Enduring progress towards the decarbonization of our massive and complex energy systems requires a whole-systems approach that builds trust among citizens and stakeholders, accommodates competing interests, takes advantage of advances in decarbonization technologies and increases broad public support for climate change policies while providing affordable, reliable, and resilient energy services for all.
Too often in statehouses and legislative chambers across the country today, energy and climate policies are crafted in political silos, resulting in short-sighted, polarizing or costly solutions that fail to bring more than incremental change, at best. Real solutions with lasting impacts will require engagement and collaboration among all state and local stakeholders, exhaustive expert analysis of existing energy systems, demographic, geographic, infrastructure and regulatory factors and consideration of all existing and emerging technologies, data and science available.