WASHINGTON - As U.S. COVID-19 cases surpass 10 million and more than 11 million Americans remain unemployed, Greenpeace is launching a federal policy framework for President-elect Joe Biden and Congress to address the interlocking crises of COVID-19, economic inequality, systemic racism, and climate change. Built on the vision of a world in which all people have what they need to thrive and the boundaries of the planet we share are respected, Greenpeace USA’s Just Recovery Agenda is a roadmap for putting our elected officials back to work for the people.

Greenpeace USA Campaigns Director James Mumm said:

“Against great obstacles during this pandemic, Americans from all walks of life turned out in record numbers to pick new leaders who will govern with our best interests at heart. We the people have chosen Joe Biden, who will arrive in the White House with a forceful mandate to lead our recovery from COVID-19, address the climate crisis, advance racial justice, and build an economy that puts people first. Over the past four years, we have cared for one another. Now, we must come together to ensure that Joe Biden and the new Congress care for us, and to see that everyone — no matter their race or where they come from — has what they need to thrive.

“As we look to recover from the interlocking crises we face as a nation, it’s time to use the tools and power of the federal government to solve urgent problems. This moment calls us to be bold and advance solutions at the scale science and justice demand. It calls us to be holistic and navigate out of multiple crises at once. And it calls us to be visionary in our pursuit to people — not corporations or wealthy elites — at the heart of governance and public life.”

Greenpeace USA’s Just Recovery Agenda includes more than 100 concrete policy recommendations spanning both legislation and executive action aimed at creating a world in which everyone has a good life and where our fundamental needs — including dignified work, healthcare, education, housing, clean air and water, healthy food, and more — are met. 

These include policies to advance:

• Health and well-being for communities 
• Living within planetary boundaries
• Economic protections for people, not corporations
• Resiliency and preventing future crises
• Justice and equity across communities, generations, and borders
• Democratic decision-making and community control
• Balance between systemic change and immediate relief

See the full list of policy solutions here: http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/just-recovery-agenda