McKnight grants to fight climate change

The McKnight Foundation says it's focusing its climate-related efforts on the Midwest, beginning with a $25 million grant to two organizations.

McKnight says the Midwest has disproportionately high greenhouse gas emissions compared to the rest of the country. But foundation President Kate Wolford said the region's economy, culture, industry and academic resources should make it a leader in the transition to a clean energy economy.

"We think that the communities are demanding it," Wolford said. "Communities are seeing these changing weather patterns and worry about how many floods of the centuries that we're seeing and drought and what this will mean for agriculture, so we think that there's demand across communities, government and businesses, to really position us for leadership in this arena."

The grantees are the Energy Foundation and RE-AMP, a collaboration of 150 organizations across eight states, including Minnesota, that work together to increase energy efficiency and reliance on renewable resources.

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