A Green Recovery: The Case for Climate-Forward Stimulus Policies in America’s COVID-19 Recession Response
October 29, 2020
By Rhiana Gunn-Wright, Kristina Karlsson, Kitty Richards, Bracken Hendricks, David Arkush
The federal government has invested more than $2 trillion in stimulus measures to mitigate the COVID-19 emergency. While the initial round of relief has been instrumental in staving off the most disastrous effects of the pandemic, it also invested in fossil fuels. All stimulus policy choices will affect climate, and future relief efforts must affirmatively work to help decarbonize the economy. As policymakers debate how to initiate and sustain a recovery from the COVID-19 recession, investments in decarbonization and clean energy—what we refer to throughout as “green stimulus”—offer a compelling path forward.
The authors make the case that green stimulus policies are both environmental essentials and smart investments. They outline key principles in designing green stimulus policies and offer several examples that would provide relief to families, state and local governments, and businesses, while also creating new jobs that contribute to a cleaner, more just American economy.
Roosevelt Authors
Rhiana Gunn-Wright
Senior FellowAs a senior fellow and resident author with the Roosevelt Society, Rhiana Gunn-Wright is working on a book about the climate crisis.
Kristina Karlsson
Senior Program Manager, Climate and Economic TransformationKristina Karlsson is the program manager for the Climate and Economic Transformation program at Roosevelt where she supports the programs research and work on climate policy.