EV charging network, image by rawf8OPINION – California is the “lab” for so many programs designed to fight climate change with other states and countries eagerly watching, ready to replicate our work. This is why the state needs to hit the reset button and ensure our EV charging networks are serving both our climate goals and the expectations of California drivers.
Social media snark! Image by Brian A JacksonOPINION: It is comical to listen to people complain about the loss of reverence in the Legislature, how things were better once upon a time, and how things are so much worse now than they were “back when I was a staffer.” People seem to think that political snark is something new and exciting. It is not. Snark has existed for a long time.
Kratom leaves and various products, image by Here AsiaOPINION – The Kratom Consumer Protection Act (KCPA) has been enacted in 11 states – Utah, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Colorado, Oklahoma, West Virginia, Virginia, Florida, and Texas – and others are entertaining following suit. California – the largest consumer market for kratom, and its 40 million residents – should be one of those states.
Energy transition, image by Olivier Le MoalOPINION – In the coming years, we will learn whether California’s government, led by Newsom, will seize the moment to demonstrate the first fully funded, equitable transition off fossil fuels like oil and gas. If we do it right, workers will be the designers and implementers, and will have access to good-paying, union jobs for the long-haul.
Image by PHOTOCREO Michal BednarekOPINION – In a state as large and important as California, it makes little sense for us to continue allowing ourselves to be so vulnerable to the vagaries of each shifting budget cycle. Instead, it makes much more sense to develop a more strategic, long-term social investment approach.
Active lifestyle, image by kentohOPINION – In California, the right to a normal and happy childhood is codified in law as part of the Welfare and Institutions Code 362.05. This means many things, but a critical part is that foster youth are entitled to participate in appropriate extracurricular, enrichment, cultural, and social activities for their age if they choose. A bill in the Legislature puts this all at risk.
The balance between the environment and business, image by petrmalinakOPINION – Repeated efforts by developers to gut the California Environmental Quality Act sometimes seem like a hydra: cut off one head and two more grow in its place. Even when one anti-CEQA bill is defeated, profit-driven interests put forth more bills to weaken our state’s landmark environmental law and the critical protections it provides to our communities and ecosystems.
Clean energy transition, image by FrankHHOPINION – Central procurement would enable California to aggregate the needs of dozens of electricity providers and pool this purchasing power to negotiate with project developers of large clean energy projects for the best possible deal.
Truck exhaust, image by LestermanOPINION – Nearly every Californian – 98 percent of us – lives in a community impacted by unhealthy air, and climate change is making the job of cleaning our air more difficult. The legislature and Governor Newsom must renew clean transportation funding, and do so immediately, as the legislative clock is counting down and nearly $2 billion in clean air funds are at risk of expiring.
Climate education, image by LightspringOPINION – People need to be convinced that a future in which their cars, houses, stoves, and garden equipment run on electricity – and that they will need to live sustainably – will not mean a decline in their quality of life. That’s why California should mandate climate change education in grades K-12 right now.