There’s no polite way to say it: the forces destroying our planet are ruthless, well organised, and rich with oil money. They have lobbyists whispering in every corridor of power, think tanks spinning doubt into headlines, and political allies ready to trade the future for a quick deal today. Their goal is simple: protect their profits at any cost.
Now, with Donald Trump once again at centre stage, these same interests have a figurehead who gives their deception a fake legitimacy. At the United Nations, Trump declared climate change “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world.” It’s not just bluster. It’s a carefully crafted signal to the fossil fuel lobby: keep drilling, keep burning, keep raking in billions, and we’ll call it freedom. This is the playbook, deny, delay, distract, and it’s being executed with precision.
But the U.S. isn’t alone in its contradictions. Here in Australia, the government has set its 2035 target: a 62–70% cut in emissions below 2005 levels. On paper, it looks ambitious. Headlines splash percentages that sound like progress. But experts are already warning the obvious, that the target is unachievable without unprecedented transformation across energy, transport, agriculture, and industry. And instead of passing binding legislation to make sure the target sticks, the government has left the door wide open for back pedalling.
This is the cruel paradox of climate politics. Denialists like Trump try to convince us the crisis isn’t real. Policymakers closer to home admit it’s real, but respond with lofty pledges that don’t add up. And all the while, fossil fuel projects are quietly approved, subsidies keep flowing, and lobbyists keep winning. Whether it’s outright denial or polite delay, the result is the same: a hotter, harsher, more unstable planet.
So where does that leave us? Cynical, yes. Alarmed, definitely. But not defeated. Because the cracks in this system of deception are already showing. Every false claim is fact-checked. Every “unachievable” target is met with public scrutiny. Every delay is confronted by communities who refuse to accept another lost decade.
And this is where small voices matter. This is where Fix My Planet matters. The oil lobby has billions. We don’t. But what we do have is numbers, people willing to act when leaders won’t. People who refuse to wait for promises to be broken yet again.
When you take the FMP quiz, when you choose an offset, when you talk about your footprint with friends, it might feel small. But small actions scale. They build pressure. They create legitimacy for change. Governments will only act when people demand it, and people only demand it when they feel they have power. That’s what this movement is about: giving people back a sense of agency in a fight stacked against them.
So yes, the fossil fuel machine is powerful. Yes, Trump’s denial gives cover to polluters. Yes, Australia’s targets are shaky and uncertain. But none of this means we give up. It means we fight harder, smarter, and together. Because if there’s one thing history shows, it’s that even the most entrenched systems can crumble when enough people push back.
The good fight is never easy. But it’s necessary. And it starts here, with us. 🌱