We’re at a pivotal moment in the fight against climate change. Here in the United States, while we see the impacts of climate change every day, it’s clear that we need a global response to a global crisis. Understanding what we can do to reduce our effect on the environment is a step into the right direction. Ahead of the COP26 Climate Change Conference, which begins on Sunday, October 31, we wanted to provide you with some insight on what it is and what we’re doing to reduce our emissions on the environment.
What is COP26?
For close to three decades, the United Nations (UN) has brought together world governments to discuss the increasing threat climate change poses to our communities and how to stop it in its tracks. COP26 stands for “Conference of the Parties”, with 26 being the 26th annual conference. This year, the conference will be held in Glasgow, Scotland. The goal of COP26 is for some of the world’s biggest polluters to come to an agreement on how to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and tackle climate change. This is a big deal! The devastating impacts of climate change are widespread although there are solutions. We must act fast to attack climate change, but we are not helpless.
Paris Agreement
You may recall hearing about the Paris Agreement, which the U.S. just rejoined this year. The Paris Agreement was created six years ago at COP21. At that meeting, over 190 nations committed to limit global warming to “well below 2 degrees” Celsius (that’s about 35 degrees Fahrenheit). At the core of the Paris Agreement are Nationally Determined Contributions or, NDCs for short, which are pledges to cut national emissions submitted by each signatory. At COP26, countries will once again be required to update their NDCs, with a goal of meeting higher, more ambitious targets. Here in the U.S., decarbonizing the electric grid, which makes up over a quarter of all U.S. emissions, is central to achieving our NDC.
Here in the U.S., decarbonizing the electric grid, which makes up over a quarter of all U.S. emissions, is central to achieving our NDC.
COP26 Goals: What We Can Do to Help
COP26’s goals are to secure global net zero by mid-century and keep 1.5 degrees celsius within reach, adapt to protect communities and natural habitats, mobilize finance, and work together to deliver. If all these nations can come to an agreement, we can begin to make the world a sunnier place! While these are ambitious goals our world community needs to rally behind, we at Clearloop believe we still have to do our own part and can’t wait for others to act on climate change. That’s why we’re focused on working with companies big and small that are ready to take tangible, verifiable action to clean up the grid and expand equitable access to clean energy in American communities getting left behind. By decarbonizing the grid and ridding America of our dependency on fossil fuels for electricity, we can make the simple act of turning on the lights a whole lot cleaner. Our efforts are in addition to whatever policy may be decided by politicians in Washington, D.C., or diplomats in Glasgow, Scotland. That means no matter what happens at COP26, we’re helping to reduce emissions and fight climate change right here in the U.S., starting in the communities that are getting left behind with carbon intense grids.
What Clearloop is Doing about Climate Change
At Clearloop, we recognize that decarbonizing the grid is one of the fastest, most impactful ways to reduce our greenhouse gasses in the United States, and we have the technology to do it. In fact, more renewable energy than ever is being deployed in the U.S. to decarbonize the grid, but that clean energy isn’t being distributed equitably. That’s why we’re working with companies big and small to clean up the grid starting in communities that are getting left behind, creating economic, social, and environmental benefits for the communities in which our solar projects are built. Rather than offering a traditional Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), which are out of reach for the vast majority of businesses, we provide businesses an option to pay a small fee based on the amount of carbon they want to remove from the grid. Clearloop partnered with WattTime to identify the best places in the U.S. to clean up the grid, based on the amount of sunshine a community receives and how carbon intense their electricity grid is!
Are we almost there?
Beating climate change is not unattainable. We still have time to reach our climate goals and stop the worst impacts of climate change in its tracks. We can all do our part to reduce the use of fossil fuels and take better care of our planet, but we need all hands on deck– consumers, businesses, governments can all take matters into our own hands and reduce our carbon footprint, clean up the grid, and look toward sunnier days ahead.
