Climate Policy in Action: A Conversation with Nat Keohane

Name: Climate Policy in Action: A Conversation with Nat Keohane
Start: 2023-05-10T16:00:00-0400
End: 2023-05-10T17:00:00-0400

RSVP Required Open to the Public

In 2020, Joe Biden ran for president on the most ambitious climate action platform of any major presidential candidate in U.S. history. Since taking office, Biden’s administration has delivered several significant climate victories, including passing the Inflation Reduction Act and the bipartisan infrastructure bill. Despite these advances, further efforts will be required to meet the United States’ ambitious climate commitments: a 50 percent reduction in emissions below 2005 levels by 2030, 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2035, and net-zero emissions economy-wide by 2050.

Please join us for a conversation with Nat Keohane (PhD 2001), President of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) and former Special Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate under President Barack Obama. Keohane will discuss the opportunities and challenges of building on recent progress in U.S. climate policy, as well as the actions that must be taken in the United States and globally to get on track for net zero by mid-century. Professor Henry Lee, Director of the Environment and Natural Resources Program at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, will moderate the conversation.

This event is part of Harvard Climate Action Week, which gathers climate leaders and experts in pursuit of durable, effective, and equitable solutions to the climate change challenges confronting humanity. See here for more information and additional ways to participate.

Date: Wed, May 10, 2023 Time: 04:00pm - 05:00pm Location: Harvard Kennedy School - Institute of Politics, John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum

Register

Admission: This event is free and open to the public. RSVPs are required for in-person attendance. Non-Harvard University ID holders must check in at the Wexner security desk upon arrival.

The event will also be streamed via Zoom. Virtual attendees should register using the button above; upon registering, attendees will receive a confirmation email with a Zoom link.

Accessibility: To request disability accommodations or for questions about access, please contact Elizabeth Hanlon (ehanlon@hks.harvard.edu) in advance of the session.

Sponsors: This event is co-sponsored by the Environment and Natural Resources Program at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, the Harvard Alumni for Climate and the Environment, and the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability.

Speaker

Nathaniel Keohane is President of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES), which is widely recognized in the United States and internationally as a leading, independent voice for practical policy and action to address the world’s energy and climate challenges.

Dr. Keohane is an economist with more than 20 years of energy and environmental policy experience in academia, government, and the non-profit sector. Before joining C2ES as President in 2021, Keohane was Senior Vice President for Climate with the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), where he led all of EDF’s climate work in the United States and globally. In 2011-2012, Keohane served in the White House as Special Assistant to the President for Energy and Environment in the National Economic Council and Domestic Policy Council, helping to shape administration policy on energy and environmental issues. He previously directed economic policy and analysis at EDF, working to enact comprehensive cap-and-trade legislation in Congress.

From 2001-2008, Dr. Keohane was an Assistant and then Associate Professor of Economics at the Yale School of Management. He received a Ph.D. from Harvard University and a B.A. from Yale College.