Aussie OITNB star Yael Stone’s shock announcement in wake of bushfire crisis

Horrified by the bushfire crisis, Aussie actress Yael Stone has made an announcement with extreme implications for her own career.

Aussie Orange Is The New Black star Yael Stone has delivered a dramatic announcement on social media that will have drastic implications for her own career.

In a two-part video posted to her Instagram account, the 34-year-old actress announced that she was giving up her US green card, effectively ending her acting career in that country.

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Stone shot to fame in the US playing inmate Lorna Morello in hit Netflix series OITNB across the show’s seven seasons. During that time, she also continued a screen and stage career here in Australia.

Now Stone, partner Jack Bancroft and their 18-month-old daughter will no longer divide their time between Australia and the US, instead moving back to her home country in a bid to combat climate change.

Stone started her announcement by slamming Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison for doing “absolutely nothing” while “our country is on fire”.

Stone (left) found fame in the US as one of the stars of Netflix hit Orange Is The New Black. Picture: JoJo Whilden/Netflix

“The leaders we have are the people around us. We have to step up because this is war; this is a climate war. And for the first time, our enemy is not wearing a uniform that we’ll be able to recognise. Our enemy is our own behaviour … it’s corporate-wide, it’s government-wide, it’s systematic changes that must happen, and they must happen yesterday. It’s time to act.”

In part two of the video, Stone revealed the personal sacrifice she’d be making to combat the escalating climate crisis.

“So what sacrifices am I going to make? Good question. To begin with, I’d like to announce that I’m giving up my green card. After a long, considered process, we’ve come to understand that it’s unethical for us to set up a life in two countries, knowing what we know. The carbon emissions alone from that flying … it’s unethical; it’s not right. So I will be going through the process of giving up my green card and saying goodbye to a life in America,” she said.

Stone has vowed to give up her life and career in the US. Picture: Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images

“I’m going to be here in Australia, doing the work I can to make a difference here, because the time is now. Like I said: This is war, and we’ve only got 10 years. So let’s make these sacrifices, let’s make these changes. Let’s put some skin in the game and say ‘Yeah, I care, and this is what I’m going to do about it.’ This is just the beginning for me.”

A day later, Stone made another announcement, acknowledging her decision to “abandon” her green card wouldn’t mean she’d never take another international flight.

“I’m an actor, and that’s part of the gig — I will have to fly. So I’ve decided to put my money where my mouth is: Next time I fly internationally, I’ll invest 50% of my earnings from that job into FEAT, an awesome organisation that give us the opportunity to invest in renewables directly,” she said.

“So, let’s try and reduce our need to fly, and when we do have to, let’s meaningfully offset.”

Stone’s announcement comes as the concept of “flight shame” grows among those concerned about the climate crisis. A survey of 6000 Americans and Europeans by Swiss bank UBS has found one in five are flying less due to concerns about climate change, Reuters has reported.

And onstage at Monday’s Golden Globe Awards, actor and climate change activist Joaquin Phoenix applauded many of his fellow winners for using their time on stage to draw attention to Australia’s bushfires but also pressed them to go further: “It’s so nice, but we have to do more than that … We don’t have to take private jets to Palm Springs,” he said.

Also this week, the Kardashian/Jenner clan were accused of hypocrisy for their social media posts drawing attention to the Australian bushfires. “Climate change is real,” Kim Kardashian tweeted, along with a broken-hearted emoji – after countless posts of herself travelling in private jets over the years:

Climate change is real 💔🌎

— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) January 3, 2020