Governor is leading a California delegation to COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, to showcase the state’s climate results and build partnerships; the governor’s office said the U.S. State Department confirmed it will not send a delegation to the summit.
The governor’s office said this is the second straight year the Trump administration is skipping the UN climate conference; the release noted the administration sent no note-taker to last year’s COP30 in Belém and has moved to withdraw from international climate agreements and roll back pollution limits.
The delegation includes First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, Natural Resources Secretary , Agriculture Secretary , California Public Utilities Commission President , California Air Resources Board Chair and Samuel Assefa, director of the Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation.
The release listed climate metrics the delegation will highlight: Californians have purchased 2.7 million zero-emission vehicles; battery storage has grown to more than 23,000 megawatts, up from nearly 17,000 megawatts at the time of COP30; 67% of retail electricity sales come from clean energy, as of the end of 2024; and clean energy met 100% of the state's electricity needs for at least part of the day on 279 separate days last year.
The governor’s office also cited economic and social results the state will present at COP31: a 3.9% decline in climate pollution in 2024 while the economy grew 3.2% in 2024; more than $1.5 trillion in economic growth since 2019; 552,300 clean energy workers; $886 million in California Climate Credit relief; one million Californians who relied on failing water systems gaining access to safe drinking water; and more than 3.5 million acres of land and coastal waters conserved.
Newsom is expected to announce new international climate partnerships and meet with world leaders and international partners, including Australia, which the release said is leading COP31 negotiations; the governor’s office said California will work with groups including America Is All In, the U.S. Climate Alliance and the Under2 Coalition to scale proven solutions.
Newsom said in the release, "Trump is temporary. California’s partnerships around the world are not." The release also said the delegation will emphasize that climate action supports affordability and economic security.
The governor's office said building clean power and battery storage and helping more Californians drive electric means less dependence on volatile global oil and gas markets, and that investing in resilience protects homes and businesses from wildfires, droughts and floods.
State
Gavin Newsom
Governor · Democrat
Named 4 times in this story.
Portrait: Official portrait
State
Wade Crowfoot
Secretary for Natural Resources
Named once in this story.
Portrait: Region 5 Photography, USDA Forest Service / Wikimedia Commons (public domain)
State
Karen Ross
Secretary, California Department of Food and Agriculture
Named once in this story.
Portrait: California Department of Food and Agriculture / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
State
John Reynolds
President, California Public Utilities Commission
Named once in this story.
State
Lauren Sanchez
Chair, California Air Resources Board
Named once in this story.
Sources & methodology
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