Registration for the 3rd California Adaptation Forum, taking place August 27-29, in Sacramento is now open! The Forum will gather a multidisciplinary audience of over 700 climate leaders to foster knowledge exchange, innovation, and mutual support to transition California communities from adaptation awareness to planning and action. We hope that you will join us!

Electrify America and the City of Sacramento announced new Green City projects that will increase electric vehicle (EV) access for low-income communities, through two new EV car share programs, one of which will feature 260 free-floating vehicles, and the other will be based at 71 multi-family properties. In addition, zero-emissions shuttle buses will connect Davis to Sacramento and serve the Franklin Boulevard corridor in South Sacramento. ( Link)

	Photo: Michael Isaac Stein

Low-income Americans are likely to live in significantly less inefficient housing, which saddles them with disproportionately high energy costs. As a result, they not only spend more of their income on utility bills but also pay more per square foot to heat or cool their homes. Utility bills are the primary reason why people resort to payday loans, and play an outsized role in the perpetuation of poverty. Living in inefficient homes also puts occupants at a higher risk of health issues. Studies say 97 percent of the excess energy burdens for renting households could be eliminated by bringing their homes up to median efficiency standards, and that the value of energy upgrades is at least 2.2 times their cost. ( City Lab)

Photo: Kin Cheung/AP

A burgeoning middle class and a warming world will result in energy demand for cooling overtaking that for heating by the middle of the century. Energy use for air conditioning, refrigeration and other cooling appliances will jump 90% on 2017 levels, experts estimated, posing a challenge for energy grids and efforts to curb climate change. The biggest energy demand for cooling comes from air conditioning, but it is also essential for stopping food from going to waste and protecting medicines. To meet the growth in cooling without pushing up emissions would take almost all the new solar power expected to be installed by mid-century. ( Guardian)

	Photo: Nissan Motor

Utilities and automakers want to use the batteries inside electric cars as storage for the entire public power grid. The "vehicle-to-grid" concept will have millions of drivers become mini electricity traders, charging up when rates are cheap and pumping energy back into the grid during peak hours or when the sun isn't shining. If it works, renewable energy could get much cheaper and more widely used. For most drivers, whose cars sit idle 90 percent of the time, sharing their batteries would make good use of a very under-utilized resource. Challenges include the need for new computer networks, driver behavior, and new collaborations. ( Bloomberg)

Large day-to-day swings in temperature were associated with significantly more heart attacks, according to a new study, suggesting that climate change could lead to an increase in the occurrence of heart attacks. The risk of a heart attack increased by 5 percent for every 5 C (9 F) jump in temperature differential, with greater risk increases for fluctuations over 25 C (45 F). Sudden temperature swings had a greater impact on heart attack risk on warmer days. ( Link)

Historic drought followed by record-breaking precipitation and warm lake temperatures converged to produce the lowest annual average clarity levels recorded at Lake Tahoe in 2017. The average annual clarity level for 2017 was 59.7 feet - a 9.5-foot decrease from the previous year, surpassing the previous lowest value of 64.1 feet in 1997. Summer temperatures in 2017 were the warmest on record at Lake Tahoe, almost 3 F higher than in the previous three years. ( Link)

The California Energy Commission (CEC) released its California Clean Energy Equity Framework and Indicators draft staff report in May. This report presents an approach for tracking progress of energy efficiency and renewables for low-income customers and small business contracting opportunities in disadvantaged communities. Learn more about CEC's efforts to address barriers to clean energy for low-income customers and disadvantaged communities. ( CEC)

Attendees will collaborate and learn innovative ways to enhance the ecological resiliency of the Sierra. There are many opportunities and constraints that stand before us, but as a true alliance we can succeed. The Sierra Nevada Alliance is planning a progressive, provocative agenda, with many networking opportunities, and fun to be had throughout. ( Link)