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The March 2015 survey 'Climate Change in the American Mind' reveals that while a majority of Americans (63%) believe global warming is happening and support various mitigation and adaptation policies, there is a significant gap in understanding the scientific consensus. Only 10% of respondents are aware that over 90% of climate scientists agree that global warming is human-caused. Public worry remains stable but low, with only 11% being 'very worried.' Trust in information sources is highest for climate scientists (70%) and family and friends (67%), while trust in political leaders is fragmented. Most Americans view global warming as a major environmental, scientific, or agricultural issue, and a majority believe it is humankind's responsibility to care for the Earth.

The document proposes replacing the Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) and the Efficiency Savings and Performance Incentive (ESPI) with a system-wide carbon intensity standard and per capita energy sales standards. It argues that these reforms will align utility incentives with state climate goals, encourage low-carbon grid flexibility, and remove the conservative goal-setting and contentious evaluation processes currently hindering energy efficiency in existing buildings.

The document proposes replacing California's current electricity sector policies with a system-wide carbon standard and per capita energy intensity standards for electricity and natural gas. It argues that the existing Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) and Efficiency Savings and Performance Incentive (ESPI) are insufficient for long-term goals due to siloed procurement and overly conservative efficiency targets. Key recommendations include a 2030 carbon standard of 393lb. CO2e/MWh, a 50 percent renewable energy procurement "backbone," and a performance-based energy standard targeting a 1.2 percent annual reduction in kWh/capita. The report also suggests expanding the Energy Imbalance Market (EIM) to a West-wide scale and expediting the implementation of AB 758 for existing buildings.

Energy Innovation proposes a post-2020 policy framework for California centered on a 2030 statewide carbon cap of 40 percent below 1990 levels. The recommendations include decarbonizing the electricity sector through carbon standards and a 50 percent renewable energy target, expanding transportation policies via the Low Carbon Fuel Standard and vehicle electrification, and establishing global benchmarks for methane emission standards in oil and gas operations.

The report proposes a 2030 target for California to reduce carbon emissions to 40% below 1990 levels, asserting that this is technically feasible and economically viable. It recommends maintaining a policy portfolio where a broad cap-and-trade program acts as an emissions ceiling over sector-specific policies. To manage costs and uncertainty, the author suggests extending current cost-containment tools, including a three-tiered allowance reserve and a forward-borrowing mechanism. The analysis incorporates both capped emissions and uncapped sectors—such as agriculture and waste—predicting that the state can reach the target through commercially available technology and induced innovation in clean tech industries.

The report identifies significant gaps in the communication and implementation of China's energy-saving and low-carbon policies. While high-energy-consuming enterprises (over 10,000 tonne-ce/a) show better energy management and target-setting, a large number of general manufacturing firms lack technical guidance, funding, and awareness of available incentives. Key barriers include complex administrative procedures, a lack of predictable rewards, and insufficient professional third-party support. The authors recommend strengthening mandatory supervision for key emitters, lowering reward thresholds for smaller firms, establishing a collaborative partnership between government and third-party agencies, and upgrading technical guidance systems.

The report analyzes a survey of 230 manufacturing companies across 16 Chinese provinces to evaluate how businesses interact with low-carbon and energy policies. It finds that while flagship programs like carbon-trading pilots have significant reach, there is a critical lack of policy awareness and technical capacity, particularly among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Major barriers to implementation include uncertainty regarding technology, lack of capital, and high administrative burdens caused by overlapping government jurisdictions. The document recommends streamlining administrative procedures, increasing transparency in carbon quota allocations, and lowering participation thresholds for subsidies to better include smaller firms.

The report examines how China's industrial development zones (IDZs), which account for approximately 35% of total national emissions, are responding to a shift from growth-oriented policies to low-carbon mandates. It identifies a trend toward market-based instruments, such as the national cap-and-trade system, and highlights the role of eco-industrial park certifications in improving resource efficiency. Based on a survey of 230 firms, the document reveals significant gaps in GHG inventory management and policy awareness, particularly among small and medium-sized enterprises. It recommends streamlining administrative procedures, increasing transparency in carbon trading, and establishing a capacity-building platform called 'Low Carbon, 2030' to support the national goal of peaking emissions by 2030.

The document analyzes three Chinese national pilot programs for industrial parks: Eco-industrial Parks (EIP), Circular Transformation of Industrial Parks (CTIP), and Low-carbon Industrial Parks. It compares their administrative processes, performance indicators, and contributions to carbon reduction, noting that while these programs are voluntary, they provide significant financial and capacity-building incentives for parks to transition from growth-oriented to environment-balanced models.

The report examines China's effort to transition its industrial sector—responsible for 70% of energy consumption and 72% of carbon emissions—through three primary pilot programs: the Eco-Industrial Park (EIP) Demonstration Program, the Circular Transformation of Industrial Parks (CTIP), and the Low-Carbon Industrial Park Program. While these programs overlap in their goals to reduce pollution and resource scarcity, they differ in governance and metrics. The EIP program uses a rigid set of threshold values, whereas the CTIP program allows zones to set their own targets and provides direct national financing, averaging RMB 182 million per zone. The Low-Carbon Industrial Park Program, launched in 2013, specifically targets greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The report concludes that while these voluntary schemes help build technical capacity and attract investment, they often lack comprehensive life-cycle assessments and clear guidance for participating firms.

