Less than a week after President Trump announced the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement, cities and states across the US have adopted the goals of the agreement as their own. Supporting those cities and states (and the grassroots coalitions that hold them accountable) provides a significant opportunity for progress on climate change […]
The Water Protectors at Standing Rock Show a Courageous Face of Multisolving
Standing up to keep fossil fuels in the ground, and to protect water, culture, and indigenous rights is multisolving. Multisolving – the search for systemic solutions that protect the climate while delivering other benefits – prioritizes actions that produce multiple benefits. Our library of multisolving examples offers dozens of examples of policies and investments that […]
Putting Equity at the Center of the Fight to Protect the Climate: Five practical lessons
Fostering effective, inclusive collaboration can be a powerful leverage point for addressing climate change, but it requires a focus on relationships, values, and a bigger picture. Some of the most promising climate solutions have the potential to benefit health, well-being, and social justice while reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but there’s a catch. Implementing these solutions […]
How To Ensure that Everyone Has Access to Affordable, Clean Energy
Although it might sound contradictory, it is possible to both reduce carbon emissions and improve access to affordable energy. Below is a collection of resources to help us multisolve and accomplish both goals. Billions of people in the developing world are energy poor – they lack access to electricity and clean cooking facilities. In the […]
How Rwanda is avoiding emissions, restoring communities, and improving livelihoods
During a recent visit to Rwanda, I learnt from three projects how the country is on a pathway to low-carbon development, building a socially resilient community of young people, and financing a green economy. Solar Field In Rwagamana, Eastern Rwanda, I visited the $24Million, 8.5MW solar field, the first utility-scale, grid-connected, commercial solar field in […]
How To Create Good Jobs at Fair Wages – And Help the Climate
Transitioning away from fossil fuels to renewable energy is a way to both mitigate climate change and create jobs. We are collecting resources to spread the word and help this process benefit as many people as possible. Multisolving won’t happen by accident, and our goal is to make it a more accessible and widespread practice. […]
Working With Others to Achieve Climate Co-Benefits: 5 Things to Remember
Multisolving is by nature a complex process. Here are five important elements to keep in mind. Any effort that mitigates climate change while providing other benefits, like bike paths that reduce emissions from cars and encourage physical activity, is an example of multisolving. We are encouraging policymakers and communities to multisolve for a variety of reasons, but effective multisolving […]
Achieving Multiple Benefits Requires Multiple Perspectives
As we meet leaders who are multisolving in their communities, and as we work in Atlanta with a group of community leaders on a project focused on equity and green infrastructure, we are learning that the ‘multi’ in multisolving refers to more than just solving several problems at the same time. In addition to solving […]
Why We Multisolve – Emphasizing Co-Benefits in Addressing Climate Change
Policies that work to mitigate climate change can also produce other co-benefits. For example, planting trees in urban areas sequesters carbon dioxide emissions while simultaneously reducing air pollution, beautifying the area, reducing energy use, and stifling noise, among other benefits. With this one investment we can make strides in climate change mitigation, public health, and […]
FLOWER – A Simple Tool for Groups to Develop Climate Solutions with Multiple Benefits
Projects that protect the climate can also boost well-being, equity, or resilience. But for groups of stakeholders with limited time and many complex goals and constraints it can be challenging to design for these benefits. We’ve created the FLOWER framework to make that process easier. Here are some ways that FLOWER is being by groups […]