John Tobin

Professor of Practice at the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management

John Tobin, professor of practice at Cornell’s SC Johnson College of Business and a former Managing Director and Global Head of Sustainability at Credit Suisse, said these latest cuts seem more politically motivated than other climate actions.

Tobin says:

“The actions of the administration are not only shortsighted, but they seem openly punitive as well. While other climate-related actions by the current administration, such as the proposal to rescind the Environmental Protection Agency’s endangerment finding on greenhouse gases, have applied nationally, the announced cancellation of DOE awards appears only to impact states that voted for the Democrats in recent elections.

“While earlier actions will set the United States back in the ongoing competition to develop the energy and transportation systems of the future—a competition in which other countries, notably China, are already pulling ahead of the US—it is difficult to understand the cancellation of DOE awards other than as a political punishment.”