Just a little over a week ago, President Trump made the announcement that he would withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement that Obama, along with leaders from 194 other nations, signed in 2016. This announcement has been met with a mix of reactions. Some are praising his actions saying he made the right decision, while others are bashing him with a blatant disregard for the environment. Now, he is being met with resistance from one of the most ecologically beautiful places in the country; Hawaii.

On Tuesday, Governor David Y. Ige signed two bills into law that go along with the goals of the Paris Agreement, making Hawaii the first state in the country to enact laws that do so. Mayors from around the state also signed an agreement saying that they will abide by these laws to fight climate change. "Hawaii is seeing the impacts firsthand," Ige stated, "Tides are getting higher, biodiversity is shrinking, coral is bleaching, coastlines are eroding, weather is becoming more extreme." One of the bills explicitly outlines how the state will fight greenhouse gas emissions while the other bill establishes a task force that will focus on improving soil health and removing carbon from the atmosphere.

Hawaii is one of the most beautiful places in the entire world just based on its natural environment alone, so it makes sense why it would become the first state to enact laws to fight a very real problem. Hawaii's new laws set the precedent for how other states in the nation should take on climate change. "Climate change is real, regardless of what others may say," Ige said.

What the state of Hawaii has done is more than just being the first state to sign bills that tackle climate change. Hawaii is sending a message to the Trump administration that says, "We're not going to sit here while our environment goes to waste." By defying Trump, Hawaii is setting a prime example of how individual states can fight a phenomenon that will only lead to more harm.

What I have never understood about people who do not believe that climate change is real is why they disbelieve it. Even if you do not believe that it is real, why not look at the research as something that can be preventive? Businesses could use the research to their advantage in order to make sure they do not leave a huge carbon footprint on the world. However, instead of doing that, many just go about their daily lives discrediting every credible ounce of research there is, including the President himself.

I applaud Hawaii and the steps they have taken in order to combat climate change, and I hope that other states in the union will follow their lead.