On her first full day in office, Governor Healey issued Executive Order No. 604: Establishing the Office of Climate Innovation and Resilience Within the Office of the Governor, sending a strong signal that the Healey Administration is gearing up to address climate change at a level befitting both the threat and the opportunity that positive action will bring. EO 604 spells out a whole-of-government approach to reducing carbon emissions (decarbonization) to achieve mandated net zero emissions by 2050, to be coordinated and managed by the first in the nation of a state cabinet level Climate Chief – Melissa Hoffer. With the largest input of federal monies ever in our nation’s history, rebates, tax credits and low interest loans are flowing to every state in the country to supplement state funding and jump start the transition to clean, renewable energy.
The magnitude of change required for an equitable transition calls for an all-of-society effort and that means getting us all “on the same page.” LWVMA has sent a letter to Climate Chief Hoffer urging the creation of a robust and ongoing, state-level public awareness and outreach campaign that includes a user-friendly information portal all of us can tap into to learn what is needed and what financial resources are available from the federal and state level. We’ve entered a new and different view of what it takes to tackle climate change impacts – impacts that affect all aspects of society. As federal and state funds continue to roll out, it is important to establish early on a “one stop shop” for all relevant information that public and private entities can rely on for the reliable and up to date information.