Accelerating to Net Zero: Fueling the Clean Energy Transition

As our planet inches closer to the maximum warming target of 1.5 C, signaling a point of no return, governments across the world are called upon to accelerate climate action and set aggressive greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals. This unprecedented urgency requires us to prioritize sectors where focused action will have the most significant impact.

Cutting emissions in the building sector is key to addressing the climate crisis. Buildings contribute an even higher percentage of the United States’ GHG emissions when factoring in construction materials and refrigerants. As a result, the Biden Administration has set an ambitious goal–for all new building construction and retrofits to reach zero emissions by 2030, establishing a resilient and standard practice for our nation’s clean energy future. These efforts, led by the Department of Energy (DOE), will generate savings for consumers, expand economic opportunities, and reduce climate-related financial risk. But how will this impact the global economy, and what role does industry play?

Anna Siefken, deputy director of DOE’s Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP), discusses the Biden administration’s strategy for the clean energy transition, and what it means for our future workforce. Under President Biden’s leadership, the Department of Energy is deploying an unprecedented set of tools aimed at enabling American businesses, workers, and consumers to participate in the clean energy economy. She will also explain how FEMP enables our nation’s largest energy consumer–the federal government–to leverage its annual purchasing power of $630 billion to transition its portfolio of 300,000 buildings totaling $3B square feet to carbon pollution-free electricity and its 600,000 cars and trucks to zero-emission vehicles. Learn how these programs are driving a boom in American manufacturing, creating new green jobs, fueling economic growth, and helping the United States lead the world toward a clean energy future.