or beyond our tribe - that what's good for me and my immediate people is all that matters, that everyone else is on their own."
Even though such instincts are understandable, they must be avoided, Obama urged.
"History also shows there is a better way," he said. "Canada shows, the United States, Europe, Japan show it is possible for us to overcome our fears and to reach across our divides."
This is especially important in the age of constant and instant information, Obama said. "Where TV and Twitter can feed us a steady stream of bad news and sometimes fake news, it can seem like the international order we have created is constantly being tested and the center may not hold."
This was the first time Obama visited Canada since he left the White House in January. The last time he visited Canada was on a state visit in June 2016.
The event was sold-out in less than 15 minutes, according to media reports. Prices ranged from $57 to $1,600.
By Anna GolubovaFor Kitco News
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