China’s low-carbon future depends on green buildings. With nearly 2 billion square meters of new floor space added each year, China’s building sector offers tremendous opportunities for the country to move toward a cleaner economy.

Gov. Jerry Brown’s new target for curbing California’s greenhouse gas emissions is the most aggressive mandate in the country. But achieving that standard will be difficult unless other states also ramp up their efforts regarding renewable energy, clean transportation, and energy efficiency.

Last week, representatives from China’s national Energy Research Institute, the State Grid Energy Research Institute, and others released a new study envisioning a nation powered by 57% renewables in 2030, growing to 86% renewables by 2050, all at the same time as China’s economy grows sevenfold.

California Governor Jerry Brown issued an executive order to reduce California GHGs by 40% below 1990 levels by 2030. The state’s two-year-old cap-and-trade program and other climate-friendly policies have already set California GHG emissions on a downward course.

Several market operators have instituted capacity markets to bridge the gap between revenue available from energy markets and the all-in cost of desired capacity. But will they deliver the outcomes needed for the energy system transition?

The United States is overtaking the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries as the vital global swing producer that determines prices. That remarkable change has been building since 2008, as American shale fields accounted for roughly half of the world’s oil production growth while American petroleum output nearly doubled. And shale production methods have proven highly adaptable to market conditions.

In 2014, for the first time in history, annual energy-related CO₂ emissions stayed flat while the global economy experienced positive growth. So is this the start of a serious movement to decarbonize the economy? And can we thereby halt runaway climate change and avoid almost unimaginable damage to this country—and indeed the whole Earth?

California is America’s climate policy leader, home to both the country’s biggest clean energy industry and an internationally-linked carbon market being modeled across the world. To build on this momentum, California must go even further.

Electricity is crucial to our modern lifestyle, but gets very little of our attention. Soon enough, though, big players in the electricity space are expecting residential and commercial customers to sit up and take notice of new technologies and businesses coming to an electric meter or plug near them.

As more and more of China’s population moves into urban areas, it is imperative that cities are built with the right design practices, known as The 8 Principles, in mind so they benefit people, the environment and the economy.

With record drought and snowfall across the country, WaterSmart Software Inc. has raised $7 million in Series B funding, with a $21 million pre-money valuation, to help water utilities manage every last drop.

Comparing how electricity contracts, markets, and grid operations are evolving in California and the Midwest sheds light on changes that will be necessary as renewable sources like wind and solar begin to form the core of our electricity mix.

Energy Innovation’s Chris Busch spoke with Voice of America about how pollution sources differ between modern day Beijing and 1960’s Los Angeles. He points out that Beijing’s pollution mostly comes from coal production around Beijing, whereas Los Angeles’ pollution came from vehicle emissions due to the lack of exhaust emissions standards at the time.

During his State of the State address, Governor Brown proposed a goal of 50% renewable energy on California’s electric grid by 2030. Is this bold goal realistic? It all depends on how we choose to integrate renewables onto the grid.

Carbon dioxide emissions from the world’s energy producers stalled in 2014, the first time in 40 years of measurement that the level did not increase during a period of economic expansion, according to preliminary estimates from the International Energy Agency. The research suggests that efforts to counteract climate change by reducing carbon emissions and promoting energy efficiency could be working.

This article describes the social, environmental, and economic benefits of sustainable urban development. Studies have shown that mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods that value public transit development over private car use actually command higher property value. Around the world and in China, more of these people-centered cities are already emerging.

As states begin thinking about how they will comply with the EPA’s Clean Power Plan, energy efficiency should receive considerable attention as one of the most effective options.

Energy Innovation’s Policy Analyst CC Huang speaks with Natalie Tso from TRI’s Eye on China series about how walkability and other features improve quality-of-life in cities.

Energy Innovation’s Policy Analyst CC Huang speaks with Natalie Tso from RTI’s Eye on China series about what makes the most creative and sustainable cities.