Synapse: This Week's News for LA’s Best Buildings
Mayor Garcetti, Councilmembers O’Farrell and Krekorian Celebrate Progress on Historic Municipal Solar and Storage Program
Mayor Eric Garcetti, joined by Councilmembers Mitch O’Farrell and Paul Krekorian, today celebrated the City of Los Angeles’ historic investment in a municipal solar and storage program. After $30 million was allocated for the program in the current fiscal year’s budget, the program was officially initiated in a motion co-introduced last week by O’Farrell and Krekorian.
D.O.E. Can Make the Future Much More Energy Efficient
NRDC and several partner organizations will be celebrating Energy Efficiency Day on October 6th to uplift energy efficiency as one of the most promising tools for reducing carbon emissions and tackling the climate crisis. Energy efficiency helps to reduce electricity use and lower Americans’ utility bills, which is especially helpful for low-income households and renters who face greater energy burdens. The Department of Energy (D.O.E.) plays a great role in supporting energy efficiency throughout the country, through which it has a substantial opportunity to make significant progress on climate action in the next four years.
Get Ready for Energy Efficiency Day; ACEEE Staff Share Their Ideas
Next Wednesday, October 6, is Energy Efficiency Day. This annual nationwide campaign recognizes and celebrates the multiple benefits of energy efficiency — the least expensive, fastest way to meet our energy needs, reduce consumer bills, and cut pollution.
Energy efficiency is also an economic engine, directly employing more Americans (at least two million) than any other single energy sector. As we push to end the COVID-19 pandemic and revive the economy by putting millions of people back to work, the efficiency sector offers opportunities for good local jobs.
The Future of Cities After the Pandemic
In the midst of a lingering pandemic that has led some to question whether cities are still desirable places to live and work, designers at architecture firm Gensler and engineering, design, and consulting company Arup have dared to ponder a provocative question: In a time when many knowledge workers have grown accustomed to working remotely, could radical changes in the design of office buildings motivate them to return to the corporate workplace?
Newsom Signs $15 Billion Package to Fight Climate Change, Wildfire and Drought
Standing before a foil-wrapped, fire-proofed monument in Sequoia National Park amid a haze of wildfire smoke, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday signed a $15 billion climate package for California, the largest such investment in state history.
As ash from the nearby KNP Complex fire rained from an opaque sky, Newsom outlined the details of the package, which included investments in drought response, forest management and climate risk mitigation.
California in recent months has been hit with record-breaking heat, devastating drought and a wildfire season that has seen more than 2.35 million acres burned across the state — a disastrous convergence of events that has been fueled by the burning of fossil fuels and threatens to become endemic to the region.
Photo by LADWP