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During formal UN media briefings, in luxurious halls and at sticky progressive celebrations, one term was on everyone’s lips at this year’s New York Climate Week: cost-effectiveness.

The American energy chief, Chris Wright, said that under President Trump the United States is “reverting to practical energy policies that focus on affordability”. The previous energy secretary, Jennifer Granholm, said Democrats must focus on renewable power’s capacity to shrink power bills to win elections. And advocates of the likely soon-to-be New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani, promoted their efforts to connect green policies with efforts to cut city residents’ rent and ensure transit cost-effective.

The attempt to tie everyday cost issues to global warming is not new. The idea was a key part of the Green New Deal, a progressive policy platform championed by young climate group the Sunrise Movement and New York representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2018. Joe Biden adopted the approach in the White House, naming his flagship green carbon-cutting policy the Inflation Reduction Act, from 2022.

Now, as energy costs rise around the country, Americans on all sides of the ideological divide are framing their energy and climate plans as methods to protect ordinary people’s finances.

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In Focus

Every year, Climate Week in New York City brings together public leaders, business representatives, experts and campaigners for a vast array of environment-centered events, scheduled to coincide with the United Nations general assembly.

This year, the Trump administration’s environment-deregulating campaign threw a massive shadow over the event. In appearances through the week, White House officials aimed to peg its rule-cutting agenda as a win to reduce Americans’ bills, with Trump calling green energy a “fraud” and Wright declaring: “The more people have gotten into so-called climate action, the more expensive their energy has become.”

Environmental supporters worked to expose those statements as inaccurate while getting Americans on board with green policies on the grounds that they can cut costs. For instance, two Democratic representatives, from Illinois and California, introduced a plan to speed new power-line construction and restore green energy incentives which Trump canceled earlier this year. Its name: the Cheap Energy Act.

It’s a framework that Jennifer Granholm, who served as US energy secretary under Biden, noted she expected as climate falls down the list of public priorities for Americans, while economic worries rise. “My guess is you’re not going to see a lot of politicians using the word ‘climate’, because people see that as a nice-to-have [concern], not a must-have, and right now they’re in the must-have mode,” she told reporters during avocado toast one morning. “Affordability is key.”

Those well to Granholm’s left also advocated a emphasis on affordability in the climate fight. But many demanded more far-reaching solutions that provide more quick benefits. Instead of merely tinkering with the tax code to encourage green technology expansion – a signature of Biden’s climate efforts – politicians should focus on less technical, “green economic populist” initiatives such as fare-free transit and the development of decarbonized public housing.

“These kinds of programs do have emissions-reduction benefits, but they’re highly important for starting to establish a mass base [who have] trust in public institutions and trust in the government,” Batul Hassan, labor director at the left-leaning thinktank Climate and Community Institute, remarked at a panel.

Mamdani, the socialist who achieved a remarkable win in the New York City mayoral primary this summer, represents this kind of agenda, said Hassan. On Wednesday of Climate Week, progressives assembled for a dance party at the renowned Sounds of Brazil music venue to celebrate the candidate’s success.

“It has long been understood that if we’re going to create a mass movement, people need to see the link between the transition to renewable energy and paying less money,” New York City comptroller Brad Lander said in an interview at the party, speaking over the thrum of Charli xcx.

Messaging is important, but merely speaking about affordability is not enough, Alexa Avilés, a New York City council member and progressive, told the Guardian at the Mamdani event. Trump, for instance, has failed to fulfill on his promise of reducing bills while handing huge benefits to oil giants and other corporations. And many Democrats are also guilty of prioritizing their corporate donors’ interests, Avilés said.

“Some people talk about working-class folks, but then they make policies that are designed for the rich. We’ve been dealing with that frustration for a long time,” she said. “We need to focus on truly bringing relief to people. And we see that when we genuinely center people over profit, people respond to that. People can tell who is for real.”

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