Electricity
Capturing sunlight, turning waste to energy and
creating new habits around energy usage.
We’re bringing
climate solutions home.
Inspired by Project Drawdown®, we are building a movement in Georgia to accelerate progress toward net zero greenhouse gas emissions.
What’s Possible by 2030
If we get this right, we can cut Georgia’s carbon impact by 57% in 2030 compared to 2005 levels, from 156 megatons (MT) of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) to 67 MT. This is based on ambitious but achievable emissions reductions in five, high-impact areas:
67
Mt
Electricity
009
Mt
Buildings & Materials
004
Mt
Food & Agriculture
003
Mt
Land Sinks
004
Mt
Transportation
007
Mt
Buildings & Materials
Buildings and toxicity often go hand in hand,
but now we know better. Let’s build clean, Georgia!
Food & Agriculture
Many things about our food systems need an
overhaul. Let’s grow something new.
Land Sinks
Georgia has 22 million acres of working forests that
offset 8% of our emissions. Let’s plant more trees!
Transportation
In 2017, vehicles accounted for 43% of our emissions
— if we get this one right, we’re nearly halfway there!
What’s a Megaton of Carbon?
A megaton of carbon is equal to one million metric tons. The Drawdown Georgia research team measures greenhouse gas emissions by the megaton to measure the impact that climate solutions are having on statewide emissions. What does a megaton of carbon look like? Check out the Megaton Explorer below.
Explore
A State
of Change
Georgia is
Leading the Way
Drawdown Georgia is the first state-centered effort to crowdsolve for climate change, with 20 high-impact solutions that are tailored to Georgia’s unique natural, economic and social resources. These solutions can help us keep multiple megatons of carbon out of the atmosphere.
Drawdown Georgia Solutions
The Drawdown theory of change is based on scaling the best solutions we have today. Each Drawdown Georgia solution has a strong track record and is market ready. Scaling the solution to the level we need to reach by 2030 is both achievable and cost competitive.
Electricity
Buildings & Materials
Food & Agriculture
Land Sinks
Transportation
Electricity
Accelerating Georgia’s progress to renewables means increasing solar and putting waste heat to work in co-generation plants, capturing methane from landfills and turning it into power, and shifting our electricity usage to off-peak.
Buildings & Materials
Buildings are huge energy hogs and some of the materials that you’ll find inside them, like hydrofluorocarbon refrigerants, are big emitters. We can cut emissions in Georgia by recycling more, making our buildings more energy efficient, and replacing refrigerant chemicals with less polluting options.
Food & Agriculture
The way we grow our food, what we eat, and what happens to excess and waste are all essential parts of our carbon footprint. Drawdown solutions aim to grow food in ways that benefit the land and sequester carbon, increase lower carbon plant-forward diets, reduce food waste, and increase composting.
Land Sinks
Georgia’s natural land sinks - including 22 million acres of working forests and rich coastal wetlands - sequester 46 Mt of CO2 each year, offsetting 27% of total emissions in the state. It’s critical to increase our capacity to sequester carbon as we reduce emissions elsewhere.
Transportation
Georgia has nearly 90,000 miles of public roads and the world’s busiest airport. In 2017, vehicles accounted for 43% of our emissions — our single largest source! Drawdown aims to massively reduce our consumption of gasoline and diesel with a big push for electric and fuel-efficient vehicles, more and smarter mass transit, and better alternative mobility options.
Beyond Carbon
A changing climate makes bad things in our society and communities worse. Getting back to a healthy climate can improve more than just our planet’s health. Drawdown Georgia solutions impact our state’s economy, social inequities, public health, and the environment.
Economy
Innovation is the engine of economic growth and renewal. Drawdown solutions can drive local economic and employment growth, bring high-skill jobs to our state, and drive infrastructure investments that make Georgia…
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Equity
Successful climate solutions lift people up, ensure that all communities are at the table, and deliver benefits to those who are under-resourced. Focusing on equity ensures that community concerns…
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Public Health
Solutions like electric vehicles, mass transportation, alternative mobility, healthy buildings, and renewable energy improve air quality and reduce the chances that our kids will have asthma…
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Environment
We all win when we protect the environment and ecosystems. Conservation agriculture practices and temperate forest stewardship extend the benefits of our natural carbon sinks like trees, soil, and other vegetation…
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Meet the Climate Change Makers
Our solutions are market-ready and already happening in Georgia. From the peanut farmer who sold 1,400 acres of his farm for community solar, to an ambitious project to create the most sustainable highway in the world, Georgia is boldly innovating its way to a promising future.
Stories & Studies
How Landfill Methane Capture Is Cutting Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Georgia
Landfills are one of Georgia’s largest sources of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that can warm the planet at a rate dozens of times greater than carbon dioxide. As organic waste breaks down beneath the surface, methane is released into the
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Building an Equitable Clean Energy Future in DeKalb County: A Climate Digest Interview with Stacey Isaac Berahzer
When DeKalb County decided to pursue a 100% clean energy future, they didn’t just look for technical solutions—they made a deliberate choice to center community engagement and equity. In a recent interview for the Georgia Climate Digest video
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Keeping Our Cool: How Georgia Can Cut Emissions by Tackling Refrigerant Leaks
When you think about what’s heating the planet, your mind might jump to tailpipes or smokestacks—but the appliances keeping our food cold and buildings comfortable are quietly playing a big role, too. Refrigerants, the gases that power air
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A Conversation with Jenni Harris of White Oak Pastures
It might be difficult to believe that a single family business in Bluffton, Ga., is helping to regenerate farmland, revive a small town, produce nutritious food for the community, and scale climate solutions in our state, but all of this–and more–is happening at White Oak Pastures. Jenni Harris is a member of the Drawdown Georgia Leadership Council and part of the fifth generation to raise livestock at White Oak Pastures. She recently joined Blair Beasley for a conversation about the incredible work underway at her family’s farm, from regenerative agriculture to grazing operations at the neighboring large-scale solar installation.