New Climate Change Leaders Network Launched!

Path to Positive Utah brings together 40 inaugural leaders who have committed to discussing and forging local solutions to climate change in Utah.

Read more in the press release below!

SALT LAKE CITY, Nov. 14, 2017 – Prominent Utah leaders from business, government, higher education, faith communities and civic organizations united on Nov. 14, 2017 to sign a declaration acknowledging shared responsibility for protecting Utah’s economy, air quality and environment, and safeguarding against the risks of climate change.

The gathering kicked off Path to Positive Utah, a collaborative initiative sponsored by Utah Clean Energy and ecoAmerica, that represents a diverse group of leaders seeking to understand, prepare for and raise awareness about climate change risks and solutions.

Local notables who signed the declaration include Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams, Zions Bank President and CEO Scott Anderson, Goldman Sachs Vice President Dean Soukup, Episcopal Diocese of Utah Bishop Scott Hayashi, former Director of the Department of Environmental Quality Amanda Smith, past chair of the Utah Public Service Commission Ted Boyer, and Gardner Company president and CEO Christian Gardner, to name a few.

Forty leaders have already signed the declaration, which is open to all Utah leaders interested in harnessing their leadership to advance conversations about and solutions to climate change.

Forty leaders from across Utah signed on to the Path to Positive declaration on November 14, 2017.

Path to Positive Utah will empower leaders through educational materials, trainings and seminars, and will help share participating organizations’ successes.

“Utah is a pioneering state, and in that innovative spirit, we hope to inspire and support communities to forge a new path toward positive climate change outcomes,” said Sarah Wright, executive director of Utah Clean Energy. “I am proud to stand with this group of Path to Positive Utah leaders and to demonstrate Utah’s leadership and ability to work together to address tough challenges, including climate change.”

Utahns are seeing the impacts of climate change now. The recent and unprecedented series of extreme weather events on American soil and around the globe have taken many lives, dramatically disrupted millions more and generated hundreds of billions of dollars in devastating property damage. A recent Dan Jones poll commissioned by the Salt Lake Tribune and the Hinckley Institute of Politics found that 64 percent of Utahns recognize that human activity is exacerbating climate change.

Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski speaks at the Path to Positive Utah launch, Nov. 14, 2017.

“The latest draft of the U.S. National Climate Assessment confirmed the long-standing consensus on climate change: it is ‘extremely likely’ that human activities have driven the majority of warming in recent decades,” said Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski. “While this knowledge can be sobering in light of severe disruptions from recent hurricanes and wildfires, it can also motivate an inspired response to reduce carbon emissions in Utah, where we are warming at twice the global average.”

Wright said there are many affordable, proven strategies that businesses, government and individuals can put into place that will reduce carbon emissions, improve Utah’s air quality and deliver the long-term benefit of a stable climate. Advancing clean energy and energy efficiency measures in homes and businesses can make a significant difference in the short term, and over time.

Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams discusses climate change at the Path to Positive Utah launch, Nov. 14, 2017.

“Climate change is an important issue for our state’s economy and quality of life. It’s time to talk about it now, as businesses, policy makers and residents plan for our future,” concluded Scott Anderson, president, and CEO of Zions Bank.

Business and community leaders interested in participating in Path to Positive Utah may visit https://pathtopositiveutah.org/ for more information.

See the full video of the program here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G95KlGhZkmM&feature=youtu.be

The Path to Positive Utah declaration, signed by an inaugural group of 40 leaders from government, business, religious, and other community sectors.