This petition calls on the president to take a leading role in preparing the US for potential climate change impacts and to limit emissions of greenhouse gasses in the most equitable and economically viable ways (bounded market-based methods).
The most common definition of sustainable development (from the 1987 Brundtland Commission) is "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” It has become increasingly clear in recent years that due to the dramatic increase of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere, our planet, our species, and our nation will face potentially extreme human and economic consequences in the coming decades, bringing great sacrifice to future generations in the name of present development.