System Change Not Climate Change is a radical-left environmentalist group that promotes socialism through the lens of environmental concerns. The group calls itself an “Ecosocialist, anti-capitalist network” and proposes that America’s market-capitalist economy is the root cause of climate change. The group states that, “we need a democratically run, planned economy to…rapidly and radically reduce our fossil fuel consumption and [stop] poisoning the planet.” ¹ System Change Not Climate Change runs an online blog and helps coordinate rallies and protests surrounding energy and environmental matters. ²

Advocacy

System Change Not Climate Change created a list of demands that it proposes will create positive changes to the environment and economy. These include banning hydraulic fracturing and tar sands extraction and immediately transitioning to weather-dependent solar and wind energy. It supports the Marxist ideology of government ownership of the manufacturing, energy, and financial industries and advocates an economy based on social ideologies and environmental sustainability. It demands that Native Americans be paid reparations through land, health care, and housing programs, among other things.  ³

System Change Not Climate Changes also demands defunding the military and all jobs in the coal, oil, and gas industries and moving those employees into full-time unionized jobs in the weather-dependent energy-production industry. It also supports heavy investment in public transportation and implementing high tax rates for the top 1 percent of earners and corporations to help pay for these changes. ³

System Change Not Climate Change is strongly opposed to nuclear power. It proposes that nuclear energy is less efficient than wind and solar energy, is too costly, and does not become more efficient at the rate of wind and solar. ⁴  In an article posted by System Change Not Climate Change, author Biran Tokar discusses these ideas and concludes that the best option for reducing emissions is to build weather dependent wind and solar farms instead of nuclear plants or fusion-research facilities. ⁴

System Change Not Climate Change supports aggressive protest tactics surrounding environmental and energy policy concerns. In an article titled “The Direct Action Wing of the US Climate Movement is Evolving-and That’s a Good Thing” author Alec Connon praises protestors who blocked the entrance to the Citibank headquarters building in New York City leading up to the UN Climate Ambition Summit. Connon also praised the initiative by People Over Profit, which saw protestors going into the Museum of Modern Art to dance and chant “tax the rich.” In his article, Connon concluded that “as the climate crisis continues to escalate in severity―bold civil disobedience that directly and meaningfully disrupts the lives and operations of business and political elites will be more important than ever.”  ⁵

Leadership

Ted Franklin is a retired labor-union attorney who sits on the board for System Change Not Climate Change. He is a founding member of the Labor Rise Climate Jobs Action Group and the No Coal in Oakland group. Franklin writes regularly for System Change Not Climate Change and other far-left blogs such as Common Dreams. ⁶

1. “Who We Are.” System Change Not Climate Change. Accessed February 26, 2026. https://systemchangenotclimatechange.org/points-of-unity/. 
2. “Home.” System Change Not Climate Change. Accessed February 26, 2026. https://systemchangenotclimatechange.org/. 
3. “Demands.” System Change Not Climate Change. Accessed February 26, 2026. https://systemchangenotclimatechange.org/points-of-unity/. 
4. Tokar, Brian. “Nuclear Fusion: Don’t Believe the Hype!​.” System Change Not Climate Change, January 17, 2023. https://systemchangenotclimatechange.org/article/nuclear-fusion-dont-believe-the-hype/. 
5. Connon, Alec. “The Direct Action Wing of the US Climate Movement Is Evolving―and That’s a Good Thing.” System Change Not Climate Change, October 5, 2023. https://systemchangenotclimatechange.org/article/the-direct-action-wing-of-the-us-climate-movement-is-evolving%e2%80%95and-thats-a-good-thing/. 
6. “Ted Franklin.” Common Dreams. Accessed February 26, 2026. https://www.commondreams.org/author/ted-franklin.