Beyond Carbon

Science shows that climate impacts are consistently getting worse: carbon pollution is heating the planet, and we are approaching a tipping point. There is no time to waste – we need to move Beyond Carbon. 

The urgency of the climate crisis is why Mike Bloomberg committed an additional $500 million to the Beyond Carbon campaign in 2023. This new investment will fast-track proven strategies to close the door on fossil fuels and usher in a new era of clean energy in the U.S.

It will also help ensure the U.S. stays on track to meet our global climate commitments.

By 2030, the Beyond Carbon campaign aims to:

• Cut existing gas use in half and block all new gas plants.
• Finish the job on coal. Continuing the legacy of Beyond Coal and the initial Beyond Carbon campaign, this next phase will shut down every last U.S. coal plant.
• Increase U.S. clean energy four-fold. Accelerate the clean energy transition to reach the goal of 80% of total electricity generation.

The Beyond Carbon campaign is one of the largest philanthropic efforts to fight the climate crisis in the U.S. Beginning in 2011, when Bloomberg Philanthropies committed $50 million to the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign, the movement has played a catalytic role in U.S. climate policy. 

After nearly a decade of progress on Beyond Coal, Bloomberg launched Beyond Carbon in 2019 with an initial  $500 million commitment to help finish the job transitioning the country from coal and other fossil fuels to 100 percent clean power. 

To date, Beyond Carbon has helped secure the retirement of more than 70 percent of U.S. coal plants and stopped more than 30 percent of planned gas capacity. This work has helped achieve more than 80 percent of all U.S. emissions reductions since 2010 and plant closures from the campaigns are estimated to have saved 49,900 lives, prevented nearly 77,500 heart attacks, and saved billions in healthcare costs. 

Beyond Carbon will focus on five key pillars to keep up its momentum and build on its success:

• Data and research: Fund necessary studies and deliver accurate data and expert analysis to decision makers across state governments, financial institutions, and partner organizations to help advance swift, decisive actions.
• Grassroots and litigation: Build on the powerful foundation established by grassroots community organizers to advance the transition to clean energy while utilizing the power of the law to protect public health and safeguard the environment.
• Policy and advocacy: Educate and work with state and local organizations to pass climate and clean energy policies – including 100% clean energy laws, targets and timetables to phase out climate pollution, and implementation of programs to expand low-carbon transit, speed up the deployment of electric vehicles, get pollution out of buildings, and promote low-carbon manufacturing.
• Clean energy deployment: Engage with state governments to make the case for new clean energy and push the Energy Regulatory Commission to reform market rules and remove barriers for clean energy.
• Coal refinancing: Support financial analysis to push for early retirement of coal assets and implement Inflation Reduction Act to ensure effective use of coal transition financing and clean energy tax credits.

By helping drive progress at the local level, Beyond Carbon is pushing the U.S. forward on the path to a 100 percent clean energy economy.

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