To tackle climate change, we need to move away from our pollution-emitting energy systems and towards a future powered by clean alternatives.
A clean energy future is one where our homes, businesses and lives are powered by renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind, and other clean resources.
It's ambitious, but we can do it and are already on our way. TNC is working on the clean energy transition in two ways: advancing climate and clean energy policies and public funding opportunities, as well as accelerating the renewable energy buildout in the United States. Our approach involves such things as:
- Working with industry leaders on pilot projects that test out new technologies.
- Partnering with the energy industry on principles for clean energy deployment that take into consideration not just the climate but also nature and people.
- Partnering with diverse groups of people to develop ideas for new legislation to accelerate clean energy and reduce emissions.
Our Clean Energy Goals
To put it in numbers we need to:
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400%
Increase the amount of renewable energy in the U.S. by 400%
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2.5x
Build at least 2.5 times the current amount of long-distance power lines to transport clean energy from where it’s generated to where it’s used
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50%
Speed up the timelines for new clean energy projects by 50%
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15%
Jumpstart emissions reductions in five key industries that make up 15% of all U.S. emissions
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50%
Enable zero-emission vehicles to make up 50% of new car sales in 2030
How We Work
Program Overview
Supporting Climate Action Policy
We need to help create, implement and defend strong and durable clean energy and climate policies that will drive a large-scale transformation of our energy economy.
Historic climate policy wins
TNC’s federal policy team and state chapters worked with key legislators and constituencies to help get the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed in the U.S. Congress—a once-in-a-generation opportunity to drive a clean energy transition. Together, these two bills provide around $650 billion for climate and clean energy.
What needs to happen next
Now is the time to implement the IRA and IIJA. We are working with partners and state, local and tribal governments to access—and defend—funding from these two major climate bills. We also are working to create new, ambitious climate policies at the state level. The policies we champion are ones that can be replicated across multiple states or target parts of the economy where it is harder to eliminate emissions, such as some types of manufacturing.
Accelerating the Renewable Energy Buildout
If we are going to power our lives with clean energy, then we are going to need a lot more wind and solar power as well as new power lines to carry electricity from where it is generated to where it is used.
The scale of the renewable energy buildout is similar to what the U.S. experienced in the 1950s when building out the highway system. Similar to then, we will need a lot of land for the buildout, which could have significant impacts on nature and communities. But it is possible to achieve the buildout we need with a considerably smaller footprint and impact.
We can do this by promoting renewable energy solutions that maximize climate, conservation and community benefits—what we call the “3Cs.”
Recent renewable energy wins
One of the largest former coal mines in the U.S. is on track to becoming one of the biggest renewable energy centers in the country. TNC worked with Rivian Automotive Inc. to select the project, not just for its renewable energy potential, but for the benefits it could bring to the local community.
What happens next
TNC is influencing the renewable energy buildout through four pathways, each of which is guided by the 3Cs:
- Plan: Providing decision-makers and energy planners with the research and tools they need to make informed decisions about the renewable energy infrastructure buildout.
- Site: Offering successful demonstration projects, mapping tools and the best available science to steer developers, landowners and other key players toward renewable energy project sites that avoid negative impacts to nature and people.
- Buy: Influencing buyers to make renewable energy procurement decisions and support market changes that maximize benefits to the 3Cs.
- Policy: Working at the federal, state and local levels to advocate for policies that incentivize and prioritize projects that are clean, green and equitable.
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Learn how TNC is advancing smart climate policy and clean energy near you.
- Decade to Deliver: delivering on historic climate policies Explore More
- Mines are an untapped resource for accelerating clean energy See Mining the Sun
- Permitting reform can protect nature and fuel clean energy Modernizing permitting reform
- Clean energy siting improves outcomes for nature and people See Power of Place