Clean Resilient States Initiative

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions, creating sustainable jobs and economic growth, and addressing vulnerability to climate-related impacts are critical—but often competing—policy imperatives. State governments are an important source of leadership in these areas, demonstrating widely varying approaches, from comprehensive climate change plans to more piecemeal policymaking. This variation reflects state priorities and contextual factors, but it can obscure insights about which states are making the most progress over time and how.

About the Project
 

The Clean Resilient States Initiative, developed by the CSIS Energy Security & Climate Change Program, will assess the extent to which state policies facilitate:

• greenhouse gas emissions reductions,
• positive economic outcomes, and
• resilience to climate-related impacts.

Analysis will focus on 1) the role of energy policy, resources, and technologies in achieving these objectives and 2) how coordination among states or between states and the federal government may support policy development and effectiveness.
 
Analytical efforts will result in the creation of an integrated database of pertinent state-level policies complemented by four papers to centralize and synthesize state progress within and across these energy and climate change-related areas. Together, these resources will provide guidance to state-level policymakers, identify priorities for future state-level policy research, and promote knowledge sharing among key stakeholders.
 
This project is made possible by support from the Sloan Foundation.