Climate Change Solutions - January 5, 2021

Happy New Year and welcome to the first edition of Climate Change Solutions for 2021!

This week, we'll take a look back at climate legislation and progress in 2020 and bring you a few fresh climate solutions to kick off the New Year. 

In 2020, EESI covered climate solutions in 20 states, brought together over 115 experts, and tracked hundreds of environment, energy, and climate bills. 

A new year brings new climate solutions, and we have you covered. This week, we're bringing you to Appalachia with two articles on how the region is equitably transitioning away from fossil fuels and to Colorado to see how rural utilities are using innovative financing for battery storage. 

We also spoke with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers research scientist Katherine Chambers to discuss the key components of hurricane resilience. 

We are excited to announce EESI's upcoming series: the Congressional Climate Camp.
This four-part series, which will be held once a month, will go over the basics of the legislative process, highlighting key areas and opportunities for achieving near-term and long-term carbon reductions through policy. We'll have more details on our website soon, but you can RSVP here to get updates and event links directly to your inbox!

And don't miss our latest podcast episode, in which we speak with three previous EESI interns about their lives after EESI and what they plan to do next for climate action! Listen in to The Climate Conversation podcast here.


Have a climate solution? Send tips to Solutions editor Amber Todoroff!
 

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Video Short: Voices of Hope for Climate Action EESI published over 150 articles in 2020. Of those, 27 profiled climate solutions being implemented at a local or state level, represented on this map. Check out our recent article "Solutions from Your District" to see if your district, town or state was featured!   Headlines Solutions from Your District: Local and State Climate Action in 2020 In 2020, EESI produced 27 articles covering geographically-specific climate action. Projects included renewable energy innovation in Alaska, electric ferries in New York, wind energy policy in North Carolina, sustainable construction in Iowa, aquaculture career training in Mississippi, wood technology innovation in Oregon, and a dozen more in between. Read our compilation of all 27 articles here! [click for more]   Reimagine Appalachia Charts Sustainable Path for the Region A coalition of policy leaders and organizations are coming together in support of an ambitious new plan for a green transition for Appalachia. The project, called Reimagine Appalachia, with its coalition of over 60 supporters from across Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, aims to create “a New Deal that works for us." [click for more]   Colorado Utility Launches Innovative Financing Tool for Battery Storage Holy Cross Energy, a rural electric cooperative serving 58,000 members in western Colorado, recently launched an on-bill tariff pilot program aimed at financing battery energy storage systems for its members. The program, known as Power+, currently involves six homes, which will each receive stationary and rechargeable Tesla Powerwall lithium ion battery packs that can be used to store energy. [click for more]

On the Hill January 3 was the first day of the 117th Congress. Speaker Nancy Pelosi was reelected to lead the House of Representatives. The outcomes of the two special elections today in Georgia will determine who controls the Senate. Before the end of the 116th Congress, an omnibus spending bill was signed into law, which, while providing $900 billion in pandemic relief and averting a government shutdown, also included several exciting environmental provisions such as a phase down of Hydrofluorocarbons (potent greenhouse gases) and tax and funding incentives for renewable energy innovation and deployment. Additionally, in December Speaker Pelosi announced that the House Select Committee on the Climate will return for the 117th Congress. Cathy Castor (D-Fla.) will remain the committee's chair. Along with our "On the Hill" highlights, EESI has a legislative tracker highlighting all the environmental and energy bills or hearings happening on the Hill every two weeks. Our January 19th edition will feature our first legislative tracker for 2021!   115 Experts and Eight Elected Officials Weigh in on Climate Change Solutions in 2020 EESI held 31 Hill briefings in 2020, bringing together experts from all over the country to discuss climate solutions in action and the policies and programs that make those solutions possible. [click for more]   On the Hill in 2020: Climate Legislation and Hearings in Review When we look back on 2020, we will remember it more for the tragedies of the coronavirus pandemic and racial injustice than for climate policy advancements. However, there was some progress. Congress was able to pass some important clean energy and climate bills and held many hearings laying the groundwork for future action. Click for a list of EESI articles highlighting selected legislation and hearings throughout 2020. [click for more]   Environmental Justice Now Tour – A Just Transition in Appalachia Democrats serving on the House Natural Resource Committee made Appalachia the latest stop on their 'Environmental Justice Now Tour.' As the country transitions to alternative, low-carbon fuel sources, the declining fossil fuel industries present economic problems for the region and the Tour’s panelists described their own experiences in their opening statements. [click for more]

EESI News, Briefings and Fact Sheets   Q&A: Interagency Committee says Communication and Coordination are Key Components of Hurricane Resilience EESI’s policy team connected with Katherine Chambers, a research scientist at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and co-lead of the U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System’s Resilience Integrated Action Team, to discuss how the federal government is studying and addressing resilience to hurricanes in the maritime sector. Click to read our conversation! [click for more]   Briefing: 2020 Climate Action Update 2020 was a major benchmark year for climate goals, with national governments, cities, states, corporations, higher education institutions, faith-based groups, and investors aiming to reach initial targets by this year.   As we look to the start of the 117th Congress, this briefing provided a succinct overview of U.S. climate actions to date and previewed critical next steps needed at the local, state, federal, and international levels to address the climate crisis. [click for more]   Briefing: By Air, Land, and Sea: Navigating the Climate Future Briefing Series Recap EESI’s briefing series, By Air, Land, and Sea: Navigating the Climate Future, dove into the opportunities for climate solutions in aviation, at ports, and across public transit. Here we explore the key cross-cutting takeaways from the briefing series. [click for more]

EESI Around Town   EESI's fact sheet, How Coal Country Can Adapt to the Energy Transition, was highlighted in a recent article in Forbes.   EESI's fossil fuel subsidies fact sheet was cited in an article about Biden's fossil fuel plans.   That same fact sheet was also cited in a recent E&E News article. [subscription only] Upcoming Events   Congressional Climate Camp Welcome to EESI's start-of-the-new-Congress Climate Camp! Ready to make a difference in climate legislation, but don't know where to start? EESI has you covered. We'll go over the basics of the legislative process, highlighting key areas and opportunities for achieving near-term and long-term carbon reductions through policy. The four-part series will begin at the end of January and be held once a month. We'll have more details on our website soon, but you can RSVP here to get updates and event links directly to your inbox! Invited speakers will discuss the following with attendees: January: Budget, Appropriations, and Stimulus February: Policy to Decarbonize High-Emission Sectors March: Lessons Learned from Past Congresses and Current Public Attitudes on Climate April: Policy for Mitigation and Adaptation Win-Wins       Thank You to EESI Team Members for Their Contributions to Climate Change Solutions: Sydney O'Shaughnessy - Layout, Design, and Content Editor Amaury Laporte - Communications Director A special thank you to our fall interns, who helped us finish 2020 strong: Karen Caycho Molero, Development Joseph Glandorf, Policy Emma Walker, Policy/Communications Hamilton Steimer, Access Clean Energy Savings We are so proud of all you accomplished this fall, and can't wait to see what's next!   Environmental and Energy Study Institute  Daniel Bresette, Executive Director   EESI is an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 1984 by a bipartisan Congressional caucus to provide timely information and develop innovative policy solutions that set us on a cleaner, more secure and sustainable energy path.   www.eesi.org                 CFC #10627