Connecticut Governor Rell To Lead Nation’s Governors in Signing of Declaration on Climate Change

April 16, 2008 -- Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell will welcome governors from across the country on Friday to a conference on global warming and to sign a Declaration on Climate Change. The historic conference and signing will take place at Yale University in New Haven on Friday, April 18.

Global warming protest signs: Photo by Casey Bisson (CC)

“One of the most important and pressing issues for the future of our states, this nation and this planet is global warming and climate change,” Governor Rell said. “Connecticut has taken a leadership role on this issue, and I am honored to welcome state leaders from throughout the country who share our vision and commitment to address one of our greatest challenges.”

Joining Governor Rell at the Climate Change Conference at Yale will be Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California, Governor Jon Corzine of New Jersey, Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas, Governor Ron Blagojevich of Illinois and President Richard C. Levin of Yale University. Together with Governor Rell, these governors will be signing the Governors’ Declaration on Climate Change which calls for a partnership between federal and state government as part of a broader, more comprehensive national policy on climate change. In addition to the governors in attendance, governors from a number of other states are expected to sign the Declaration, including Massachusetts, New York, Maine, Washington, Maryland and New Mexico.

“This occasion marks the 100th anniversary of President Theodore Roosevelt’s 1908 Conference of Governors, and I want to thank President Levin and Yale University for helping to bring together the nation’s Governors for this historic event,” Governor Rell said. “Together, our states have been at the forefront in developing strategies and approaches to meet this challenge head on. It is time for the federal government to become more engaged in the climate efforts already well underway in states throughout the country and to answer President Roosevelt’s call to work collectively to develop a national policy on climate change.”

Connecticut, under Governor Rell’s leadership, has played an instrumental role in the development of local, regional and national strategies to address climate change. Among the efforts underway in Connecticut to confront climate change include:

* Adopting a Climate Change Action Plan – Connecticut is one of the first states in the nation to do so;
* Developing and participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative – the first-in-the-nation cap and trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
* Spearheading The Climate Registry – a multi-state initiative to develop and manage a common greenhouse gas emissions reporting system;
* Implementing green building requirements for new public and private construction costing in excess of $5 million (effective 2009);
* Engaging the public, state agencies and businesses in One Thing initiatives – promoting methods and strategies to reduce energy consumption and conserve natural resources;
* Enacting Clean Car standards to curb greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles – Governor Rell and Governor Schwarzenegger are leading more than a dozen states in a legal effort to overturn a recent Environmental Protection Agency decision that prevents the states from implementing the more stringent standards.

“We continue to explore and implement strategies that will result in meaningful reductions in greenhouse gas emissions,” Governor Rell said. “While we have been effective in Connecticut and throughout the region in moving forward with some very aggressive approaches, we still need our federal government to be strong partners in a national dialogue on climate change.”

Source: Connecticut Governor

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