ST. PAUL, Minn. – Several Minnesotans are among 25,000 delegates from all over the world seeking global solutions to climate change. The 23rd session of the Conference of the Parties, or COP 23, is meeting this week and next in Bonn, Germany, to compare progress on reducing carbon emissions.

President Donald Trump announced in June that the United States would opt out of the 2015 Paris accord, which set goals to reduce the rate of global warming.

Minnesota is one of 14 states to say they will meet those goals on their own, and delegates such as the University of Minnesota's executive director of the Energy Transition Lab, Ellen Anderson, say there is a reason for hope.

"We are looking to meet the goals of the Clean Power Plan in the United States," she says. "There will be more of a patchwork. But the fact is that overall the United States is moving forward on reducing carbon emissions."

Anderson calls progress a patchwork because some states, such as Minnesota, will do more than others.

Anderson told the conference in a presentation that climate leadership in the United States will now come from states and cities. She says it's been helpful to compare notes with policymakers from other states and countries, and inspiring to learn what some of them are working on.

"Tomorrow I'm going to an all-day session that involves people from literally countries all over the world that are trying to figure out pathways to 100 percent renewable energy," she explains.

To date, 195 nations have signed the United Nations Convention on Climate Change and 169 have become party to it.

Most of the Minnesotans at the conference belong to a group called Climate Generation, which was started by polar explorer Will Steger.

Climate Generation's executive director, Nicole Rom, says delegates are blogging daily, as though they're on an expedition. Followers include teachers and students who want to learn more and do something about climate change.

"Now we recognize that we're all eyewitnesses," notes. "We all have a story to tell when it comes to how we're experiencing climate change and engaging in solutions."

Besides Climate Generation, Macalester College, The High School of Environmental Studies, the Humphrey School at the University of Minnesota, Fresh Energy and the Science Museum have also sent delegates to Bonn. The conference wraps up November 17.


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SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Climate activists are praising Gov. Gavin Newsom for signing a $15 billion climate action package Thursday, but argued he should go one step further, and declare an official "climate emergency" in California.

The bills will fund projects to build up wildfire resilience and combat the drought.

Heidi Harmon, former mayor of San Luis Obispo, said the state needs to think even bigger.

"People in the state of California and everywhere will not do small things for small goals, but they will do big things for big goals," Harmon asserted. "And California is a big vision state."

The package also includes money to plant more trees in cities to combat the heat island effect and improve air quality. It would also fund so-called "smart agriculture" projects, and put more zero-emission vehicles on the road. Newsom said the investment is the largest in state history.

Paul Koretz, member of the Los Angeles City Council, thinks it does not go far enough, given the immediate threats climate change poses in terms of drought, wildfires and sea-level rise.

"We need to halt the permitting of oil and gas operations," Koretz contended. "We need to phase out the sale of fossil-fuel-powered vehicles as soon as possible. Right away wouldn't be too soon."

Advocates are also calling on the state to allow more prescribed burns on Native American reservations, in order to reduce the buildup of dead trees and brush that increases the fuel load and leads to megafires.

DULUTH, Minn. - As Minnesota looks to address the impact of climate change on the region, land managers and policymakers are reminded of the role nature can play. They're being urged to use a new tool that shows the range in which forests can capture and store carbon emissions.

In recent years, The Nature Conservancy has offered an interactive online map that shows which lands are more resilient to climate change. Now, that same tool can show which areas are well-suited to absorb carbon-dioxide floating through the atmosphere.

The Climate Change Director for The Nature Conservancy in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota - Meredith Cornett - said Minnesota's forests are capable of removing 487 million metric tons of C02 over the next 30 years.

"That's a number that may not mean a lot to a lot of us," said Cornett. "So we have something called a carbon dioxide - an emissions equivalency. So that is equivalent of 3.6 million cars. "

She said taking the equivalent of those gas-powered cars off the road each year can only happen if the forests remain in their current form.

The group says potential roadblocks include wildfires and forest management that doesn't prioritize ecological thinning and prescribed burning.

Minnesota's forest cover has gone from more than 30 million acres down to 17 million over the past 150 years. But the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' State Forest Action plan notes there's been an uptick in acreage over the past decade.

Cornett applauded some of the progress in planting seedlings in forests after they've been harvested, including climate-resilient species. But she said Minnesota can't afford to slow down.

"We will need to really ramp up nursery production and wild-seed collection in order to make that possible," said Cornett.

She referred to a specific goal from the group that calls for one million acres in reforestation in Minnesota by the year 2040.

As the for the carbon tool, the Nature Conservancy says it can measure "capture potential" on lands as small as one quarter of an acre, adding that could be helpful for policymakers as they develop conservation plans.

SANTA FE, N.M. - A nonpartisan group of mothers and climate scientists is on a nationwide education campaign to engage more people about the effects of climate change and actions they can take to make a difference.

Colorado State University atmospheric science researcher Mellisa Burt co-founded the group "Science Moms." She said from the day they're born, parents want to protect their children, and the warming climate is now a direct threat to them.

"The goal of 'Science Moms' is to educate, inspire and empower moms," said Burt, "so that they have the climate change information and the resources that they need, so they can understand and feel comfortable sharing and having conversations around climate change."

During Climate Week, September 20 through 26, organizers will encourage businesses, governments and others to fulfill and increase their climate commitments.

An Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report earlier this year signaled a "code red" alert for humankind, from widespread extreme weather events, and cited controlling methane emissions as one solution.

In a survey by the Potential Energy Coalition, more than 60% of Americans describe themselves as "concerned" or "very concerned" about climate change, but only 14% say they regularly talk about it.

Coalition CEO John Marshall says his 17-year-old son convinced him to get more involved.

"A lot of these conversations happen around the kitchen table or the dining room table," said Marshall. "And a lot of us are experiencing the need to act on behalf of, and in response, to our kids."

Climate change is simple to understand according to Burt, and the effects are now difficult to avoid.

"The more that we burn fossil fuels, the more carbon pollution we're putting into the atmosphere," said Burt. "We're creating a thicker blanket of carbon pollution around our earth. And as that blanket continues to get thicker our planet is getting warmer and warmer. And as a result of that, we're seeing more wildfires, more floods, more hurricanes."

Last week, 10 New Mexico environmental groups and 62 others sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency calling for new regulations to limit emissions from fossil fuel development.

In addition, President Joe Biden has solicited a pledge from world leaders to cut methane emissions ahead of a climate change summit next month.