03/25/2022

Legislating for Climate Justice Starts With Listening

Policies must be transformative and durable

In 2021 alone, 20 separate climate-related disasters cost the United States more than $145 billion. Scientists warn we must halve harmful emissions by the end of this decade to avoid mass human suffering, meaning the short window we have left to pass policies that rapidly transition away from fossil fuels across our economy is rapidly closing.

But that narrow opportunity to act also means we can’t afford for any of the climate policies we adopt not to be effective.

Winning the kind of ambitious climate policy we desperately need requires broad, inclusive coalitions. Ensuring these policies actually achieve their aims after they are passed means integrating community needs into policy design from the outset. Passing policies that are both transformative and durable requires an inclusive policy design and organizing process that brings everyone to the table.

Please select this link to read the complete article from SSIR.