cancun

As the year kicked off, climate change and clean energy advocates were teased with the prospects of another jobs bill centered on clean energy provisions and the Kerry-Graham-Lieberman climate bill. The jobs bill was rumored to include the HomeStar program, which would fund a massive energy efficiency retrofit program (the best bang for the buck in reducing emissions), while the climate bill was rumored to include a full carbon cap.

After a long and drawn-out two weeks in Cancun, hope prevailed over obstructionism at the eleventh hour as 193 nations -- including the U.S. -- came together to accept a climate agreement, restoring faith in a UN process badly battered by last year’s climate talks in Copenhagen.