As Trump abandons America’s allies, Governor Newsom rallies world leaders at UN climate summit, meets with Brazil’s President Lula, and signs new partnership with Portugal

Laying the groundwork for COP32 in Africa

Governor Newsom congratulated Ethiopia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and COP32 President-designate, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, on hosting next year’s conference in Addis Ababa, the first COP in sub-Saharan Africa since 2011. They discussed his priorities for the summit and Ethiopia’s remarkably quick adoption of electric vehicles, as well as California’s work to expand battery storage and EV charging.

In 2024, Ethiopia became the first African country to prohibit imports of gasoline and diesel vehicles. EVs now make up about 8% of its vehicle fleet, and more than 95% of its electricity comes from renewable sources, mainly hydropower. Like California, Ethiopia faces severe climate-driven weather, including an El Niño-linked drought affecting about 3.5 million people, and is advancing reforestation through its Green Legacy Initiative.

States and cities showed up

Governor Newsom closed the day at the invitation of UN Secretary-General António Guterres, joining governors and mayors from around the world, including Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and London Mayor Sadiq Khan, to elevate the role of states and cities in global climate action. 

Governor Newsom thanked the Secretary-General for his longstanding commitment to climate action and for creating forums where states and cities can share what works. Calling this an era of implementation, he pointed to California’s Cap-and-Invest program as an example of what states can deliver and said the work of turning commitments into results is now underway.

California at COP31

COP31 is the 31st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, an annual global climate conference that brings together world leaders, scientists, businesses, non-governmental organizations, and civil society to advance action on climate change. Held in Antalya, Türkiye, from November 9–20, 2026, the conference is hosted by Türkiye, with Australia leading the negotiations. This year’s focus is on implementation: turning climate commitments into concrete, measurable results.

As a founding member of the Under2 Coalition and the U.S. Climate Alliance and as co-chair of America Is All In, California is demonstrating how states and regions can sustain international cooperation, accelerate clean energy, and deliver climate solutions that lower costs, create jobs, and strengthen resilience, even as the federal government retreats.

California’s delegation includes Governor Gavin Newsom; First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom; California Natural Resources Agency Secretary Wade Crowfoot; California Department of Food and Agriculture Secretary Karen Ross; California Public Utilities Commission President John Reynolds; California Air Resources Board Chair Lauren Sanchez; and Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation Director Samuel Assefa.

California’s climate leadership

Since Governor Newsom took office in 2019, California has added more than 39,000 megawatts of utility-scale clean energy to serve the California grid. That’s helped make the grid more reliable and pushed the state further along its path in the clean energy transition.

The most recent numbers, from the end of 2024, show real progress: 67% of retail electricity sales in the state already come from clean energy. Last year, clean energy met 100% of the state’s electricity needs for at least part of the day on 279 separate days.

Solar and battery storage have been a key part of that progress, and are changing how California keeps the lights on. Since 2019, battery resources serving California grew from fewer than 700 megawatts to more than 23,000 megawatts — an increase of more than 3,100%. Batteries store solar power when it is abundant and deliver it after sunset. That reduces how often the state needs to run natural gas plants, which cuts air pollution and supports a more cost-effective electricity system. 

California’s approach is also where the money is heading. Global investors are now putting roughly two dollars into clean-energy technology for every dollar that goes into fossil fuels. California is leading that shift while Donald Trump watches from the sidelines.

For California, that means investing in the good-paying jobs of the future. The Golden State is the 4th-largest economy in the world and leads the nation in total clean energy jobs, with 552,300 workers employed across clean energy technologies, nearly twice as many as the second-ranked state, Texas, according to a 2025 report from E2. California’s clean energy workforce grew by nearly 7,300 workers in 2024, outpacing job growth in the rest of the state’s economy by more than three times.

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