Mark Herz: This is GBH is Morning Edition. As the nation prepares to transition to President elect Donald Trump’s second presidential term, climate advocates are wondering what we might expect to see from his administration. To learn about that, our meteorologist Dave Epstein sat down with Juliette Rooney-Varga. She’s director of the Climate Change Initiative at UMass Lowell.

Dave Epstein: Juliette, great to see you. I discovered in reading about you, we both went to Colby College. So how about that, spending our college years up in Maine?

Prof. Juliette Rooney-Varga: Yeah, it was great. I loved it.

Epstein: So I wanted to start. Obviously, we just had an election and there’s a lot of folks that may have some anxiety about what transpired with the results of the election, and how that may impact, moving forward, some of the policies and things like that and regulations that we see at the federal level. I think it’s important. One of the things you and I were talking before we started was you were informing me about that relationship between the state and the federal level, and maybe just illuminate our listeners a little bit as to why that’s so important.

Rooney-Varga: Yeah, sure. So first, I just want to say that there is an awful lot that Massachusetts is doing and can do regardless of the federal situation. And we are part of a country. We all pay taxes to the federal government and we live under the rules, regulations and the benefits of being part of this country and of federal opportunities and constraints. And so I think on my mind right now thinking about what’s happening in Massachusetts, this energy transition that’s underway, all of the benefits that it brings in terms of jobs. I’m a mom. I have three kids. I’m wondering about their jobs going forward. And so the question is, what will this change at the federal level mean for us here at home? And there are a couple of things. There’s a lot of uncertainty. We don’t know yet. But I think some of the signals that we’re getting are that there could be some changes and potential threats to funding that comes from the Inflation Reduction Act, also known as the IRA. So Massachusetts has already benefited from that in terms of fueling the climate tech economy, providing incentives for consumers to switch to solar EVs, heat pumps, etc. And then also, Massachusetts is relying heavily on offshore wind as part of our clean energy mix going forward. The good news is that a lot of that offshore wind is already in the works. So we’ve got about 60% of the planned offshore wind capacity is already permitted by the federal government. But this also throws a lot of uncertainty into the future of offshore wind. And that could also make private industry, private financing, sort of ask questions about how certain this investment is and make that financing more difficult.

Epstein: So as a resident of Massachusetts, I might be wondering, what can I do over the next four years — regardless of what happens at the federal level, what can I be doing to take action to help with this process?

Rooney-Varga: One of the first things I would do is take advantage of the incentives that are there. There are a lot of incentives at the state level, but also at the federal level right now. So if you have a furnace that maybe is getting old or you’re tired of like smelling the natural gas fumes around it, if you have a stove that you know, is like a gas stove that is — or an electric stove that’s inefficient or resistant stove, it’s inefficient, and with maybe the gas stove, you know about the air pollutants that are coming into our homes from those and you’re thinking about changing it out. Do those projects now. Like, immediately, if you can. So things like insulating your home, thinking about solar panels if you can on your roof or community solar, looking into getting an EV, if you’re ready for a new car or an e-bike. There are incentives for that as well in Massachusetts. Take advantage of those programs now. But don’t just take advantage of those programs — talk about it. So the other piece of that is that we know that people are up to 20 times more likely to do something if they hear about it from their friends or family members. So, you know, MassSave and these other incentive programs might send you all kinds of stuff in the mail, but most of us throw them away as quickly as possible. You’re much more likely to do something if you hear about from a friend or family member. With all the, you know, potentially 38,000 jobs we’re looking at here in Massachusetts alone by 2030, our world is going to look different. And part of how it’s going to look different is that we’re going to have things like quieter streets from EVs. We’re going to have more bikes. We’re also going to have more solar and we’re going to have more things like transmission lines and utility scale storage and things that, you know, maybe you don’t necessarily jump to have in your backyard. Get involved in those discussions at the community level. Get engaged and think about that as part of the solution.

Epstein: So one of the things that climatologists and scientists have talked about for a while is this idea that we need to keep a lid on the increase in temperature at 1.5°C. Obviously, that’s not going to happen. So what do you see moving forward even post this administration? Right? We get to 2029, we get into the 2030s. What would be happening? What should people kind of expect because some of this is baked into the system.

Rooney-Varga: Just to note, even though it looks like sadly, 2024 will be the first year where globally we have exceeded 1.5 degrees C as a global average surface temperature — and what I mean by that is a 1.5 degrees C increase over pre-industrial times — that doesn’t mean that we’ve exceeded it at like that target. The average over about 20 years needs to exceed the target for that to be true. But it certainly looks like that target will be exceeded. We’re going to see more intense storms. We’re going to see more sea level rise. We’re going to see more heat waves. We’re already seeing more wildfires. And one of the things that’s going to be, you know, that’s on my mind, especially at UMass Lowell, as we work with our local communities to help increase climate resilience is the compound events. What happens if the storm comes, kills the power and then you have a heat wave? So I think one of the things on my mind is how do we build resilience and create this new clean energy future at the same time? So if you think about one of the first things we should all be doing is, you know, the cleanest, most abundant, cheapest form of energy is the energy we don’t use. So if we can use all those incentives, use less energy, it saves money. And it’s a form of climate resilience. So if you have, you know, an extreme event, you’re more comfortable even if the power goes out.

Epstein: On that note, Juliette, thank you so much for coming in here, and it was a pleasure to meet you.

Rooney-Varga: Likewise.

Herz: That was meteorologist Dave Epstein speaking with Juliette Rooney-Varga of UMass Lowell. You're listening to GBH.

As the nation prepares for President-elect Donald Trump’s second term, climate advocates are wondering what we might expect to see from his administration.

To understand where those changes could come from, it’s important to understand the relationship the U.S. federal government has with states, said professor Juliette Rooney-Varga, director of the Climate Change Initiative at UMass Lowell.

“There is an awful lot that Massachusetts is doing and can do regardless of the federal situation,” Rooney-Varga said in a conversation with GBH meteorologist Dave Epstein. “We are part of a country. We all pay taxes to the federal government and we live under the rules, regulations and the benefits of being part of this country and of federal opportunities and constraints.”

The future brings a lot of uncertainty, she said. Rooney-Varga said she thinks about her three kids and what their lives will look like in the future: what jobs they’ll have, and what the world around them will look like.

“But I think some of the signals that we’re getting are that there could be some changes and potential threats to funding that comes from the Inflation Reduction Act, also known as the IRA,” Rooney-Varga said. “Massachusetts has already benefited from that in terms of fueling the climate tech economy, providing incentives for consumers to switch to solar EVs, heat pumps, etc. And then also, Massachusetts is relying heavily on offshore wind as part of our clean energy mix going forward.”

This year is likely to be the first in which global average temperatures exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-Industrial Age norms.

“We’re going to see more intense storms. We’re going to see more sea level rise. We’re going to see more heat waves. We’re already seeing more wildfires,” Rooney-Varga said. Humans will have to adapt and learn how to build more resilience around how we live and consume energy.

“How do we build resilience and create this new clean energy future at the same time?” she said. “If you think about one of the first things we should all be doing is, you know, the cleanest, most abundant, cheapest form of energy is the energy we don’t use. So if we can use all those incentives, use less energy, it saves money. And it’s a form of climate resilience.”

Full conversation: Dave Epstein and Prof. Juliette Rooney-Varga

A bit of good news on offshore wind: About 60% of planned offshore wind capacity off the Massachusetts coast has already secured federal permits.

“But this also throws a lot of uncertainty into the future of offshore wind. And that could also make private industry, private financing, sort of ask questions about how certain this investment is and make that financing more difficult,” Rooney-Varga said.

There are plenty of incentive programs in place for Massachusetts residents looking to make their homes and commutes more efficient, she said. There are programs to replace old furnaces, inefficient and polluting stoves, add solar panels, and more.

Massachusetts residents can find a list of energy incentives at the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center. Residents of other states can go to energy.gov’s Energy Saver programs.

“Do those projects now,” Rooney-Varga said. “Like, immediately, if you can. So things like insulating your home, thinking about solar panels if you can on your roof or community solar, looking into getting an [electric vehicle] if you’re ready for a new car, or an e-bike. There are incentives for that as well in Massachusetts.”

And when you take advantage of them, don’t keep it to yourself.

“Talk about it,” Rooney-Varga said. “We know that people are up to 20 times more likely to do something if they hear about it from their friends or family members. So, you know, MassSave and these other incentive programs might send you all kinds of stuff in the mail, but most of us throw them away as quickly as possible. You’re much more likely to do something if you hear about from a friend or family member.”

She also suggested finding climate movement organizations to get involved with, like Mothers Out Front, and contacting elected officials to tell them what’s important to you.

A more environmentally conscious future can mean a lot of things, she said: Up to 38,000 according to the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center; quieter streets with more electric vehicles; more bikes, more solar, and more.

“We’re going to have more things like transmission lines and utility scale storage and things that, you know, maybe you don’t necessarily jump to have in your backyard,” she said. “Get involved in those discussions at the community level. Get engaged and think about that as part of the solution.”