Climate Action Across the Country – Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico
This month we are looking at three south-central states: Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. Each of these states is moving forward with climate action in their own way.
- Texas is interesting from a climate perspective because much of its revenue is generated from fossil fuels industries while it also experiences extreme climate-related disasters: hurricanes, wildfires, sea level rise, extreme winter weather, etc. Despite polarizing public views on climate change, there is a lot of climate action by federal agencies, academia, local governments and committed nonprofits.
- Oklahoma is a state where it is difficult to talk about “climate change” but it is fine to say “sustainability” and to talk about wind power. The state gets 35% of its energy generation from wind, which also brings jobs and economic growth to the state. A few cities and the state university system are also moving forward with climate action.
- New Mexico shows bipartisan support of businesses and community leaders to make a transition away from coal and toward a clean energy economy. And re-election of Governor Grisham in 2022 will allow her climate program, launched by Executive Order in 2019, to continue to develop.
In this post we are focusing on the eastern seaboard – specifically the states of Delaware, Connecticut, and South Carolina. While these three states all share the threat of sea level rise, their actions highlight the diversity of approaches to climate change.
The theme this month is Mississippi River states. These states are good examples of why each state needs the ability to direct its own climate work. Arkansas, Tennessee, and Mississippi share borders but have very different circumstances that affect how climate issues are seen and addressed by both residents and policy makers.
In this update we are focusing on three western states: Nevada, Utah, and Colorado. These three states are all taking action on climate change and working hard to protect their communities. 
This month we are looking at the eastern seaboard. Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island provide examples of effective climate action, including both mitigation and adaptation, and social equity. These states are also members of the Transportation & Climate Initiative, launched in 2010, along with 10 other eastern states.
To kick off the New Year in our series looking at climate action at the state level, we are looking at 3 states that are neighbors, share many of the same climate issues and yet have different approaches to climate work: North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota
This month we are looking at the western states of California, Oregon, and Washington. All are generally progressive states and have embraced climate change both socially and legislatively with policy, funding, and political will. Despite working on climate issues for many years, there is more to do. Fortunately all three are positioned to make real headway.
Lane County, Oregon is located on the western side of Oregon and stretches from the Three Sisters mountains to the Pacific Ocean. It is home to a diverse population in both rural and urban settings. In mid-2020 Beyond Toxics and NAACP Eugene/Springfield established a Climate Equity and Resilience Task Force. Comprised of community representatives and stakeholders who live and work with diverse and underrepresented communities in Lane County. their role was to ensure that the actions developed by the County in their Climate Action Plan were equitable. 
In Nebraska, the farming community is driving change, fueled by their pain from drought and other extreme weather. In Iowa, there is a growing movement to pressure the legislature to take action and a strong Green Iowa Americorps with real boots on the ground. Illinois has been struggling with corruption in politics and their energy sector for years, but it looks like Governor Pritzker is breaking new ground with comprehensive clean energy legislation. 
