Can Abundance Be Sustainable? Merging Affordability and Climate Policy

Registration is open for “Can Abundance Be Sustainable?”

Affordability concerns are ubiquitous in conversations on environmental and climate policy issues. Policymakers and advocates are wrestling with the question of whether cornerstone environmental laws and regulations, including CEQA and NEPA, can be robustly enforced while still recognizing and addressing cost-of-living pressures.

The UCLA Emmett Institute’s 2026 Spring symposium will focus on the interplay between affordability and environmental regulation, paying particular attention to recent developments in three areas: electricity generation and pricing, the transition away from fossil fuel extraction, and affordable housing. It will draw on state-level and national examples, including legislative actions in California on oil drilling and refining and a statewide freeze of building code updates, and on efforts across the country to manage growing electricity demand from data centers. Panelists will assess a range of reforms aimed at reducing costs and assess their compatibility with advancing environmental and environmental justice protections.

Speakers include:

Robinson Meyer, Executive Editor of Heatmap News; William Boyd, Professor of Law at UCLA Law; Tina Andolina, Chief of Staff to California Senator Ben Allen; Allan Marks, Lecturer at UCLA Law; Katie Valenzuela, Policy Consultant at Everyday Impact Consulting and Katherine Valenzuela Consulting; Ryan Cummings, Chief of Staff of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policymaking;  David Spence, Professor at the University of Texas School of Law; Shane Phillips, Housing Initiative Manager at the UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies; Liam Dillon, California Housing Reporter at Politico; Jen Ganata, Legal Department Co-Director at Communities for a Better Environment; Cara Horowitz, Executive Director, the UCLA Emmett Institute.

This day-long symposium at the UCLA School of Law is free and open to the public but you must REGISTER HERE. 

This event is co-sponsored by the Environmental Law Section of the California Lawyers Association. The day kicks off with a keynote address followed by the three panel discussions and a reception to continue the conversation.

Panels include:

• Growing the Grid Without Breaking the Bank
• Affordability and the Transition Away from Fossil Fuels
• Housing Affordability and Environmental Protection

UCLA School of Law is a State Bar of California approved MCLE provider. This event has requested MCLE credit and is currently pending approval.