MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA — Yesterday, iconic Miami artist Gloria Estefan spoke with Vice President Kamala Harris at the Aspen Ideas: Climate conference in Miami Beach. During the talk, Harris claimed that the United States is responsible for producing greenhouse gasses that cause “disproportionate harm” to places like the Caribbean.
The multi-day conference is a collaboration with the City of Miami Beach. According to their website, a diverse group of partner institutions in and beyond South Florida sponsor the event to discuss “actions critical to addressing our collective future around the realities of a changing climate.”
“SOLUTIONS ARE AT HAND”
Estefan sold her waterfront Miami Beach home on the Venetian Islands for $13.7 million last May. The Cuban-born female vocalist lived in Miami Beach for 38 years and said she’s relieved to see the administration tackling an issue that worries her deeply.
“I’ve seen the water rising to an alarming degree,” Estefan told Harris. The singer also attributed problems like fish kills and the dying coral reef to climate change.
“We all understand we have to be solutions driven. The solutions are at hand,” said VP Harris, telling conference goers that she’s excited about solving climate change.
Harris said recent investments from the Biden administration – expansion of electric-powered school buses, tax rebates, and rooftop solar – are the answers to the current crisis.
“I think many people have the will to participate in what we have to do to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but I think that not everyone has the means,” Harris told Estefan. “We have to think about this movement in a way that we are making it affordable for a working family that wants to participate.”
SOLICITING DONATIONS
Earlier on Wednesday, Harris spoke at a fundraiser in Miami Beach, according to the Miami Herald. The event was held at the home of Alex Heckler, chair of the Aspen conference host committee and long-time donor to Harris.
In a pitch to potential donors, Harris praised the Biden administration’s wins on addressing climate change.
“We’re here to speak at Aspen about the work we must do and challenges we must face to address the climate crisis,” Harris said. “Because of your support – just look at the infrastructure bill, the chips bill, the Inflation Reduction Act – we’re looking at a trillion dollars hitting the streets of America to deal with the climate crisis. That’s transformational.”
TIES TO THE WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
Aspen Ideas, a program of the Aspen Institute, aims to address flooding and alleged sea level rise, new renewable energy technologies and the purported impact of climate change on food production, according to a release by the City of Miami Beach.
The Aspen Institute is intertwined with the World Economic Forum and other powerful organizations into which the public lacks insight, such as the Council on Foreign Relations. The organization’s 72-person board of trustees includes former Disney chairman Michael Eisner, Queen Noor of Jordan and James S. Crown, a member of one of America’s wealthiest families.
