Humanist Guide to Decoding Climate Policy

The first step in becoming an activist is gaining knowledge and context about an issue, particularly about how it has been addressed through institutions, like the government. Climate policy, and environmental policy in general, is a wide array of laws and resolutions with a great deal of variations. It can be daunting to begin examining what kinds of climate policies a city, state, or the federal government has in place and then to try and understand what it all even means, but it is a necessary starting point for determining what needs to happen next.

This is meant to be a guide you can use to inform yourself about local/state/federal environmental policies. The guide will go over a few of things:

  1. Where to find and access these policies
  2. How to read between the lines in these policies to access what they really mean by all the jargon

I. Where do I find these policies?

22 states and 550 cities have climate commitments, and all 50 states have policies that could lead to emission reduction. These commitments range in timescale, intensity, and breadth of structural change. A policy’s existence doesn’t necessarily mean it will deliver the kind of action we need to effectively combat the climate crisis. The first step to learning where your city and state land on this spectrum of climate policy is to find out if they have a Climate Action Plan. Find out more about what your state is doing here.

Typically, Climate Action Plans will be available for download from your city or state government website. Digging them up straight from the website homepage can be difficult, so you should do a quick Google search for a plan using the words “Climate Action Plan.” If your city doesn’t have a plan explicitly titled “Climate Action Plan,” it’s likely that your city doesn’t have adequate policies to address climate change in the way the 2018 report from the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change does. Other keywords to find climate commitments or sustainability plans could be “Sustainability Plan,” “Environmental Plan,” etc. Other policies will build on whatever Climate Action Plan is in place, so it is imperative that these plans are ambitious.

II. Reading and Understanding the Implications of a Climate Action Plan

Once you’ve located the plan, it’s time to start reading. These plans will often be long and overwhelming, so splitting them among a group to read and understand could be a good strategy. Through case studies, this section will help you examine climate action plans more critically and understand their jargon.

Climate terminology can seem similar, vague, and difficult to detect. First, we’ll go over some popular terms and try to explain the nuances.

Climate Action Plan: This is like a roadmap that cities and states use to reduce their emissions. The Climate Action Plan typically can’t be enforced until a city council passes laws surrounding the proposals within it, but it is often the first step to climate action. Plans can be made legally enforceable if the city council were to do something like tie the climate action plan to the general strategic plan of the city. In such a case, citizens could sue a city if it were not meeting the goals of the plan.

100% Renewable Energy: a commitment to drawing 100% of power from energy sources that are completely renewable, such as hydropower, geothermal energy, tidal power, wind, or solar. It’s renewable because it will never run out.

100% Clean Energy: a commitment to drawing 100% of power from energy sources that are “clean,” or non-polluting and harmless. Clean energy does not necessarily have to be renewable energy, but the terms are often interchangeable.

Carbon Neutral: Producing net zero CO2 emissions. In other words, whatever CO2 is put out, an equal amount is stored. Carbon neutral can be achieved through actions like planting trees to sequester CO2 produced by a factory or buying carbon offsets. 

Carbon Offsets: Also known as carbon credits, carbon offsets are a form of trade. When you buy an offset, you are funding a project that reduces greenhouse gas emissions in order to offset your own emissions. Companies will often do this to achieve carbon neutrality instead of making impossible reductions to their emissions. Find out more about specific actions taken here and where you can purchase carbon offsets here.

Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Producing no CO2 or greenhouse gas emissions whatsoever from the start.

Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventory: Measurements of GHG emissions within your city that often indicate which sectors are emitting what amounts of GHGs. 

CO2e: CO2 equivalent, measures GHG emissions relative to CO2. Each greenhouse gas has a different effect on the atmosphere, some are stronger than CO2 and some are weaker. This measurement allows other GHGs to be considered in terms of how much CO2 they are equivalent to in terms of their global warming potential.

Green New Deal: Pioneered by Sunrise Movement, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Senator Ed Markey, the Green New Deal began as a historically unprecedented climate policy that addressed racism, inequity, economic growth, emissions reductions, and many more sectors. It was designed to meet the emissions goals set forth by the 2018 IPCC Report and was proposed as a bill and struck down in Congress. Activists have begun to call for their own Green New Deals on a local level, and the term has now been popularized. States like Minnesota have even begun introducing Green New Deal bills in their state Congress.

III. City Climate Action Plans Examples

Your city may have a GHG inventory that breaks down where emissions are coming from within the city. Emissions are likely to be the highest in three sectors: commercial/industrial buildings, transportation, and residential buildings. Focusing specifically on the reduction of emissions in these sectors through public transportation initiatives and energy efficiency or renewable energy production initiatives will usually be most powerful. It’s important to think about your city individually and its specific economy, its location, and its needs. A coastal city with many tech companies will have different infrastructure, emissions profiles, and operation than an agricultural hub in the Midwest. Take the time to learn about climate change’s specific threats to your city, as well as unique ways your city participates in perpetuating global warming.

