Earlier this month, New York City residents took to the polls to vote for their next mayor. The city turned out in record numbers to elect the city’s first Muslim and South Asian mayor, not to mention the youngest in over a century (Treisman and Mann, 2025). Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani ran on a platform of  big promises to make the city more affordable for its residents by freezing rent and making public transit free, for example. He also dedicated a corner of his platform to environmental issues, which the other two candidates on the ballot lacked. As a democratic socialist, Mamdani’s political views represent a shifting tide in U.S. politics as President Trump’s fiscal conservatism is sweeping the nation and permeating deep into state and local politics. 

Photo Credit: Victor Llorente for The New Yorker

Mamdani hasn’t even stepped foot in office yet, and people across the country are already hoping that the left-wing policies of the new NYC mayor will inspire and reinvigorate the Democratic party as well as the next generation of progressive voters around the U.S.  As we know, big promises create big expectations. Will Mamdani meet this rare political moment by keeping his word on his promises to New Yorkers? It’s too soon to tell. Before his term begins, let’s use this opportunity to review his platform on environmental issues and how his unique approach could affect political races in other cities around the country.

As Gabriel Hetland of The Nation stated, the signature policies that Mamdani ran on, including rent freezes and fast and free buses, “don’t appear to be climate-related” (Hetland, 2025). However, Mamadani told Hetland otherwise: “climate and quality of life are not two separate concerns. They are, in fact, one and the same” (Hetland, 2025). I agree with Mayor-elect Mamdani. His plan for fast, fare-free buses is a great example of this nexus. 

 

Fast, Fare-Free Buses

According to Mamdani’s campaign website, as Mayor he plans to “eliminate the fare on every city bus—and make them faster by rapidly building priority lanes, expanding bus queue jump signals, and dedicated loading zones to keep double parkers out of the way.” His rationale is that fast and free buses will improve ridership safety and experiences and make buses more reliable and accessible for all New Yorkers. While this may be true, we know that public transit is also a better option for climate compared to personal vehicles. According to the data from the Department of Defense as cited by Kendra Pierre-Louis, cars emit one pound of carbon dioxide (CO2) per passenger per mile while buses, which generally run at about 25% capacity, emit 0.64 pounds of CO2 per passenger per mile (Pierre-Louis. 2023). If buses ran full, they would only emit about 0.18 pounds of CO2 per passenger per mile (Pierre-Louis. 2023). This means that Mamdani’s plan to increase ridership on MTA buses would increase CO2 savings, get personal vehicles off congested streets, and improve quality of life for millions of New Yorkers by saving them $2.90 per ride.

Photo Credit: Office of Assembly member Zohran Mamdani

Libraries

Compared to his running mates, Mamdani’s platform of policies during the race was very focused around affordability. However, Mamdani creatively expanded the idea of affordability in envisioning how to achieve it for New Yorkers. Many of his policies have environmental externalities. One example is his plan on funding the New York Public Library. He promises to “commit 0.5% of NYC’s budget to libraries” to ensure they have enough revenue for robust services and well-staffed facilities. 

Libraries are powerful tools for sustainability as they limit the need to produce more, create a culture of conservation and sharing, and (when properly funded) can offer services like seed or tool libraries, or e-waste recycling to help communities become more sustainable. Of course, library services save their communities money as well and act as an important third space to form community and provide support. The Georgetown Environmental Law Review illustrated the connection between library-centric economies and sustainable living and how legal and political action can empower libraries to do more for their communities. 

If Mamdani keeps his promises on funding the New York Public Libraries, city residents may experience an increase in offered services and a decrease in their day-to-day costs. 

Photo credit: Bowen Fernie for GQ

Green Schools for a Healthier New York

A signature policy in Zohran Mamdani’s campaign for mayor is his plan to transform public schools into hubs of climate resiliency. The Green Schools for a Healthier New York entails renovating 500 public schools with renewable energy infrastructure and HVAC upgrades, transforming 500 asphalt schoolyards into vibrant green spaces, creating 15,000 union jobs, and building resilience hubs in 50 schools that provide resources and safe spaces during emergencies. This policy is driven by two overarching principals: (1) utilizing union labor and (2) combating environmental racism. The Green Schools for a Healthier New York plan connects climate action to quality-of-life improvements in a way that most New Yorkers can get behind.

This policy offers a range of climate and sustainability benefits. According to Mamdani’s policy proposal, researchers estimate that transitioning NYC public schools to renewable energy could reduce city emissions by more than 713,382 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO2e) each year and eliminate 1.5% of all emissions citywide. Furthermore, greening schoolyards will reduce urban heat island effect, prevent floods by absorbing more rainwater, improve air quality, and provide learning and developmental opportunities for students. Finally, creating resilience hubs will provide New Yorkers with places to find safety and community during climate change-related natural disasters.

This plan represents a holistic approach to climate change in offering opportunities for prevention, adaptation, and mitigation of climate change effects. It demonstrates the inextricable connection between quality of human life and climate action—which many environmental policies fail to adequately acknowledge.

Photo Credit: AlignNY.org

What does Mamdani’s environmental platform for NYC mean for other cities?

Mamdani electrified New York City this fall with his promises to improve affordability and quality of life. He showed that Democrats can still be in-touch with the top issues that voters care about while he seamlessly linked those top issues with other matters that he deems important to the future of New Yorkers. His environmental policies center on affordability, jobs, and sustainability, and in doing so, his policies bring more people into the environmental movement. 

Progressive candidates across the country can learn something valuable from Zohran Mamdani: in illustrating the connection between climate action and quality-of-life, climate policies can become another tool in the toolbox to improve the lives of constituencies while still understanding that their top concerns might not include the environment. 

Only time will tell if Mamdani can fulfill the promises he has made to New Yorkers. Personally, I find hope in his election and hope that other progressive candidates across the country take note of how he was able to motivate New York to believe in him and his vision. 

Sources:

https://www.npr.org/2025/11/04/nx-s1-5597788/election-results-zohran-mamdani-new-york-city-mayor 

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/better-bus-systems-could-slow-climate-change/ 

https://www.thenation.com/article/environment/zohran-mamdani-green-schools-plan-climate/ 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EE0TS9OtIn_uthXC0F831Kxoz5k2HA6G7yaXyNx_994/edit?tab=t.g1jotssk9q8x 

https://www.cjnrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/NYC-Full-Report-Finalized5.10_compress.pdf 

​​https://www.zohranfornyc.com/platform 

https://jacobin.com/2025/06/mamdani-nyc-election-climate-policy