California Climate Leadership Forum

(Climate Week NYC)

By: Ignacio Fernandez

The Climate Registry hosted the California Climate Leadership Forum during Climate Week NYC, where presenters shared their vision on how to combine strong policies like the recent Cap-and-Invest reauthorization with targeted public investments, smarter permitting, and grid modernization. The speakers emphasized the need for innovative public-private finance models to expand climate solutions, all while maintaining a focus on affordability, workforce development, and equity. We were very pleased to be joined by TCR’s Carbon Footprint Registry members from PG&E, Edison International, Port of Seattle, Anew, University of California, Berkeley, California Environmental Protection Agency and California Department of Transportation.

Some key takeaways:

Speakers emphasized that a strong policy framework (regulation plus market tools) provides the clear signal investors require. The recent reauthorization of California’s Cap-and-Trade, now extended to 2045 and renamed Cap-and-Invest by bill AB 1207, was highlighted as the legislative foundation that raises billions for climate initiatives, such as transit, housing, wildfire prevention, among others, while prioritizing emissions reduction and affordability. Several presenters argued that this example demonstrates to other states and countries how to combine climate goals with real community benefits.

Panelists described a practical capital stack: philanthropic and venture funding to reduce early R&D risks, followed by venture and growth investors to expand companies, and large corporate procurement (offtake) plus institutional capital to finance plants and infrastructure. Companies like Amazon act as both buyers and investors, with Amazon’s climate investing and offtake strategy highlighted. Speakers emphasized the need for better alignment between procurement signals, tax and guarantee tools, and blended public finance to advance technologies from pilots to multi-gigawatt or commercial-scale deployments.

Multiple utility and public-sector speakers emphasized that widespread electrification requires substantial investment in wires and storage, along with major improvements in permitting, interconnection, and operational efficiency—including AI and better planning. Examples included using software to reduce interconnection study times, implementing compact substations and other hardware innovations, and advocating for permitting reforms to shorten multi-year timelines. Without these changes, scaling up will be slow and more costly.

Affordability, resilience, and workforce are non-negotiable

Speakers repeatedly connected climate action to immediate benefits: lowering household energy bills, creating good jobs, and protecting health in vulnerable communities. AB-1207 was highlighted for strategies that could reduce costs, such as targeted actions by the Public Utilities Commission to cut peak bills by up to around 30% in certain months. Workforce transition efforts, including training, apprenticeships, and labor standards, were stressed as essential for ensuring communities benefit from the green economy.

Equity & community readiness must be designed in, not an afterthought

Speakers called for climate investments to be “triple-bottom-line” (delivering on three fronts: equity, economic justice, and climate). This includes funding for air monitoring, local resilience projects, and targeted hiring and benefits in communities that have historically borne the burden of pollution. Speakers emphasized that vulnerability assessments should be accompanied by funding to implement local plans.

In Conclusion: Connect climate action to everyday benefits

A recurring theme: people respond better to tangible wins, such as lower bills, cleaner air, jobs, and safer communities, than to abstract climate talk. Speakers encouraged messengers to focus on affordability, health, and economic opportunities when promoting events or mobilizing support.

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