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The movement to fight climate change and to preserve our planet for future generations may need to be led by the people for the time being, but the forces behind current environmental efforts shows that we are more than capable of continuing progress.

Leaders and representatives from 197 nations wrapping up twenty second annual Conference of the Parties (COP22) and the twelfth session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the parties to the Kyoto Protocol in Marrakech, Morocco.

Effective climate action will not come from a fight but a battle. History shows that progress on any issue comes from many small steps that create an overall trend towards progress. Despite the potential for environmental setbacks during a Trump presidency, concerned and environmentally conscious citizens will stand for what is right.

A carbon tax initiative is on ballots today in Washington State. The initiative would set a tax on all carbon emissions in Washington and offset a portion of state sales tax. Despite being the first carbon tax ever proposed in the U.S. during a time of record atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, it has sparked a debate that is telling of the differences in values among of environmentalists, policymakers, economists, and citizens alike.

A deceptive solar energy amendment, backed by $21 million from utility industries, is on the ballot in the sunshine state. Amendment 1, which is framed as pro-solar, would actually make it more expensive for consumers to access solar power.

The international community just took another big step forward in fighting global climate change. The 170 nations represented at the 28th meeting of the parties to the Montreal Protocol announced their agreement to phase out hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

President Obama spoke to the need for a persistent and committed effort during a speech after the ratification of the agreement, “If we follow through with our commitments this agreement embodies, history will judge it as a turning point for our planet.”

Flying is in no sense easy on the earth’s climate. According to GreenSkies, an alliance of organizations and citizens concerned with aviation’s environmental effects, one flight from Europe to New York generates the same quantity of carbon dioxide emissions as the quantity emitted from heating and providing electricity for an European home for an entire year.

This past Tuesday, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Power Plan’s legality was discussed in oral arguments at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Court. It is up to this court to decide if the plan infringes on the rights of states and industries to emit carbon dioxide.

We need to start recycling what we have already produced, and reuse what we have already wasted. Biofuels can and should be part of the solution.