Moving Toward a Clean Energy Future: A conversation with U.S. Senator Tina Smith, Paul Douglas, and more.

On April 9, 2021, Fresh Energy's J. Drake Hamilton and Ben Passer were joined by U.S. Senator Tina Smith, meteorologist and climate leader Paul Douglas, and Science Museum of Minnesota President Alison Brown for a discussion about why acting now on climate is critical and how climate action can present economic opportunity for Minnesota. With a new President and a new Congress, we have reason to be optimistic that the country can take real climate action. Congress needs to step up in this moment and pass meaningful climate and infrastructure legislation. At a time when we are still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a tremendous opportunity for a climate and infrastructure package to deliver good paying clean energy jobs.U.S. Senator Tina Smith is pushing for the climate and infrastructure package to include a Clean Electricity Standard (CES) to aggressively reduce carbon emissions from the electricity sector. As the CES leader in the U.S. Senate, Senator Smith has seen how CESs have proven successful in many states – and hopefully Minnesota will soon join that list!A technology neutral CES is crucial to driving a rapid, cost-effective clean energy transition while also putting the United States at the forefront of technology innovation. Minnesotans know that clean energy is key to our economic future. Before the pandemic, clean energy jobs were growing 2.5 times faster than overall job growth in the state – and that’s just the beginning.Thank you to our partners Clean Energy Economy Minnesota (CEEM), LIUNA, and the 100% Campaign for helping spread the word about this event.Listeners can stay up to date on our work via our once monthly email list, blog at www.fresh-energy.org, or by following us on Facebook and Twitter. You can support Fresh Energy’s work for a clean energy Minnesota by making a donation today!Fresh Energy’s mission is to shape and drive bold policy solutions to achieve equitable carbon-neutral economies. Together we are working toward a vision of a just, prosperous, and resilient future powered by a shared commitment to a carbon-neutral economy. Learn about Fresh Energy's work and our bold "Vision 2030: Fresh Energy's Strategic Framework" at our website fresh-energy.org.Follow us on Social Media!Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/freshenergytoday/Bluesky:  https://bsky.app/profile/freshenergy.bsky.socialFacebook:  https://www.facebook.com/freshenergytodayLinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/fresh-energy/