In California’s effort to combat climate change, few other sectors present as many opportunities as renewable energy. Transitioning from fossil-fuel based energy to renewable sources will result in significant greenhouse gas reductions and more jobs and economic growth. But climate change and the state’s aggressive renewable energy requirements (mandating that renewable energy sources constitute 20 percent of electrical power for the state by 2010 and 33 percent by 2020) require immediate action.

Residential buildings, through their consumption of electricity and natural gas, are responsible for over one tenth of California's greenhouse gas emissions. In 2015, California set a goal of doubling energy efficiency in all buildings by 2030. The state has long enforced strict energy efficiency requirements for newly constructed homes as well as minimum efficiency improvements for renovations of existing homes.

California is experiencing a surge in renewable energy generation from the sun and wind. But the state will face long-term economic and environmental challenges relying on these intermittent resources without deploying more energy storage.

Located in the Alaskan backcountry about 200 miles southwest of the state capitol, Anchorage, the Pebble deposit is one of the largest undeveloped copper deposits in the world. The deposit also sits in the headwaters of Bristol Bay, the largest sockeye salmon fishery in the world and home to 25 federally recognized tribal governments. Its development would lead to significant harm to nearby spawning grounds, local communities, and the Alaskan economy.

On August 9, 2019, Sean Hecht and Benjamin Harris of UCLA Law School’s Frank G. Wells Environmental Law Clinic filed an amici curiae brief on behalf of the League of California Cities and California State Association of Counties in Chevron v. County of Monterey.

On August 29, 2019, Emmett Institute faculty members William Boyd, Ann Carlson, James Salzman, Harjot Kaur, Cara Horowitz submitted a comment letter to California Air Resources Board in support of the proposed Updated Tropical Forest Standard. In a previous letter commenting on the original proposed Standard, the authors concluded that approving this Standard presents an opportunity for CARB (and California) to help lead the global fight against tropical deforestation.

On September 25, 2019, Sean Hecht testified before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation on the challenges facing the Coast Guard, our ports, and other public agencies as they try to make sure our coastal infrastructure is resilient to emerging risks relating to coastal change.

A video recording is archived on the subcommittee's YouTube channel.

In recent years, municipalities throughout California have struggled to meet housing needs, and construction of new housing units in the state has not kept apace of demand, resulting in increased housing costs that rank among the highest in the nation. At the same time, California faces pressure to achieve ambitious greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction goals in the relatively near term. Meeting those goals will require significant decreases in transportation sector emissions, which represent about 40 percent of the state’s GHG emissions.

On November 25, 2019, Emmett Institute faculty members Sean Hecht and Harjot Kaur submitted a comment letter to the Environmental Protection Agency in response to the Proposed Policy Amendments 2012 and 2016 New Source Performance Standards for the Oil and Natural Gas Industry (the "Proposed Rule").

The insurance sector will play an increasingly important role in managing the new and evolving risks that climate change poses for California residents, businesses, and governments. While state leaders pursue policies to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and build resilience, insurers have the opportunity to address climate-related risks through innovation across their risk management, underwriting, and investment activities.