Jay Inslee

Protecting a World of Wonders

Jay Inslee has been called America’s greenest governor. During his three terms, he put fighting climate change and building a clean energy economy at the center of his agenda, helping turn Washington State into a model for other states and countries.

What may be less known is that back in 2002, while serving in Congress, he proposed an Apollo-like renewable energy program—long before climate change was on most people’s radar.

How did climate become such an urgent issue for him so early, and why has he remained so driven to address it as a congressman, governor, and presidential candidate? I sat down with him in June 2026 to find out.

Developing an Environmental Ethic

Listening to Governor Inslee describe his childhood growing up in the Seattle area, you’d think he was raised in a world of wonders.

His father, a biology teacher, took him to Carkeek Park to “explain the life cycle of limpets and clams and turn over rocks and see crabs.” His parents also spent several summers leading groups of high school students doing trail work and alpine meadow restoration around Mount Rainier. His grandfather had a cabin north of Everett, where he helped pull in fishing nets and explored in a hand-built motorboat. He vividly remembers being out on the water with his dad and hearing the deep, resonant breathing of an Orca through the fog near their small boat.

These childhood experiences formed what may be the deepest driver of his climate action. “My motivation is that I want my grandchildren and great-grandchildren to have the same kind of experiences that I had as a child—the joy of seeing an Orca, seeing snow on Mount Rainier, and seeing forests that don’t burn down.”

Adding an Economic Lens

Inslee studied economics at the University of Washington and still remembers taking his first economics class from professor Jim Crutchfield, a pioneer in natural resource economics. He was struck by the concept of the tragedy of the commons, where individuals acting in their own self-interest deplete or spoil a free, shared resource even though it harms everyone in the long run.

“The whole air pollution scenario immediately came to me just listening to him. We’re using all the atmosphere as an unlimited waste sewer dump at zero cost. Of course, it’s going to get overused.”

For Inslee, the key takeaway was that environmental problems are market failures. “It’s informed everything I’ve done from a policy standpoint.” “I’ve always married the environmental necessity of this and the economic opportunity as well as building a clean energy economy.”

His views were expanded further when, after losing his first congressional seat in 1995, he started a monthly discussion group at a taco shop with KC Golden and others to discuss climate solutions. He became convinced that clean energy could be a major economic engine and that America could lead the world by building the technologies required for a carbon-free future.

A Defining Mission

When Inslee returned to Congress, representing Washington’s 1^st district, climate became a lens through which he viewed nearly every major challenge.

He invited Al Gore to present his climate slide show to House members, introduced various cap-and-invest bills, and proposed a “New Apollo Project” calling for a national mobilization around clean energy. He later expanded on that idea by co-authoring a book in 2007–Apollo’s Fire: Igniting America’s Clean Energy Economy.

But his most impactful effort was a surprise. From the 2008 Economic Recovery Act, “I got $90 million for advanced battery research and that’s probably the greatest impact I had from my time in Congress.” The money advanced new lithium-ion technologies that are now growing exponentially.

As governor from 2013 to 2025, he sought to turn Washington into a proving ground and role model for climate policy, including: the creation of the state’s Clean Energy Fund, passage of clean-electricity legislation, development of the Climate Commitment Act, and co-founding the U.S. Climate Alliance after President Trump withdrew the United States from the Paris Agreement.

An Existential Threat

Inslee effectively staked his whole political identity on climate when he launched his presidential campaign in 2019. His launch included the statement: “Climate change is not more important than the economy. It is the economy.”

Asked what motivated his run, he was direct. “I do believe it’s the most existential threat to the nation long term. And if we don’t solve this problem, we’re kind of toast. So, that’s what motivated me to run.” He added that he had “some good answers on what we could do about it” and that it was a campaign differentiator.

He recalled challenging Joe Biden during the first Democratic debate. “He said, ‘I’m going to work on it [his climate plan].’ And I said, ‘Work on it? The house is on fire.’” Inslee believes his focus on climate got other candidates to raise their ambitions and get Biden’s plan on track. “That eventually resulted in the Inflation Reduction Act, which did more than 90% of what I proposed.”

Protecting What You Love

Shifting to the beliefs, values, and emotions that underlie his passion, he said “”It’s simple. You want to protect what you love. The things I love, the places I love, the people I love are all at risk, and I don’t want anybody to suffer the loss, the feeling of a loss, the absence, the void, the disappearance of all these things that I love and that my grandkids love.”

He said that love is the “definition of Christianity” and that he was raised in that tradition and belief. But the idea of dominion over nature has been interpreted differently. “Does that mean dominance to control and exploit, or does it mean stewardship and care of creation? I tend to the latter because if you believe in a loving Lord and a supreme being, would it really make sense to destroy what he or she created? I don’t think so.”

“I like the world, the natural world, as it is.” He told the story of a failed attempt to revive a butterfly that’s at risk of going extinct. “It’s got this yellow, golden intricate design. It was so beautiful. The idea of beauty disappearing really gets to me.”

Responsibility to Future Generations

Underlying all of Inslee’s thinking is a deep sense of obligation to those who come after us.

“In my book, in any family, in any value system, in any religious belief, in any economic system, you’ve got an obligation to give your grandchildren and your great-grandchildren and your great-great-grandchildren a chance to enjoy what you have at a minimum. At a minimum. A fighting chance to have what we have.”

He feels that responsibility especially strongly as a member of the baby boom generation. “We were there for the first Earth Day, and to leave the stage now with a climate denier running the country is just a heartbreak. We shouldn’t leave it in this direction.”

The future of outdoor recreation is a concern he brought up. As the climate warms, “You can’t do sports. The mountain climbers can’t climb. Skiers can’t ski. Fishermen don’t have fish in the water. Hunters don’t have stuff to hunt. Too hot to play tennis, etc.” 

Ultimately, he believes history will judge today’s generation by how it responds to climate change. “This is the issue we’ll be judged on a hundred years from now.”

A World of Wonders

Reflecting on our conversation, Inslee’s motivations are personal, moral, spiritual, economic, and deeply rooted in place. Rather than talking about statistics, he repeatedly returned to his experiences around the Puget Sound, a deep gratitude for the natural world he inherited and a determination to pass it on–preserving a world of wonders.

His final story brought the conversation full circle. About a decade ago, he was walking on a beach with his six-year-old grandson. “He would turn over a rock and see the crabs and his face would just light up. He’d be so excited. Look at this little crab crawling around, and he’s so much fun and he’s got a little home.” 

Then Inslee paused and reflected on the connection to his own childhood. “I remember that was the feeling I had.”

And that, perhaps more than any policy, any law, any proposal, explains what has driven Jay Inslee’s commitment to climate action for well over two decades.

“I want everybody’s great-grandchildren to have those feelings.”

Resources & Links

jayinslee.com

U.S. Climate Alliance – a bipartisan coalition of governors sustaining America’s fight against climate change

Washington’s Climate Commitment Act (2021)

Book – Apollo’s Fire: Igniting America’s Clean Energy Economy (2007)