Saving the Planet, Growing Jobs

Public Utilities Commissioner Bob Gordon
Public Utilities Commissioner Bob Gordon

Montclair State is taking the lead in the fight to save the planet from the destructive effects of climate change – specifically on issues of clean energy and sustainability.

In September, the University’s Clean Energy and Sustainable Analytics Center brought leaders in government, technology, education and business to campus for the second year in a row to share information and discuss initiatives that put the state at the forefront of clean and sustainable energy worldwide.

“New Jersey is ground zero in the battle to protect our planet,” said Bob Gordon, New Jersey Board of Public Utilities commissioner, in his keynote speech at the conference, which was held shortly after the global student-led Climate Strike and the U.N. Climate Action Summit in New York.

The Clean and Sustainable Energy Summit addressed several aspects of the New Jersey Energy Master plan – a road map to becoming 100% clean energy-reliant by 2050 – with sessions on offshore wind farms, affordable solar energy, an improved and efficient power grid, data analysis and more.

While New Jersey faces more intense climate impacts than other states – due largely to dense development and 130 miles of coastline – it can also harness its coastal winds for accessible and affordable renewable energy.