The report analyzes Indonesia's transition to a fuel pricing system that passes through international oil price changes to reduce wasteful subsidies, which saved IDR 195 trillion (US$ 15.6 billion) in the 2015 State Budget Revision. It compares Indonesia's historically low fuel prices with those of Southeast Asian nations and BRICS economies, noting that Indonesia's prices were among the lowest globally until recent reforms. The document outlines 'good practice' dimensions for pricing systems—subsidies, pass-through, transparency, and enforcement—and examines specific mechanisms used in China, India, Mexico, the Philippines, South Africa, and Thailand. It suggests that Indonesia manage price volatility not through subsidies, but via variable taxes, targeted social assistance, improved supply efficiency, and reduced energy demand.

The report identifies a shift in China's low-carbon policy landscape from rigid administrative commands to more flexible, market-based economic instruments. Based on an analysis of over 100 policies, it highlights the increasing importance of emissions trading systems, energy efficiency standards, and greenhouse gas auditing for industrial zones. It emphasizes that while national goals are set centrally, implementation is increasingly distributed, creating a complex regulatory environment for enterprises.

The report analyzes the evolving policy landscape for low-carbon development in China's industrial zones, highlighting a shift from rigid command-and-control regulations toward more flexible economic instruments and performance standards. It examines the role of the 12th Five-Year Plan and the cascading effect of national directives from the State Council and NDRC to provincial and municipal levels, specifically focusing on regional emissions trading pilots and the increasing importance of GHG inventories and auditing.

The report analyzes Indonesia's transition from ad hoc fuel subsidies to a new pricing system introduced in January 2015, which aims to reduce wasteful spending by passing through international price changes. It evaluates 'good practice' across four dimensions—subsidies, pass-through, transparency, and enforcement—and examines case studies from China, Mexico, India, the Philippines, South Africa, and Thailand. The document argues that while full deregulation is the international benchmark for fiscal sustainability, Indonesia's constitutional constraints necessitate a robust, government-led mechanism. It recommends adopting variable taxes, improving real-time monitoring, and investing in non-pricing measures such as energy efficiency and targeted social safety nets to protect vulnerable groups from price volatility.

The report argues that China's transition to a low-carbon economy requires significant funding, estimated at RMB2 trillion annually, which can be partially met by growing a green bonds market. It recommends establishing a 'Green Bond Market Development Committee' to create China-specific green definitions based on the CBRC's Green Credit Reporting Instruction and a government-approved supervisory entity for third-party verification. Policy recommendations include providing corporate tax credits for interest on green bonds, establishing partial credit guarantees for green municipal and PPP project bonds, and expanding R-QFII and QFII quotas specifically for green investments. The report emphasizes that green bonds should be earmarked for specific projects rather than entity-level credentials to maximize market scale and transparency.

California is working toward supplying 33 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2020 and considering a 50 percent target by 2030. To maintain grid reliability without relying on carbon-emitting natural gas plants for ancillary services, the state must address 'overgeneration'—where renewable supply exceeds demand—which currently leads to the curtailment of clean energy. The document proposes several grid integration solutions: targeting energy efficiency during evening hours, diversifying the renewable fleet (wind, solar, bioenergy, and geothermal), increasing coordination between regional grid operators, deploying energy storage (pumped hydro, compressed air, and batteries), and using demand response technologies to shift electricity consumption to peak renewable output periods.

The report examines the transition of the U.S. power sector from coal to natural gas, noting that while this shift provides immediate benefits, it introduces risks such as price volatility, methane leakage, and potential 'stranded assets'. Using the National Energy Modeling System, the analysis compares a 'Business as Usual' scenario with a 'Carbon Standard plus Renewables and Efficiency Policies' scenario. The findings suggest that the latter would reduce power plant carbon emissions by 70 percent below 2005 levels by 2040, lower consumer energy bills, and provide significant net societal benefits, reaching nearly $170 billion by 2040.

The report examines the transition of the U.S. power sector from coal to natural gas, highlighting that while this shift provides immediate reductions in some pollutants, it creates long-term risks including price volatility, methane leakage, and stranded assets. Through modeling three scenarios—Business as Usual, a Carbon Standard, and a Carbon Standard plus Renewables and Efficiency Policies—the authors find that a diversified energy mix is the most economically and environmentally sound approach. The 'Carbon Standard plus Renewables and Efficiency Policies' scenario is projected to reduce power plant carbon emissions by 70% below 2005 levels by 2040 and generate net societal benefits of nearly $170 billion by that year. The report recommends strengthening the EPA's Clean Power Plan, implementing federal renewable electricity and energy efficiency standards, and increasing regulations on fugitive methane emissions.

The document describes the four primary components of the US electricity grid: individual generators, transmission lines, distribution networks, and consumer load. It details the technical differences between power sources, such as the low flexibility of coal and nuclear plants compared to the rapid ramping of natural gas plants. The text outlines the regulatory roles of state Public Utility Commissions (PUCs) and the federal Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), and notes the three main US transmission networks: the Western Interconnection, the Eastern Interconnection, and ERCOT. It also traces the grid's history from the victory of alternating current (AC) over direct current (DC) to the 'restructuring' of the 1970s that allowed for wholesale competition. Finally, it identifies potential improvements through energy storage, smart meters, and distributed generation like residential solar panels.

The document defines a net phase out of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as reducing anthropogenic emissions to a level equal to or smaller than anthropogenic removals. To maintain a likely chance of meeting the 2°C target, global GHG emissions must be net zero by 2100, while CO2 emissions specifically should reach net zero around 2070. If action is delayed until 2020, these deadlines accelerate to 2080 for all GHGs and 2065 for CO2. The briefing notes that technological options already exist for approximately 90% of current GHG sources, though the remaining 10% require further innovation or offsetting. It highlights the critical role of bio-energy and carbon capture and storage (CCS) for achieving these targets, noting that limiting bio-energy significantly increases mitigation costs and reduces the number of models that find the 2°C target feasible.