The Heartland Institute

Climate change policy is often framed as a challenge to personal freedoms and choices, especially when policies seem to impose strict limits on individuals’ lifestyles and economic options. For example, regulations that mandate renewable energy or limit fossil fuel use can feel like a direct restriction on the American dream—the idea that with hard work, anyone can achieve prosperity and a higher standard of living. These policies sometimes require sacrifices that may impact businesses and workers in traditional energy industries, as well as limit consumer choices in cars, appliances, home energy sources, and travel options.

Additionally, many people worry that climate policies prioritize environmental goals over economic growth, which can restrict innovation, hinder job creation, and raise costs for families. Critics argue that climate policy, especially if it involves heavy-handed government intervention, reduces personal choices by dictating what types of products, energy, and resources individuals can access. For many, this perceived loss of choice challenges core values of independence, opportunity, and personal freedom, which are at the heart of the American dream.

Besides host Anthony Watts, H. Sterling Burnett, director of the Arthur B. Robinson Center at Heartland and Research Fellow Linnea Lueken, will provide expert commentary. We will also cover some of the Crazy Climate News of the week and take your questions in the chat. Join us LIVE at 1 p.m. ET this Friday and every Friday.

This panel disussion will be available in our WUWT Climate TV section, a collection of over six hundred videos, featuring new interviews and analysis, and covering dozens of media sources discussing, debating and analyzing the latest in climate science, climate politics, and energy policy, including topics concerning temperature, sea level, polar bears, ocean acidification, extreme weather, censorship, wild fires, and more.