The Center for Law, Energy & the Environment (CLEE) channels the expertise of the Berkeley Law community – faculty, staff, and students – into pragmatic, creative policy solutions to critical environmental and energy challenges.
We are very excited to announce the appointment of CLEE’s new Executive Director: Louise Bedsworth.
Louise joined CLEE last year as Director of the Land Use Program and as a Senior Advisor to the California-China Climate Institute. Before joining CLEE, Louise spent nearly a decade working for the State of California, most recently as the Executive Director of the Strategic Growth Council, and before that as the Deputy Director of the Office of Planning and Research in Governor Jerry Brown’s office. Louise has also held positions at the Public Policy Institute of California, the Union of Concerned Scientists, Redefining Progress, and the International Institute of Applied Systems Analysis. Louise received a B.S. in Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an M.S. in Environmental Engineering and Ph.D. in Energy and Resources, both from the University of California at Berkeley.
“We had other very strong candidates,” says CLEE Faculty Director Daniel Farber, “but Louise stood out for the range of the strengths that she’ll bring to the job. She has worked at high levels of California government on climate policy and pioneering ways of connecting disadvantaged communities with the policy process. I’m excited by her vision for CLEE, her passion for our mission, and the deep experience she’ll bring to the Executive Director position.”
Likewise, Louise is excited about taking the helm of an organization that has had a remarkable run of outstanding Executive Directors. “CLEE has a great track record and our staff is tackling critical issues facing California and the rest of the world,” she says. “I am excited to build on CLEE’s strong foundation, advance equity in our work, and strengthen connections across CLEE and the Berkeley campus to advance creative and effective policy solutions.”
We also want to express our gratitude to CLEE’s Director of the Climate Change program, Ethan Elkind, who led CLEE admirably as Interim Executive Director during the transition.
Please join us in welcoming Louise!
BLACK LIVES MATTER
A MOVEMENT NOT A MOMENT
The past year has starkly highlighted the systemic racism and racial injustice interwoven into the fabric of this country. We must not only condemn it; we must act to change it.
The university has a public interest mission; the legal profession is responsible for seeking justice; and our center and our program are focused on ensuring a sustainable world for all. Working at the intersection of those values, we must humbly look inside and examine if we are doing all we can to combat systemic racism, because the answer is almost certainly no. Yet we cannot successfully combat climate change and environmental degradation without addressing the inextricably linked roots and consequences of systemic racial injustice.
Because words without actions ring hollow, we are engaging in a process to develop a concrete action plan addressing our research, program, and curriculum. We will reach outside our organization for diverse input in order to finalize our action plan and move immediately to implementation.
In the News
Op-Ed: How California Can Prevent Companies From Selling Products They Know Are Dangerous
(08/03/2022)Topics: Environmental Law Topic
U.S. Cities and States Are Suing Big Oil Over Climate Change. Here’s What the Claims Say and Where They Stand
(08/01/2022)Topics: Environmental Law Topic
This High-Speed Rail Project Is a Warning for the US
(07/29/2022)Topics: Environmental Law Topic
Gavin Newsom Is Fighting a Wealth Tax That Would Fund His Own Climate Goals
(07/29/2022)Topics: Environmental Law Topic
SMART Reports 83% Ridership Boost Since Start of 2022
(07/25/2022)Topics: Environmental Law Topic
L.A.’s Newest Rail Line Nears Completion
(07/08/2022)Topics: Environmental Law Topic
July 2022
Hot, Cold & Clean: Policy Solutions to Promote Equitable and Affordable Adoption of Heat Pump Retrofits in Existing Buildings
In 2022, the California Energy Commission set out an ambitious target of deploying 6 million heat pumps by 2030. With more than 14 million existing residential homes in the state, more than 75 percent of California’s existing buildings built before 1978, and heat pumps installed in only 6 percent of new construction, the state has a long way to go to meet its goals.
To address this challenge, CLEE and UCLA Law’s Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment convened state, local, utility, housing and environmental leaders to develop priority solutions for promoting equitable and affordable adoption of heat pump retrofits in existing buildings.
May 2022
Driving Equity
To achieve state goals of 40 percent greenhouse gas emission reduction (below 1990 levels) by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2045, California must significantly reduce emissions from transportation, which is the single greatest source of statewide (and national) emissions. In 2020, Governor Newsom issued an executive order calling for a complete phase-out of new fossil fuel vehicle sales by 2035, and in April 2022 the California Air Resources Board proposed an update to its Advanced Clean Cars regulation to achieve that target. However, the majority of electric vehicle models on the road are new, relatively high-cost models and the most ubiquitous and convenient charging options are in the garages of single-family homes in wealthier communities. Our new policy report outlines strategies to promote equity in California’s electric vehicle transition.
