In order to fight climate change, officials are pushing for investments through the Inflation Reduction Act.
The group Elected Officials to Protect America recently met in Washington, D.C., for its annual Climate Emergency and Energy Security Summit. The group said clean energy investments under the Inflation Reduction Act can improve clean energy infrastructure.
Alex Cornell du Houx, president and co-founder of Elected Officials to Protect America, said relying on fossil fuels is risky. He emphasized they not only make the economy susceptible to unpredictable fuel prices, but also jeopardize national security.
“With the Inflation Reduction Act, it is part of the solution to decouple ourselves from this dependency on the source of energy in which autocratic nations primarily control,” du Houx explained. “That’s the exciting thing about it. It’s an amazing solution that’s really tangible and historic investment.”
He also stressed the importance of educating historically disadvantaged communities about federal investments available to combat the climate crisis under the Justice40 Initiative. He added there will be real change in underserved areas once they know about the available resources.
John Carter, founder and CEO of CarterBrothers and InteliVolt and a Navy veteran, addressed concerns in Georgia. He said the Inflation Reduction Act will help him work with historically Black colleges and universities to provide workforce training. He noted it could increase carbon reduction opportunities in often overlooked areas.
“For us to be able to go in there and take advantage of (the funding) — not only in historic Black colleges but the communities that surround them — to be able to give kids a second chance to work with them so they can get a job in a space they would have never looked at before,” Carter emphasized.
Carter and the other elected officials believe the investments made by the Inflation Reduction Act in climate justice, jobs, and clean energy will ultimately improve health outcomes and foster improved equity.
They also stressed it is going to take collaboration on all fronts to make progress. The Inflation Reduction Act is set to provide nearly $370 billion in clean energy investments.
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