Mark Lynas is a writer on climate change, and visiting fellow at the Alliance for Science at Cornell University . The opinions in this article belong to the author.

(CNN) The humiliation of President Emanuel Macron should be a cautionary tale for any world statesman or woman considering taking on the mantle of climate leadership.

In October the French president was "auditioning to be leader of the free world " at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, with tackling global warming a centerpiece of his pitch.

Two months later an abashed and humbled Macron backtracked on French national television in the face of sustained violent protests by the "gilet jaunes" (yellow jackets) movement

The immediate cause of the protests? The carbon taxes on petrol and diesel that Macron had only recently touted as evidence of French leadership on mitigating climate change. As cars and barricades burned on the streets of Paris, Macron's climate policies also went up in smoke.

Photos: In photos: Protests in France Photos: In photos: Protests in France A yellow vest demonstrator faces riot police officers in Marseille, France, on Saturday, January 5, 2019. Hide Caption 1 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Riot police stand in tear gas in Toulouse, France, during a protest January 5. Hide Caption 2 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Yellow vest protestors kneel in Lyon on January 5. About 50,000 people demonstrated throughout France on Saturday, according to Interior Minister Christophe Castaner. Hide Caption 3 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters warm their hands over a burning tree in a Paris street on January 5. Hide Caption 4 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A firefighter tries to extinguish a burning car in a street in Paris on January 5. Hide Caption 5 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters confront police during a "yellow vest" demonstration Saturday, December 22, in central Paris. Hide Caption 6 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Demonstrators rally in the Montmartre area of Paris on December 22. Hide Caption 7 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters block a highway near the French border with Spain on December 22 in Biriatou, France. Hide Caption 8 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Demonstators turn out December 22 near toll booths on the A9 highway in Le Boulou, France. Hide Caption 9 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters gather December 15 at Place de l'Opera in Paris. Hide Caption 10 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Activists dressed like Marianne, the symbol of the French Republic, face riot police on December 15 in Paris. Hide Caption 11 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Demonstrators wearing yellow vests form a human tower December 15 on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. Hide Caption 12 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A police water cannon sprays demonstrators on December 15 in Paris. Hide Caption 13 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters take part in a demonstration on December 15 in Paris. Hide Caption 14 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Demonstrators run through tear gas during scuffles with police December 15 on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. Hide Caption 15 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Police use tear gas on protesters at the Place de l'Opera in Paris on December 15. Hide Caption 16 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A protester waves the French national flag during a demonstration on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on December 15. Hide Caption 17 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France French police apprehend a man on December 8 during a protest in Paris. Hide Caption 18 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters wearing yellow vests gather on December 8 in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Hide Caption 19 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Demonstrators drop flat to the ground on the Champs-Elysees avenue during a protest on Saturday, December 8, in Paris. Hide Caption 20 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters install a barricade during clashes with police at a demonstration in Paris on December 8. Hide Caption 21 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters gather on December 8 in Paris. Hide Caption 22 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A demonstrator is covered in blood after getting in injured during a protest in Paris on December 8. Hide Caption 23 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters wearing yellow vests walk on the Champs-Elysees Avenue with the Arc de Triomphe in the background during a protest on December 8. Hide Caption 24 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Two demonstrators dance in front a group as they take part on December 8 in the demonstration at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Hide Caption 25 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A protester reacts during clashes with police on December 8 in Paris. Hide Caption 26 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France French gendarmes apprehend a protester on December 8 in Paris. Hide Caption 27 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters throw objects at riot police on Saturday, December 1, during a demonstration that turned violent when protestors clashed with police in Paris. Hide Caption 28 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France An injured woman sits on the ground as police officers spray yellow vest protesters with tear gas during a protest in Paris on December 1. Hide Caption 29 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A burned car is left in the street a day after the yellow vests demonstration against rising oil prices and living costs in Paris on December 1. Hide Caption 30 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Firemen work to extinguish a burning car on December 1. Hide Caption 31 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A demonstrator leaves as water cannons evacuate the Place de l'Etoile on December 1. Hide Caption 32 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A demonstrator watches a burning car near the Champs-Elysees avenue on December 1. Hide Caption 33 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Riot police officers stand in position during clashes with demonstrators on December 1. Hide Caption 34 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Protesters and police clash in downtown Paris on December 1 during a national demonstration. Hide Caption 35 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France Hooded demonstrators smash a car. Hide Caption 36 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A demonstrator throws a projectile during the December 1 protest. Hide Caption 37 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France A demonstrator treats a wounded man during a protest where police and demonstrators clashed, injuring dozens on December 1. Hide Caption 38 of 39 Photos: In photos: Protests in France French gendarmes apprehend a protester in Paris on December 1. Hide Caption 39 of 39