May 2022
Branching Out
In response to California’s deadly over the past several years, government and private landowners are removing more debris and residual material from forested areas, such as removing dead trees and creating fire breaks. One strategy to improve vegetation management outcomes is to support markets for this residual material through wood products, chips and mulch, or other end uses. To do so, state and local leaders will need to weigh the consequences of various end uses to ensure human and environmental health factors into decision making and to ensure debris removal does not promote additional cutting of “green” forest material, among other considerations. Our new policy report recommends various pathways for establishing a sustainable market for this material while observing parameters on the source and timeframe of the material collection to ensure activities promote wildfire resilience.
October 2021
Developing Climate Risk Policy for State Procurement and Bond Issuance
California is home to one of the largest economies in the world, and the state plays a direct role in this economy as a steward of assets, a regulator, a revenue generator and service provider, and a direct spender of funds on a range of infrastructure, goods, and services. In light of the risks that climate change poses to state industries and financial institutions, state lawmakers and experts have recently sought to increase knowledge of climate-related risks throughout the state economy. In two new policy notes, CLEE explores potential opportunities to develop climate risk disclosure policy through the lens of state procurement and bond issuance.
July 2021
Piloting a Water Rights Information System for California
California’s complex water management challenges are growing and intensifying. Systemic stressors like the more frequent and severe droughts and floods driven by climate change are only making it harder to respond. Accordingly, California needs to dramatically improve the ability of local, regional, and State entities to make agile and effective water management decisions. We believe doing so will require enhanced understanding of our water resources and how they align with the needs of a range of agencies and stakeholders. Water rights data provide a crucial opportunity for advancing this understanding.
Through a multi-year process of research and engagement, we developed analytical background on how water rights data plays into water management on a broader scale, combined with legal and institutional analysis. Ultimately, we find that a modernized water rights data is feasible, affordable, and can increase clarity for better decision making. Our report, Piloting a Water Rights Information System for California, offers a vision and roadmap for making it a reality.
June 2021
Envisioning Offshore Wind for California
Offshore wind could become an essential piece of California’s renewable energy puzzle while delivering on multiple statewide goals, from tackling climate change and addressing environmental justice to building a just transition and unlocking new economic opportunities. But none of these desirable goals can happen without a robust and far-sighted planning process that includes Californians’ diverse interests.
CLEE’s new report, Envisioning Offshore Wind for California, provides an overview of the challenges and opportunities. The report suggests priority actions to ensure a comprehensive, strategic approach to this new-to-California industry. It builds from input provided during two workshops from a wide range of participants, including local governments, non-profit organizations, labor representatives, fishermen, renewable energy developers, and more. CLEE convened these workshops with the intent of catalyzing broad and open conversations around OSW and determining potential pathways for future state action.
June 2021
Investing in Nature as a Climate Solution
To address these challenges, CLEE and our partners at UCLA Law’s Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment issued the new report, Seeding Capital.
March 2021
Priorities for Sonoma County’s Wildfire Settlement Vegetation Management Funds

The County retained CLEE to gather expert input and prepare recommendations for how to allocate these funds most efficiently and effectively. Considering the long-term and recurring nature of vegetation management, the diversity of County landscapes and ecosystems, and the scale of the need relative to the amount of funds, a range of strategies will be required to leverage the funds into long-term investments and ensure sustainable practices. CLEE convened a group of statewide experts and a group of County stakeholders to identify spending priorities. Our report, Priorities for Sonoma County’s Wildfire Settlement Vegetation Management Funds, outlines these priorities and offers specific strategies for the funds to achieve them.
February 2021
Data Access for a Decarbonized Grid

Recent Publications
CLIMATE & ENERGY
- Hot, Cold & Clean: Policy Solutions to Promote Equitable and Affordable Adoption of Heat Pump Retrofits in Existing Buildings (July 2022)
- Branching Out (May 2022)
- Analyzing Rail Transit Project Costs and Delays (January 2022)
- Policy Notes: Developing Climate Risk Policy for State Procurement and Bond Issuance (October 2021)
- Investing in Nature as a Climate Solution (June 2021)
- Priorities for Sonoma County’s Wildfire Settlement Vegetation Management Funds (March 2021)
WATER
- Piloting a Water Rights Information System for California (July 2021)
- Civic Engagement and Water Data: How Can California Make Data Work for Decision Makers? (September 2020)
- Examining Regulation and Innovation in Municipal Wastewater (Jan 2020)
- Addressing Institutional Vulnerabilities in California’s Drought Water Allocation (Aug 2018)
- When is Groundwater Recharge a Beneficial Use of Surface Water in California? (Aug 2018)
LAND USE
- Policy Brief: Enhancing Local Land Use Data (June 2019)
- Examining the Local Land Use Entitlement Process in California to Inform Policy and Process (Feb 2019)
OCEANS
- Envisioning Offshore Wind for California (June 2021)
- Oceans and Climate Change Governance, Ecology Law Quarterly (Sept 2018)
- Stress Testing the Law of the Sea: Dispute Resolution, Disasters & Emerging Challenges (Sept 2018)