{"id":723237,"date":"2026-06-24T13:28:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-24T13:28:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/723237\/"},"modified":"2026-06-24T13:28:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T13:28:12","slug":"diggins-other-olympians-push-for-climate-change-solutions-on-capitol-hill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/723237\/","title":{"rendered":"Diggins, other Olympians push for climate change solutions on Capitol Hill"},"content":{"rendered":"

Olympian Jessie Diggins<\/a> is visiting Capitol Hill with her four medals in hand to advocate for clean air, clean water and a healthy planet.<\/p>\n

America\u2019s most decorated cross-country skier<\/a> is part of \u201cProtect Our Winters,\u201d an athlete-driven environmental group that sent a coalition to Washington to meet with lawmakers Tuesday and Wednesday. The group is most concerned with how the Environmental Protection Agency has weakened key climate, water and pollution regulations<\/a> since President Donald Trump returned to office. <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to stick my head in the sand and ignore the world burning,\u201d Diggins said in an interview. \u201cI feel like I have a responsibility to use my voice to advocate for change. And so that\u2019s why it\u2019s so important to me, because I want my great-grandkids to be able to build a snowman and try cross-country skiing someday, and be able go hiking and fishing and camping in the summer, and breathe clean air. I want that for them very badly.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Jessie<\/p>\n

Jessie Diggins, of the United States, competes in the cross country skiing women\u2019s 50-kilometer mass start classic at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Tesero, Italy, Feb. 22, 2026. (AP Photo\/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)<\/p>\n

Jessie Diggins, of the United States, competes in the cross country skiing women\u2019s 50-kilometer mass start classic at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Tesero, Italy, Feb. 22, 2026. (AP Photo\/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)<\/p>\n

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Diggins retired from professional ski racing this year after earning bronze in the women\u2019s 10\u2011kilometer interval start<\/a> at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics<\/a>. Many skiers expressed concern<\/a> during these Olympic Games about climate change and the accelerating melt<\/a> of the world\u2019s glaciers. A warming world jeopardizes the future of their sport<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Diggins described bringing her medals to Washington as a \u201cbeautiful, full circle moment.\u201d She said she\u2019ll consider it a success if she has productive conversations that help pave the way for bipartisan efforts to strengthen and bolster the EPA in the future. Republicans currently in control of Congress have generally supported the Trump EPA\u2019s actions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to advocate for solutions that are going to protect us long term, and training and racing through four Olympics, that was a very long-term thing, you know? It\u2019s not quick, immediate gratification, you work and you work and you work,\u201d Diggins said. \u201cI think it\u2019s a nice reminder of like, it\u2019s OK that we are looking for solutions for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coalition includes athletes, scientists, storytellers <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Senate<\/p>\n

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks with Olympians Julia Kern, from left, Jessie Diggins, Bea Kim and Olivia Giaccio, during a meeting to advocate for clean air, clean water and a healthy planet on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, June 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo\/Jose Luis Magana)<\/p>\n

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks with Olympians Julia Kern, from left, Jessie Diggins, Bea Kim and Olivia Giaccio, during a meeting to advocate for clean air, clean water and a healthy planet on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, June 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo\/Jose Luis Magana)<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s not the typical lobbying group. Professional ski mountaineer Brody Leven only owns a suit to go to Washington with Protect Our Winters. But, he said, they are the ones who can hopefully bring people together around policy solutions to climate change. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re good at looking at adversity in the face and still moving forward,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd we\u2019re good at knowing something is going to be hard and trying to do it anyways.\u201d<\/p>\n

They plan to meet with Democratic and Republican members in both chambers. Olympians Jaelin Kauf<\/a>, Gus Schumacher<\/a>, Bea Kim<\/a>, Julia Kern<\/a> and Olivia Giaccio<\/a> are involved, Protect Our Winters said. <\/p>\n

During the Trump administration, the EPA has revoked a scientific finding<\/a> that underpinned the fight against climate change, moved to roll back limits<\/a> on toxic wastewater from coal-fired power plants and announced other cuts to federal limits on air and water pollution as it promotes fossil fuels. These changes clash with the agency\u2019s historic mission<\/a> to protect human health and the environment.<\/p>\n

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has said they are \u201c driving a dagger through the heart of climate-change religion<\/a> and ushering in America\u2019s Golden Age.\u201d Doing so, he said, will save trillions of dollars in regulatory costs and hidden taxes, which in turn will make the cost of living more affordable and reignite domestic manufacturing.<\/p>\n

Environmentalists say the EPA under Zeldin has abandoned its obligation to protect the public from dangerous greenhouse gas pollution at a time when climate change is creating greater risks of extreme weather,<\/a> including stronger hurricanes, more dangerous floods and more intense wildfires. Legal challenges to a range of EPA rule changes have been filed by states<\/a>, cities and public health and environmental groups.<\/p>\n

Protect Our Winters looks beyond the Trump years<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Rep.<\/p>\n

Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., speaks with Olympians Jessie Diggins, from center left, Bea Kim and Julia Kern, during a meeting to advocate for clean air, clean water and a healthy planet on Capitol Hill Tuesday, June 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo\/Jose Luis Magana)<\/p>\n

Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., speaks with Olympians Jessie Diggins, from center left, Bea Kim and Julia Kern, during a meeting to advocate for clean air, clean water and a healthy planet on Capitol Hill Tuesday, June 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo\/Jose Luis Magana)<\/p>\n

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Ben Gubits, vice president of campaigns and advocacy for Protect Our Winters, said they expect the federal government to protect the health of American citizens and the planet. POW has lobbied Congress for about a decade, including several visits in 2021 and 2022 when it advocated for passage of a landmark climate bill. President Joe Biden signed<\/a> the so-called Inflation Reduction Act in 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are really thinking about a long-term and positive vision for the future, and how do we rebuild these critical institutions beyond the Trump years,\u201d Gubits said.<\/p>\n

Stuart Nissenbaum started working at the EPA early in Biden\u2019s term and left a year ago. He\u2019s part of the coalition, too. Nissenbaum said he thinks being in Washington with Olympians will help bring attention to their message. They are masters of their craft and they wore the U.S. flag while competing, which should resonate with members of Congress, he added.<\/p>\n

Nissenbaum said he\u2019ll convey to legislators that clean air and clean water is bipartisan, and they should adopt policies grounded in science to protect the environment. <\/p>\n

\u201cClean air and clean water isn\u2019t something that we should take for granted,\u201d he said. \u201cIt affects every single person.\u201d<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

The Associated Press\u2019 climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP\u2019s standards<\/a> for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Olympian Jessie Diggins is visiting Capitol Hill with her four medals in hand to advocate for clean air,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":723238,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[311100,311101,1687,1685,4253,3505,12,192,793,3132,222243,163164,212963,3319,311099,210688,20200,79,99,311102,6664,26939,792,800],"class_list":["post-723237","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-ben-gubits","tag-brody-leven","tag-climate","tag-climate-and-environment","tag-climate-change","tag-district-of-columbia","tag-donald-trump","tag-environment","tag-general-news","tag-government-regulations","tag-gus-schumacher","tag-industry-regulation","tag-jessie-diggins","tag-joe-biden","tag-julia-kern","tag-olivia-giaccio","tag-pollution","tag-science","tag-sports","tag-stuart-nissenbaum","tag-u-s-environmental-protection-agency","tag-united-states-congress","tag-united-states-government","tag-washington-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/723237","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=723237"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/723237\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/723238"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=723237"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=723237"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=723237"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}