INSIDER: The Climate Effect of the Trump Administration

This briefing by the World Resources Institute examines the potential impact of the Trump administration's climate policy rollbacks on U.S. and global greenhouse gas emissions, while evaluating the capacity of subnational actors to offset these increases.

• Synthesis of seven studies indicates that Trump administration policies could lead to U.S. emissions in 2025 ranging from 5.6 to 6.8 Gt carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). This is higher than the estimated 5.0 to 6.6 GtCO2e that would have resulted under Obama's policies, and significantly above the U.S. target of 4.8 to 4.9 GtCO2e.
• The Trump administration has taken steps to dismantle domestic climate progress, including the intention to abandon the Paris Agreement and proposals to repeal the Clean Power Plan. Other targeted rollbacks include rules limiting emissions from methane sources, new fossil fuel plants, and various vehicle types, alongside orders to increase oil and gas production on tribal and public lands.
• A Climate Interactive study suggests that if the U.S. fails to meet its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), global emissions in 2025 would reach 57.3 GtCO2e, compared to 55.8 GtCO2e if the NDC were achieved. The U.S. NDC alone was estimated to potentially reduce global warming by 0.3 degrees C (0.5 degrees F).
• Subnational and corporate actors may counteract federal rollbacks. Over 2,500 non-federal actors, representing more than half of the U.S. economy, have pledged support for Paris Agreement goals through the "We Are Still In" campaign. A Sierra Club analysis suggests that accelerated coal replacement, defense of existing policies, and local clean energy action could reduce 2025 emissions by nearly 4.5 GtCO2e.

APA

World Resources Institute (2017). INSIDER: The Climate Effect of the Trump Administration. https://www.wri.org/insights/insider-climate-effect-trump-administration

Chicago

World Resources Institute. INSIDER: The Climate Effect of the Trump Administration. 2017. https://www.wri.org/insights/insider-climate-effect-trump-administration.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=INSIDER: The Climate Effect of the Trump Administration |date=6 December 2017 |url=https://www.wri.org/insights/insider-climate-effect-trump-administration |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitute2017insider, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{INSIDER: The Climate Effect of the Trump Administration}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2017}, month = dec, url = {https://www.wri.org/insights/insider-climate-effect-trump-administration}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }