Gov. Tony Evers, along with Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, today signed Executive Order #52, establishing the Governor’s Task Force on Climate Change at the Urban Ecology Center’s Riverside Park location in Milwaukee.
“For too long we’ve been ignoring science, and frankly, we can’t afford to do it any longer. It’s time for us to deliver on the promise to our kids that we’re leaving them a better life and world than the one we inherited,” Gov. Evers said. “I am confident that this task force will find meaningful sustainable solutions to the climate crisis to carry our state into the future.”
The Task Force on Climate Change will advise and assist the governor in developing a strategy to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change for the benefit of all Wisconsin communities. Members of the task force will work closely with the Office of Sustainability and Clean Energy, created through Executive Order #38. The task force will report their findings and policy recommendations to Governor Evers by August 2020.
Governor Evers has appointed Lieutenant Governor Barnes to serve as chairman of the task force, who noted communities of color and low-income communities experience the first and worst consequences of climate change.
“All of Wisconsin can prosper in transitioning to a just and equitable clean economy,” Lt. Gov. Barnes said. “I’m eager to work alongside a number of brilliant and diverse individuals from across the state on this task force being created by Governor Evers, and I’m proud he’s given me the opportunity to lead it.”