1. US Emissions Rise 6% in 2021

US greenhouse gas emissions rose 6% in 2021 after falling 10% in 2020. It’s sobering news, but it’s to be expected. We knew emissions would increase again as the economy recovered from initial COVID shutdowns.

The news is a reminder that our climate strategy must include a focus on reducing emissions from hard-to-abate sectors like industry and heavy transportation.

Transportation, for example, accounts for the largest percentage of US emissions, about 29%. Medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, shipping, rail, and aviation account for nearly 40% of that chunk, meaning finding low-carbon solutions for these modes of transportation is just as important as deploying light-duty and passenger EVs.

Similarly, emissions from heavy industrial processes, like steel and cement production, are on the rise. Estimates show industry emissions will surpass the transportation and power sectors by the end of the century.

Even though we don’t often think of heavy-duty transport and industrial processes when we think of climate action, Congress must act to curb emissions from these sectors if we want to reach our climate goals. Investing in alternative, low-carbon fuels for heavy transport and supporting clean procurement and carbon transparency for industrial emissions are two solutions we’ve discussed in-depth and will continue to work on this year. 

2. Black and Latino Sentiment on Climate Change and the Clean Energy Transition

Last week, we published the results of polling we conducted with WE ACT for Environmental Justice and GreenLatinos on  how voters in Black and Latino communities perceive climate change. One of our biggest takeaways was that while respondents feel the impact of climate change firsthand, they are more focused on economic and public health demand issues in their communities. Of the Black and Latino communities surveyed, tackling climate change (6%) and investing in our crumbling infrastructure (5%) were low-ranking concerns compared to other issues such as improving our economy and creating jobs (23%) and handling the coronavirus (16%).

The majority of individuals polled do believe climate change poses a serious threat to their livelihoods and future generations. To mobilize action, however, policymakers and advocacy groups need to do a better job connecting climate and clean energy policies to the everyday lived experiences of Black and Latino communities. Localizing the impact of a clean energy transition at the community-level is a key strategy to engage these communities. Black and Latino voters aren’t just GOTV voters, and their communities deserve lasting, durable climate and clean energy policies.

Read through coverage of our results in TIME Magazine here.

3. Growing Pains: Oklo’s Advanced Reactor Application

This month, we learned that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission denied Oklo Power’s plan to construct a 1.5MW advanced nuclear reactor in Idaho. While the news is disappointing, new technologies have growing pains and it’s natural to encounter speed bumps on the road to deployment. 

We’re still digging into the decision to understand exactly what occurred. The NRC is currently undergoing modernization to shift from a regulatory model designed for conventional, large light water reactors to something well suited for advanced reactors. 

One of our top priorities this year is to ensure the NRC is modernized  so that it is institutionally, in its leadership committed, and has the right resources to effectively evaluate advanced nuclear applications. , We discussed this issue in depth with nuclear policy experts and three former NRC commissioners last month at Forging Near-Term Pathways for Licensing Advanced Reactors.