Our message to leaders from every continent was simple:

Hear the voice of Tom Steyer, who labored in the cause of justice for the earth, and who spoke with clarity of vision: “Our message to leaders from every continent was simple: California has succeeded on climate and clean energy because we’ve emphasized local, human values and built a coalition that includes community and environmental leaders, working families, and communities of color—as well as unions and progressive business.” In this saying, he reveals the secret of enduring change: not the will of a single ruler, nor the force of one law, but the strength of a people united in common cause.

The origin of this quote lies in California’s pathbreaking journey toward renewable energy and climate leadership. While many regions faltered in the face of powerful industries and political doubt, California chose another way. It placed its trust not in abstract markets alone, but in the living strength of coalition—where workers, unions, entrepreneurs, families, and communities all became builders of the same vision. Steyer’s words are thus both testimony and teaching: that progress is not crafted in isolation, but in the weaving together of many hands.

History has shown the power of such unity before. Recall the civil rights movement of America, when freedom was not won by one man or one community alone, but by the combined voices of Black leaders, white allies, unions, students, and churches. Each brought their piece of strength, and together they bent the arc of history toward justice. In the same way, California’s triumph in climate action is not the victory of one office, but of many voices refusing to remain silent. Steyer proclaims that this is the model worthy of sharing with the world.

The heart of his message is that human values must remain at the center of every great transformation. For what good is clean energy if it benefits only the powerful, while leaving behind the poor? What meaning has climate progress if communities of color, long burdened by pollution, remain unheard? By uniting environmental policy with justice, California wove equity into its vision, ensuring that the green economy was not only sustainable, but also inclusive. This is what Steyer calls the true secret of success: to link the cause of the planet with the cause of the people.

Yet there is also warning in his words. For many leaders across the world still cling to the belief that progress must come from above, decreed by governments and negotiated behind closed doors. Steyer reminds them that such efforts falter if they do not grow from the ground up. The strength of California was not merely its policies, but its coalition—its web of unions, workers, families, and progressive businesses standing together. Without this, laws crumble against opposition; with this, even the greatest obstacles yield.

The lesson for us is profound: if we wish to change the world, we must build bridges, not silos. The work of climate and justice cannot be borne by scientists alone, or by businesses alone, or by communities alone. It must be shared across divides of race, class, and profession. Like stones gathered to form an arch, each part may seem weak by itself, but together they can bear great weight. The future will not be built by a few, but by the many who rise together.

And what shall we do in our own lives? We can begin by refusing to see ourselves as powerless. Join your voice to others—whether in local climate action, in community organizations, in unions, or in businesses striving for progress. Support policies that lift not only the environment but also the people most burdened by its destruction. Seek common ground, even with those different from you, for it is in coalition that strength is born.

So remember the teaching of Tom Steyer: California triumphed not by accident, but by placing human values at the heart of its struggle and by uniting communities, workers, leaders, and businesses into one chorus. Let us, too, build such coalitions wherever we are, so that our victories may endure, our people may prosper, and our earth may heal. For divided we are fragile, but united, we are unstoppable.