When it comes to climate policy we hear a whole lot about what’s happening or not at the federal level, and it's easy to miss the critical role of states and cities in responding to climate change. Whether you know it or not, your local government is shaping how your community is preparing for and responding to climate impacts. It’s also making choices driven by the climate transition that affect your daily life. Building codes, electric vehicle infrastructure, public transportation, waste management, green spaces – maybe these things don’t sound sexy, but they’re central to cutting emissions and creating more resilient, livable communities.

Today’s episode focuses on cities, and we’re joined by two City Councilmembers who are leading the climate efforts of two major US cities. Yassamin Ansari is Vice Mayor and Councilmember of Phoenix, Arizona, and Nithya Raman is a Councilmember of Los Angeles. Both Councilmember Ansari and Raman care deeply about climate action, and in this conversation, we discussed how they’re setting their priorities, the progress they’ve made, their goals for the future, and much more. I learned a lot from this conversation and suspect you will as well. Here we go.  

In today’s episode, we cover:

• [3:28] Councilmember Ansari’s background, city & focus on climate
• [6:59] Councilmember Raman’s background, city & focus on climate
• [9:13] The role of cities & establishing priorities
• [14:43] Phoenix’s Office of Heat Response and Mitigation
• [17:39] Climate justice & equity in LA
• [20:43] Zero emission policy & decarbonizing the built environment in LA
• [25:43] New rules & incentives for climate in Phoenix
• [28:30] LA’s biggest priorities & opportunities
• [30:41] Phoenix’s biggest priorities & opportunities
• [32:17] The role of public-private partnerships & examples
• [37:11] How cities influence the broader climate fight
• [41:00] How listeners can make a difference at the local level

Resources Mentioned

• Phoenix: City Council District 7
• Los Angeles: City Council District 4
• Vice Mayor Ansari's Climate Record
• Councilmember Raman's Environment Initiatives
• Phoenix's Climate Action Plan
• Phoenix Office of Heat Response and Mitigation
• LA Ordinance: Zero-Emission Construction
• Phoenix Awarded $25M RAISE Grant to Build Rio Salado Bike/Ped Bridge
• LA Region's South Coast Air Quality Management District

Connect with Councilmembers Yassamin Ansari & Nithya Raman

• Connect with Councilmember Ansari on LinkedIn
• Connect with Councilmember Raman on D4 Website

Connect with Jason Rissman

• On LinkedIn
• On Twitter

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