To understand some of the language climate action plans use we’ll now look at three examples and think about what this language means in practice. The following is by no means comprehensive; it is meant as an example of positive aspects and criticisms you can draw from your own city’s climate action plans.

Minneapolis Climate Action Plan:

Includes:

  • Greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory in place to track progress
  • Has clear emissions targets (p.1)
  • Clear recognition of inequities specific to the area (p.5-6,12)
  • Evidence that the plan was developed in collaboration with local environmental justice groups (p.10)
  • Integrates environmental justice into specific plans (ex: the Green Zone Initiative on pg. 15)

Denver Climate Action Plan:

Doesn’t include:

  • Emissions targets beyond the year 2025, or ones that commit specifically to the 2018 IPCC report goals
  • Clear plans for implementation
  • Specifics about how exactly the council will begin to engage with the community about the implementation of the plan (p. 36)

Includes:

  • Sets clear goals for emissions reduction (p.2-3)
  • Commitment to renewable energy (p.7)
  • Commitment to environmental justice
  • Inclusion of community feedback
  • 4 sectors where they will decarbonize (transportation, waste, commercial buildings, energy

Doesn’t Include:

  • Emissions targets that specifically align with the 2018 IPCC report goals
  • Specifications about environmental justice, such as factors unique to the Denver community
  • Feedback specifically from most vulnerable/marginalized populations
  • Specifics about waste management, potential increases in recycling programs/composting programs
  • Specifics about water use and conservation, CO is a very water-stressed state

New York State Climate Action Plan:

IV. What about legislation?

Legislation can, of course, be proposed and passed without a climate action plan in place. Legislation differs from a Climate Action Plan because it is legally enacted and legally binding; it puts pressure on institutions to implement Climate Action Plans that cities and states have released. As a citizen, you can be a part of the legislative process by contacting and meeting with representatives about legislation you’d like them to support. You’re also completely allowed to write your own bill and lobby for your representative to sponsor it.

We’ll talk more about how to support legislation and lobby for it in your local or state governments in the activism and allyship guide! [INSERT LINK]

V. What is going to be good for my city/state?

Climate action can be a complex puzzle that weaves together different industries, different pieces of policy, and different sectors of government to create solutions that are far-reaching. Often, there is a focus on energy policy and pushing for renewable energies when we talk about fixing the climate crisis. But, climate action is just as much about energy policy as it is about unemployment, housing, education, resource management, agriculture, and more! City goals (like economic development, pollution reduction, infrastructural development, etc.) could be synergistic with climate action. The two can be fostered in tandem to accomplish both aims. 

Additionally, climate action needs to be highly personalized. There will be no one-size-fits-all plan for solving climate change; each plan will have to be tailored to individual cities or states depending on their demographics, location, and economy.

Unfortunately, we can’t address all the specific ways local governments will need to work to address climate change. Some local activists, such as these activists in the San Diego area, are already working on monitoring the latest climate action plans for their cities and critiquing them. Here are some basic questions to get you started in your quest to understand your city’s current stance on the climate crisis:

Does your city have a climate action plan?

    • Does this plan meet the standards of the 2018 IPCC Report? In other words, does it commit to a 50% reduction in emissions by 2030 and a net zero emissions by 2050?
    • Does the city have a greenhouse gas inventory? Does the plan incorporate ways for the city to measure its progress?
    • Does the city report the amount of waste it creates and its waste management practices?
    • Has the plan been moved into an implementation phase? Have laws been passed enforcing goals in the plan? Have targets been met?
    • How does your city get its electricity? Is it community-owned, or out-sourced? Does your city export electricity to other cities or states?
    • If your city doesn’t have a climate action plan, do they have anything similar? Does it meet the same standards?

Who is on your city council? Who represents you in the state legislature? What are their views on climate change or their voting record/policy record?

    • You can find your state legislators by entering your address here: https://openstates.org/
    • Identify your city council members or other local government leaders by searching your town/city/local government website

How was the climate action plan created? Was there citizen input? Whose input was taken into account?

    • Does your city acknowledge specific inequities in their climate action plan, such as housing discrimination, poverty, food insecurity, environmental racism, or other forms of structural inequity?
    • Does your city make a plan for addressing these inequities as they move towards sustainability/net-zero emissions to avoid gentrifying your city or overburdening marginalized populations? 
    • Have they included members of the communities they mention in the creation of the climate action plan, such as communities of color or low-income communities?

How is your city doing? Do they have metrics to measure their success? Have you seen or heard about changes in your city since the plan was implemented? What can you find out about the changes?

What other specific environmental threats does your city currently face/will face with climate change? This could be fire, drought, lowered agricultural production, stormwater increases, etc. How are they promising to mitigate and adapt to these threats?

Once you tackle these questions and understand your city/state’s climate needs, the next step is to become a climate activist and pressure policymakers develop, improve, or implement the Climate Action Plan. Read our guide on activism and allyship to find out how!