Center for Law, Energy & the Environment at Berkeley Law

📣 New Lunch & Learn 📣 Understanding Recent Developments in Climate Risk Disclosure 🏡 In 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 261 (Stern) into law, requiring all companies doing business in the state with total revenues over $500 million to disclose climate-related financial risks. Earlier this year, the Security and Exchange Commission adopted long-awaited rules to strengthen and standardize climate risk disclosure by public companies in the United States. These rules join strong policies in the European Union and pending rules in several other jurisdictions around the world. The World Resources Institute estimates that once all pending rules are finalized, nearly 40 percent of the World's economy will be subject to disclosure rules. Join us Wednesday, July 24th at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP in this lunch and learn where we will hear perspectives from leading experts in government, industry, and law on the current status of climate risk disclosure. Our panelists include Katie Schmitz Eulitt, INSEAD MBA, GCB.D, Justin "J.T." Ho, and Dave Jones. Register for in person or virtual attendance here: https://lnkd.in/grg-XbtB

How can we use concrete to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere? Listen to this week’s episode to learn about this incredible solution! We spoke to Erica Dodds, Ph.D., Head of Team Impact and Operations at Turn Forward. Dodds believes that today’s climate youth activists are the key to the fight against climate change and restoring a safe and healthy world. She also has experience working with NGOs around the world along with the Evaluation Office of the International Labor Organization in Geneva. Carbon mineralization is a natural chemical process where carbon dioxide becomes "mineralized" through reactions with certain rocks, typically found in deep underground igneous and metamorphic formations. This process results in the formation of new carbonate minerals, like calcium carbonate, which can hold more carbon than traditional carbon storage methods in sedimentary reservoirs. By converting CO2 into stable minerals, carbon mineralization provides a long-term solution for carbon storage, preventing the gas from escaping back into the atmosphere and contributing to global warming. Carbon mineralization can be accelerated artificially to sequester more atmospheric carbon efficiently. This method holds potential in mine waste and industrial sites, where crushed rocks facilitate quicker mineralization at a lower cost. Surface mineralization also offers the advantage of mitigating onsite carbon emissions by reducing energy usage. However, risks include potential seismic activity and significant water usage. In the United States, regions with abundant basalt rocks, such as the Pacific Northwest, and other states with suitable underground formations, like Minnesota and Texas, show promise for large-scale carbon mineralization efforts. To learn more, listen to the full episode now available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, KALW Radio, and our website at climatebreak.org. 🎧🌿 Enjoying our bite-sized climate news and solutions on the go? Tune in every Tuesday for our 2 minutes-or-less episodes. Climate Break - your podcast for solutions in a hurry! #ClimateBreak #SustainableSolutions #ClimateSolutions #ClimateAction 

❗ Upcoming Lunch & Learn ❗ Wildfire and Public Health: Barriers and Opportunities to State Policy Implementation 🔥 Wildfire smoke presents a population-wide health risk in California with significant environmental justice implications. However, the policy landscape addressing the public health impacts of wildfire remains siloed, posing challenges to integrated policy development and implementation. Join us on Zoom on July 17th for a discussion about the wildfire and public health policy landscape, based on the findings of a scoping report conducted by CLEE and the Climate & Wildfire Institute. Report author and CLEE fellow Kasia Dahlbeck will discuss the results of the report, including key recommendations for coordinated policy action and future research. Following this presentation, Patrick Wright, Director of the California Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force, and Julia Stein, Deputy Director of the UCLA Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, will join moderator and CLEE Executive Director Louise Bedsworth in a discussion of state policy implementation on the public health impacts of wildfire, addressing key policy barriers and opportunities for building resilience and protecting the state’s public health. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gV6NG-tP

How can we use mass mobilization to achieve meaningful climate action? Tune in to this week’s new episode to learn about this groundbreaking solution! 📣 We spoke to Dana R. Fisher, Director of the Center for Environment, Community, and Equity and Professor at American University. Her seventh book, Saving Ourselves: From Climate Shocks to Climate Action, presents mass mobilization as a realistic path forward for climate action in response to the growing severity of disastrous events. Fisher explores further the various types of activism, and which are most applicable to the climate crisis. By the mid-2000s, the climate justice movement gained momentum globally through organized rallies and marches, highlighting climate justice within broader social movements. The climate crisis's existential threat has amplified the potential for transformational change, making mass mobilization a crucial tactic for community organizing and global civic engagement. Mass mobilization can accelerate climate action by rallying people and organizations to promote widespread changes. It provides a collective voice that amplifies individual efforts, promoting social norms supporting climate action. However, reliance on social media, sustaining long-term activism, and potential political backlash are significant drawbacks, raising questions about the overall efficacy of such movements. To learn more, listen to the full episode now available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, KALW Radio, and our website at climatebreak.org. 🎧🌿 Enjoying our bite-sized climate news and solutions on the go? Tune in every Tuesday for our 2 minutes-or-less episodes. Climate Break - your podcast for solutions in a hurry! #ClimateBreak #SustainableSolutions #ClimateSolutions #ClimateAction