US Policy
Building Urbanism into Climate Policy
Over the last several years, I have been helping state agencies and utilities develop deep decarbonization scenarios that follow a “pathways” approach to slashing emissions by 80 percent or more in several decades. At the same time, I have taken a leadership role in the growing pro-housing “Yes in…
Solarize Campaigns: Helping Communities of Color Access Rooftop Solar
There is a new urgency across the United States to address structural and systemic racial inequities in criminal justice, wealth and housing, employment, health care, and education. These disparities are also pervasive in energy. One common measure of this is “energy burden,” or the share…
Beyond Buying Renewables: How Cities Can Influence the Energy System
As US cities and counties transition to clean energy for their own operations and communities, many are finding that stakeholders and policies beyond their jurisdictions affect their ability to purchase clean energy. Policy and regulatory decisions made by states, utilities, public utilities commissions, and wholesale market governing bodies…
3 Ways Cities Can Build Back Better through Green Recovery
As we approach the fourth month of the pandemic, cities across the United States continue to be hit hard. I recently spoke with mayors who are being asked to simultaneously manage unprecedented public health challenges, a rise of social unrest, increased unemployment, and a looming housing crisis, on top of…
Six Key Policies for Cutting Emissions in the Latest Climate Bill
Last Tuesday, the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis released its Climate Crisis Action Plan report, which maps a comprehensive federal response to climate change. Many of these ideas are included in the “Moving Forward Act” (H.R.2) that passed the House last Thursday and now goes to…
