Even steelworkers are taking climate change very seriously, according to Leo Gerard, president of United Steelworkers, which represents 1.2 million workers in the United States and Canada.

Speaking at the Cornell ILR (industrial and labor relations) School's Global Labor Institute (GLI) meeting, May 7-8 in New York City, Gerard stressed, "We are an environmental union. We understand that it's not a case of jobs versus the environment. The science is clear: It's either both or neither."

With more than 350 participants -- believed to be the largest gathering ever of environmentalists and trade union leaders -- the meeting was sponsored by 10 major unions. The meeting's theme of "A North American Labor Assembly on Climate Crisis: Building a Global Movement for Clean Energy" attracted trade unionists from around the world and representatives from the energy policy and environmental communities.

The conference addressed energy alternatives, new kinds of jobs, what a largely noncarbon energy economy might look like, policy options and how to build stronger ties between the labor and environmental movements here and abroad.

The gathering was hosted and addressed by ILR alumna Randi Weingarten, president of the United Federation of Teachers. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont made an impassioned plea for decisive action, and Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope urged Congress to do more to fight greenhouse gas emissions.

"It was important for Cornell ILR to organize this event," said Jill Kubit, assistant director of GLI. "Climate change will have a profound effect on the world of work in the years ahead, and unions have a special role to play in making sure that the transition to clean energy happens quickly and in a way that creates good jobs."

Said GLI director Sean Sweeney: "Human civilization is waking up to the reality of global warming and the threat of catastrophic climate change. Unions around the world are beginning to play their part. But much more needs to be done -- and done quickly."