Australia should be a lifter, not a leaner, when it comes to climate change.
That's the view of US politician Henry Waxman, an architect of an ill-fated climate legislation in his home country.
With the US now aiming to cut power station emissions by 30 per cent by 2030, the Democrat congressman has called for Prime Minister Tony Abbott to listen to US President Barack Obama if the leaders discuss climate change later this week.
Mr Waxman said Australia, along with Canada, risked being "behind-the-scenes laggers" rather than leaders on climate policy.
Both nations risked being out of sync with Europe and the US.
"I hope Australia doesn't turn its back on its leadership role and become a drag on what we need to all be doing around the world," Mr Waxman told ABC TV on Wednesday.
The retiring senior Democrat also criticised the coalition government's "voluntary" direct action policy as ineffectual.
"That never worked anywhere," he said.
If Mr Obama doesn't get a chance to bring up climate change this week, he is likely to do so again in November for the G20 leader's summit.
Talks around environmental protection cannot be done in isolation from discussions around the economy.
"He will look forward to conferences like the G20 and the other international meetings to have this on the agenda," Mr Waxman said.
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