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Sustainability Scholar Isabell Luo ’25 Presents on “U.S. Carbon Pricing: A Socially Just, Political Economy Approach

Co-Head of the Andover Climate Lobby Isabell Luo ’25 presented her Sustainability Scholar research on U.S. Carbon Pricing in Kemper Auditorium.

Sustainability Scholar Isabell Luo ’25 presented “U.S. Carbon Pricing: A Socially Just, Political Economy Approach” this past Friday. In her presentation, Luo drew upon her past advocacy in climate coalitions to propose a stringent carbon tax policy that considers both environmental justice and the political economy. 

As a Co-Head of the Andover Climate Lobby, Luo gained experience from lobbying with climate coalitions like the Massachusetts Youth Climate Coalition (MYCC) and Citizens Climate Lobby (CCL). Luo explained how the topic of her presentation had been an interest to her since Junior year.

“My presentation focuses on the power dynamics and how… environmental [voices] of justice communities and indigenous communities are usually overshadowed by corporate influence in policy in the United States. The main idea of [my] presentation is how we can design an effective carbon tax that mitigates climate change and also balances political feasibility with environmental justice in the United States,” said Luo.

She continued, “I knew I wanted to research this… Throughout ninth grade, I got involved in these two groups, [MYCC and CCL], and I was aware [of this] carbon tax divide. By the time I got to [Workshop 10], I wrote my first ten-page research paper. I didn’t really expand on it and get into the case studies, so that’s why I wanted to be a Sustainability Scholar to really flesh that out further. I had [talked to Tedd Parker, Instructor in History and Social Science] about this topic, and he was very willing to be my faculty advisor for the project.”

Luo’s presentation opened with her experience meeting with U.S. Congressman Seth Moulton ’97 in Washington, D.C. to advocate for a carbon-free dividend or carbon tax as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. Luo, who anticipated more support for this policy, explained how an ideal design for a carbon tax has to address concerns about revenue distribution and sustainability.

“It turns out that even though we left this meeting feeling really excited with smiles on our faces, not everyone in the climate movement or in the United States supports a carbon tax. This became more prominent as I came back to Massachusetts and brought my statement to the Massachusetts Youth Climate Coalition. I was confused why not everyone supported the carbon tax, and when I started talking to the people, I realized that they didn’t necessarily disagree with the idea of taxing carbon, but rather [with] how the revenue is distributed to mitigate the disproportionate impacts of climate change,” said Luo.

A key focus of Luo’s presentation was how carbon pricing policies could be structured to balance power dynamics between stakeholders. Lisa de Boer ’26, Co-Head of the Phillips Academy Sustainability Coalition, noted how her efforts to engage with environmental justice communities and their interests emphasized the need for a socially just approach to climate policy.

“What stood out to me was the way that she engaged with relevant groups of people in her presentation, and that she really took into consideration the different interests of different groups that this legislation would apply to. Her focus on social justice was a very smart choice because I think social justice is often talked about, but not explored in detail and in a way that is accessible to everyone in the field of climate change,” said de Boer. 

Bruce Ru ’28, another student who attended the event, asked a question about current examples of such policies after hearing about her criteria for an ideal carbon tax. He spoke about how Luo brought up several case studies and policies to construct an answer that satisfied him.   

“I totally understood [her answer]. She evidently did many, many hours of research. She synthesized essentially what was the best of a lot of different entities, and I’m glad that somebody was able to study all those examples and come up with a conclusion like that. I think that really did indeed show that she was able to look at what’s already there and really develop it further,” said Ru. 

To conclude, Luo reflected on the importance of collaborating with multiple groups to create economically efficient and socially equitable solutions to climate policy. She expressed how these relationships and connections are especially promising in a society that is becoming increasingly polarized.  

“When I talked to MYCC and CCL people and showed them the things that I researched about how to bridge equity and political feasibility, how bipartisanship doesn’t come at the cost of environmental justice, people were willing to listen, and CCL Boston has now joined MYCC as an adult ally. It’s really great to see that collaboration at a local scale, and that’s what gives me hope that even in such a polarized environment, there’s still hope in making connections with people and building relationships and eventually getting something that is politically feasible, environmentally just, and tackles climate change past,” said Luo.