California’s attempt to increase housing and reduce carbon pollution is upsetting the power balance between local and state officials. With new laws empowering Sacramento to require more home construction, cities and counties are scrambling to decide what to build where. It’s getting messy and fraying friendships and alliances. 

Would you agree to increased housing density in your neighborhood? How about in the next neighborhood over? Infill development that increases urban density tends to decrease reliance on cars and cut carbon footprints. At the same time, multi-story apartments in urban cores usually cost more per square foot to build than one or two-story houses where land is cheaper. So how do we balance environmental concerns with “neighborhood preservation”? How do racial exclusion and displacement play into the situation? 

Join Climate One Host Greg Dalton in conversation with California State Senator Scott Wiener, followed by a panel discussion with Ben Bartlett, attorney and Berkeley vice mayor, and Jennifer Hernandez, partner at Holland & Knight, as we unpack the connections between housing, climate and justice.