Transportation is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in California. In order to achieve the state’s goals of carbon neutrality by 2045 and avoid the worst impacts of climate change, decarbonizing this sector is essential. But such a transition is unlikely to occur rapidly without key policy intervention.
On February 9, the Biden-Harris administration named Austin Brown as senior director for transportation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Brown has been the executive director of the University of California, Davis, Policy Institute for Energy, Environment and the Economy since 2017.
The UK has set forth a new goal of banning sales of conventional fossil fuel vehicle sales by 2030, and only allowing zero-emission vehicles from 2035. The UK will face some unique challenges in this transition compared to California.
In “The race to zero emissions” published on October 29, 2020 by the Sacramento Business Journal, author Mark Anderson explores a new California mandate on electric vehicles that will have broad implications for California’s economy. Dr. Austin Brown, Executive Director of the Policy Institute, contributed some key points to the article.
The Sustainable Development Solutions Network, a policy-focused network organized by the United Nations, recently published “America’s Zero Carbon Action Plan”. From UC Davis, Dan Sperling and Lew Fulton were two of the lead authors of the transportation chapter. The Policy Institute’s Austin Brown was a contributor.
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