John — in 2022, I received the news I was cancer-free. After four months of chemotherapy and the incredible care of doctors and nurses at Providence St. John’s Health Center, I felt overwhelming gratitude — not just for my recovery but for the breakthroughs in cancer research that made it possible.

My experience as a cancer survivor informs my perspective as a climate activist. While we’re making remarkable strides in cancer research, we’re failing to make the same progress to protect our planet — and ourselves — from pollutants. We can’t ignore an unsettling truth: The same fossil fuels driving the climate crisis are also fueling a public health crisis.

The numbers don’t lie. In 2021 alone, fossil fuel-related air pollution caused over 8 million deaths globally. That’s more lives lost in one year than the entire COVID-19 pandemic.

Fossil fuels are making us sick. Toxic chemicals like dioxins, benzene, and naphthalene — byproducts of oil, gas, and coal — are contaminating our air, our water, and even our food. These poisons are so pervasive they’ve been found in the umbilical cords of newborns.

And here’s what’s even more frightening: Donald Trump and his allies are doubling down on fossil fuels. His so-called Make America Healthy Again rhetoric couldn’t be more disconnected from reality. Under his leadership, fossil fuel drilling and production would expand at an unprecedented pace, pumping even more toxins into our air, water, and soil. If they succeed, the public health crisis we’re already facing will spiral out of control.

This is why I’m staying in the fight. I know you’re tired, and it feels like all hope is lost. I’m fighting those feelings, too — but despair is not an option, John.

We owe it to our children and their children to demand better. We owe it to ourselves to end fossil fuel dependence and prioritize public health. Health care workers save lives every day. They are heroic in their efforts to heal people. It’s time we match that heroism and fight to protect the planet and prevent harm before it happens.

Across the country, climate champions at the state and local levels are taking bold action to defend clean energy, strengthen pollution safeguards, and create healthier communities. Each victory pushes back against corporate polluters who put profits over people. But we can’t do it without your help. Will you donate a few dollars today to help us keep this fight alive and build a healthier future for all of us?

With hope and determination,

Jane Fonda