Accelerating the Massachusetts Clean Energy Transformation
A modern car dashboard can tell us a lot. My first car gave me just the basics: fuel level, speed, and RPM (it was a stick shift). It certainly didn’t tell me where I was going. Today, my electric car dashboard can tell me my destination, time and milage enroute, and actually talks to me while I’m driving. My car alerts me when I’m driving too fast, following too close, or straying from my lanes (in other words, driving recklessly).
The Climate Dashboard: Reading the Gauges
Did you know Massachusetts has a Clean Energy and Climate Metrics dashboard that tracks our trip progress toward state climate goals? It’s led by the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs and links to our longer-term roadmap, the Massachusetts Clean Energy and Climate Plan which sets our decarbonization destination as 2050. Like a modern car dashboard, the climate dashboard also gives us a bunch of other important details.
The Big Three: Transportation, Buildings, and Power
One shocking piece of dashboard information is that only three sectors account for 92% of our statewide emissions! Transportation is biggest at 38%, Buildings are next at 35%, and Electric Power Generation is third at 19%. These three sectors are inseparable parts of a single connected system. If one of these sectors is running rough or burning hot, the others feel it. An electrical grid outage affects buildings, electric vehicle charging affects the grid, and buildings affect peak loads on the grid. This web of connections makes it one of the most complex systems in our modern society. We are making progress on our decarbonization journey, but the dashboard tells us we need to move faster, especially in these three vital sectors.
Stepping on the Innovation Accelerator
Even with economic bumps in the road, now is not the time to slow down or “stay in our lane”. We need to test and implement solutions quickly and go outside of our traditional realms of siloed expertise. Keeping with the analogy, it’s time to ignore imagined speed limits and take some risks without driving recklessly. I support a team at the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) which accelerates climate solution innovations to meet Massachusetts' emission reduction goals while growing the state’s clean energy economy. Since inception, MassCEC has invested $800 million in Massachusetts-based climate innovation, decarbonization pilot projects, offshore wind, and workforce development, attracting $2.8 billion in private and public funds. This work results in good jobs and stronger local economies across The Commonwealth.
Don’t Trust the Invisible Hand: Accelerating Market Transformation
There is a concept that Scottish economist Adam Smith called the “Invisible Hand of the Market” in 1776 when Americans were busy with a revolution. The “Invisible Hand” is a metaphor that describes the unseen forces of self-interest that impact the free market. It’s clear that the nameless, faceless, and unpredictable Invisible Hand should not be steering our car toward economic and climate uncertainty. We can’t count on nebulous market forces to adopt decarbonization technology, job creation, and market penetration fast enough.
The Climatetech Roadmap: Massachusetts' Path Forward
Last month, in partnership with Governor Healy’s Office, the Executive Office of Economic Development, and other stakeholders, MassCEC launched the Climatetech Economic Development Strategy and Implementation Plan which aims to bring together the full potential of Massachusetts to grow as a global climatetech leader while driving an equitable Net Zero economy and climate resilient future. This roadmap is about supercharging climate innovation and job creation across all regions of the state.
Shifting Into High Gear: Massachusetts Setting the Pace
To meet our state climate goals, we have to get out of third gear. We need a confident stomp on the innovation accelerator pedal with no Massachusetts community being priced out, left out, or left behind. Any lost miles today will be hard to make up later in our trip. Get on board, buckle-up, and hang-on. There are plenty of seats and opportunities to share the lead.