China is a country in transition. No longer striving to maintain its title as the “world’s factory,” China has embarked on a national program to ascend the economic value chain, focusing on innovation and the service sector to develop an economy that’s befitting of the middle-income country that it has become.

State agencies tasked with leading on energy efficiency may face resistance from utilities if the burden of change falls too heavily on them, according to a recent working group report.

The money governments and firms have already pumped into renewables and energy-efficiency programmes mean that progress will continue. But even if Mr Trump reneges on America’s environmental promises, others will try to stop the worst of them.

California’s latest auction of greenhouse gas permits saw improved demand, likely due to increased confidence in the state’s emissions market. “It seems like a bit of a stabilization,” said Chris Busch, director of research at the consulting firm Energy Innovation. “Hopefully, that will reverberate positively in Sacramento.”

Since you’re clearly rethinking some of your extreme campaign promises, the right response for me is principled engagement. So let’s start now: Please revisit your claim that climate change is a hoax.

An initiative wending its way through the New York State Public Service Commission could have a big impact on the relationship between energy managers and their buildings on one side and utilities on the other. Last week, a mandated report entitled “Energy Efficiency Metrics and Targets Options Report,” which was written by the Clean Energy Advisory Council, was released. The report draws heavily on work by Energy Innovation, a think tank based in San Francisco.

As California plots its carbon course to 2030, alternatives to its existing cap-and-trade program are getting some consideration. “The oil industry is in the funny position now of needing to work hard to get stronger authority for cap and trade to continue in its current form,” said Chris Busch, director of research at the consulting firm Energy Innovation. “That’s what the Brown administration would like, too.”

Hal Harvey has been a champion for low-carbon solutions, and a rare optimistic voice about our ability to tackle climate change. We asked Harvey where he gets his optimism, what the United States and China can learn from each other when it comes to reducing energy use and emissions, and what he’s learned from being a juror for the Paulson Prize since 2013.

Sonia Aggarwal, Director of Strategy at Energy Innovation who leads the firm’s work on transformation of the energy sector and energy policy solutions, recently shared some of her thoughts on performance-based utility regulation with Midwest Energy News.

California will now be the nation’s example for reducing climate change after Governor Jerry Brown signed sweeping legislation yesterday. AirTalk spoke with Sacramento Bee reporter David Siders, environmental policy analyst Chris Busch, and local business advocate Louis Baglietto about what the California’s new climate change law means and what you need to know about it.