global warming

Join the students of PUBPOL 750: Renewable Energy Policy at the State & Local Level for a Student Symposium on State & Local Renewable Energy Policy.  Students will share their research on the web of state and local policies facilitating and hindering renewable energy deployment in California, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Oregon, Texas, and Wyoming.

Barry Rabe discusses his book Can We Price Carbon? Moderated by John Milewski, Director of Digital Programming; Host and Managing Editor, Wilson Center NOW.

Student panels will discuss the implications of their independent research projects on state and local environmental policy on issues including water, energy, climate change, and land use.This event showcases the work of Ford School BA students enrolled in a section of PubPol 495 that is part of the CLOSUP in the Classroom Initiative. 

Can a carbon price survive in a highly decentralized, fossil-fuel producing nation that is tightly integrated with the economy of the United States? Against the backdrop of worldwide interest in carbon pricing as a way to meet commitments made in Paris, and in the context of a Trump presidency, this talk examines the history, origins and prospects of carbon pricing in Canada. The talk will focus on recent efforts at developing a national carbon price framework at the federal level, the challenges now facing the current federal government as it moves toward implementation, and the prospects for carbon pricing in the future. Specific attention will be paid to the role of recalcitrant provinces, a divided public, and the influence of political developments in the United States. The talk will also explore key controversies over carbon pricing, and highlight potential lessons from the Canadian experience.

The 2016 general election will have enormous implications for energy and climate policy in the United States. While much attention will be paid to the positions of presidential candidates, congressional and state elections will also have major implications for how federal and state governments address a variety of crucial issues such as implementing greenhouse gas reduction policies, regulating fracking, crafting subsidies for renewable energy, and much more. Experts with a variety of perspectives will discuss which elections they’re most closely watching, and what different results might mean for energy and climate policy in Michigan, Washington, and beyond.    

This talk explores a surprising new strategy for climate change policy that has emerged in the last 10 years: “reclaiming the atmospheric commons.”  The strategy combines the idea of making polluters pay for their greenhouse gas emissions with the additional idea of using those revenues to generate tangible, broadly distributed public benefits. 

How do Americans think about energy? Is the debate over fossil fuels, nuclear power, and renewable energy highly partisan and ideological? Are people’s preferences for different energy sources idiosyncratic, or is there a common pattern that explains how people view energy across sources? How much does concern about climate change weigh on these opinions? 

The Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) invites our Washington DC colleagues to attend a discussion hosted by the Wilson Center/Canada Institute featuring CLOSUP Director, Barry Rabe, and our collaborating National Surveys on Energy and Environment (NSEE) partners, Christopher Borick, Director, Muhlenberg Institute of Public Opinion, and Erick Lachapelle, Assistant Professor, University of Montreal.  The discussion will feature findings from the FALL 2015 round of ongoing survey work in both Canada and the US.  Key themes will include public views on whether climate change is occurring, response to a range of possible policy options across levels of government, and reaction to Pope Francis' recent engagement on the issue.  The U.S. portion of the survey will also include an early look at how Americans want their states to respond to the new Clean Power Plan.  The session is free but requires registration.  Please call 202-691-4000 or email canada@wilsoncenter.org to reserve your seat.

In recognition of Earth Day, please join us for a very special lecture about what it takes to pass historic air quality legislation. Margo Oge served at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for 32 years, the last 18 of which she directed the Office of Transportation Air Quality. Ms. Oge led the Obama Administration’s landmark 2012 Clean Air Act deal with automakers, the nation’s first action targeting greenhouse gases. This regulation will double the fuel efficiency of automakers’ fleets to 54.5 mpg and cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2025.