• Posted 15-Nov-2021

The State of California and EIT Climate-KIC advance partnership for climate innovation

The California Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR) and EIT Climate-KIC have signed a memorandum of understanding formalising their shared commitment to the development of systemic pathways that support UNFCCC’s 1.5-degree Celsius target

The State of California’s Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and the European Knowledge and Innovation Community, EIT Climate-KIC today announced a new peer learning partnership to catalyse innovative solutions in support of California and Europe’s ambitious climate agendas. The agreement, signed today at the UNFCCC COP26, will promote knowledge sharing and project collaboration opportunities between California’s state agencies, facilitated by the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, and EIT Climate-KIC and its partners across Europe.

For the past year, EIT Climate-KIC has been working closely with the Office of Planning and Research to learn and collaborate on projects that bring together both European and Californian innovation and solutions to climate challenges.

The Governor’s Office of Planning and Research is the State of California’s long-range planning and research agency charged with guiding local and state climate adaptation and resilience efforts, supporting an equitable economic transition, and investing in community resilience. EIT Climate-KIC’s mission is to catalyse systemic change through innovation in areas of human activity that have a critical impact on greenhouse gas emissions (such as cities, land use, materials and finance) and to create climate-resilient communities.

Together, OPR and EIT Climate-KIC will co-design and execute peer learning opportunities to support existing and new projects, including OPR’s Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resilience Program and the Community Economic Resilience Fund, as well as EIT Climate-KIC Healthy, Clean Cities Deep Demonstration. They will also explore new financing mechanisms to accelerate investment in areas such as building retrofits, electrification of public transport, agriculture, renewable energy, and high road industries and jobs.

Shared Vision to Equitably Achieve Carbon Neutrality

• The State of California will achieve carbon neutrality by 2045, having adopted ambitious emissions reduction targets across its sectors, transforming its economy, and placing equity and communities at the centre of the transition. Leading the nation and world in climate action, California has become a model for how to aggressively address climate change while growing its economy. The state’s forward-thinking approach and progressive policies have helped exceed its 2020 climate target four years ahead of schedule and created six times more clean jobs than fossil fuel jobs.
• The European Green Deal will transform the European Union into a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy by ensuring no net emissions of greenhouse gasses by 2050; ensuring economic growth decoupled from resource use; and no person and no place left behind. EIT Climate-KIC is actively supporting the implementation of the EU Green Deal through research and innovation programs, including helping 100 cities to rapidly decarbonise through the NetZeroCities programme.

Progress on California and the EU’s climate agenda necessitates continued driving down of emissions across sectors, moving adaptation to the centre of the agenda, increasing community resilience amidst climatic events, and support for communities, cities, and regions as key implementing partners.

Source: European Institute of Innovation & Technology (https://bit.ly/2YLh70S)