Commentary: GLASGOW, Scotland – New Mexico’s ambitious climate change achievements and goals will be on the world stage as Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham attends the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Scotland.
The international climate summit, which will take place in Glasgow, is the 26th session of the “Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.” The annual convening of nearly every nation on earth serves as a valuable opportunity for collaboration around formalizing global climate strategies and to spur collective action. The 21st Conference of the Parties in France resulted in the Paris Agreement, the goals of which Gov. Lujan Grisham committed the state to as one of her first acts in office.
Since then, the state has continued on a path of ambitious and innovative climate solutions, including through nationally leading emissions reductions rules for the oil and gas industry, signing into law a 100% clean electricity requirement by 2045, implementing new energy-efficient building codes, and much more.
“I am so proud of the work we have done in under three years, and I am honored to represent that work, and the work of so many New Mexicans, on the world stage,” said Gov. Lujan Grisham. “But I know that we – as a state, as a nation, as a planet – must go further by pursuing bold, equitable and just climate solutions. I am looking forward to this significant opportunity for collaboration and action at the global level.”
Gov. Lujan Grisham will be in attendance during the first week of the conference and is scheduled to participate in meetings, roundtables and press events with national and world leaders. Her tentative public schedule includes:
- A public conversation alongside Secretary of State Tony Blinken, White House climate advisors John Kerry and Gina McCarthy, and Michael Bloomberg on the America is All In initiative
- An open-press event with the Powering Past Coal Alliance
- An Under2 Coalition event with Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and governors from around the world
The governor will be joined by key members of her Cabinet, including Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Cabinet Secretary Sarah Cottrell Propst.