Watching Macron's climb-down, which was -- embarrassingly for him -- forced on him just at the time climate negotiations at COP24 in Katowice, Poland , were reaching their climax, I was reminded of the so-called "iron law" of climate politics identified by the American political scientist Roger Pielke Jr.

Professor Pielke's " iron law " was first proposed in his 2010 book "The Climate Fix," and it runs as follows: "When policies focused on economic growth confront policies focused on emissions reduction, it is economic growth that will win out every time."

It sounds cynical, but the iron law has never yet been broken, and Macron is just the latest world leader to learn this most obvious of lessons. Faced with a weakening domestic political position, erstwhile "climate chancellor" Angela Merkel has been forced to make concessions to the might of the German car industry and the country's powerful coal mining interests by watering down Germany's 2020 carbon targets.

What was especially damaging about the "gilet jaunes" protests was that they were clearly reflecting the demands of working people who -- while they may accept the science of climate change -- still feel that being forced to pay more for their fuel threatens their jobs and livelihoods in the immediate term.

Many see Emanuel Macron as " president of the rich, " and his climate policies -- like organic food -- indulgence for those who can afford it. Climate mitigation now risks looking like an elite project: the conceit of the global Davos set, something for the Bill Gates's and Richard Bransons of this world.

Their anti-elite flavour puts the French protests in the same bracket as populist movements elsewhere. Indeed, the nationalist, anti-intellectual political trends of our age seem to be moving squarely against action on climate change -- at just the moment scientists have warned that the window to avoid drastic impacts later this century is rapidly closing.

Many of the leaders who have ridden the populist surge to power accordingly boast loudly about their skeptical view of climate science and their continued loyalty to coal, oil and gas. Think not just about Trump, but also President Bolsanaro in Brazil (who has vowed to resume deforesting the Amazon ), Russia's Putin and numerous others.

Trump wears a miner's helmet at political rallies, and even sent his advisors to hold a side event at COP24 promoting coal . The Polish government -- led by the populist Law and Justice Party -- made no secret of its pro-coal agenda either, not least by hosting the UN climate talks in Katowice, an old-fashioned coal town where you can smell the scent of sulfur on the breeze.

JUST WATCHED Climate talks continue in Polish coal country Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Climate talks continue in Polish coal country 03:40

To environmentalists this looks archaic, but it's actually smart politics: imagine being a coal miner -- or an oil refinery worker, or anyone that works in the fossil fuels that still account for 80% of the world's energy -- and being told that your job is killing the planet and destroying the lives of your grandchildren.

Of course you will vote for the populist who tells you that you are still a good person and that the job you are doing is worthwhile.

With the rise of Trump, and his stated determination to take the United States out of the Paris climate agreement, some hopefuls looked to the Chinese for carbon emissions leadership. But the "iron law" of climate policy applies as much in Beijing as Washington -- perhaps even more so.

President Xi Jinping is determined to keep the Communist Party's hegemonic grip on power in China, which depends in turn on maintaining the rapid growth that has led to the Chinese economic miracle.

Because coal is still the bedrock of the Chinese economy, promises by the Chinese leadership to peak and reduce coal consumption need to be looked at skeptically. Recent analysis has found over 250 gigawatts of new coal-fired power station capacity still being built in China.

No wonder neither Xi, nor Trump, nor even Macron or Merkel, even showed up for COP24 in Poland. The politics of climate change are such that leaders making grandiose carbon commitments on the world stage are likely to find their positions undermined rather than bolstered at home.

There is a way around the "iron law," but it means coming up with climate policies that defend and enhance the jobs and livelihoods of working people rather than undermining them.

The buzz-phrase for this is " just transition " -- an idea developed by the trade union movement which aims to make the transition to a low carbon economy fair on those who otherwise stand to lose out, especially workers in high carbon industries.

By embracing just transition, the climate progressives might yet face down the populist naysayers. Let's hope that the next world leader to embrace the climate agenda understands the need for political -- as well as environmental -- sustainability.