California and Denmark Sign ‘Comprehensive’ Agreement on Climate and Tech

In a conference room high atop Salesforce Tower in San Francisco, looking out upon a sea of fog on Friday, officials from California and Denmark signed an agreement between the two governments focused on climate, technology and cybersecurity.

Underlying the press conference was a theme of inclusivity, which Gov. Gavin Newsom said “distinguished” California from the Trump administration.

“Our mindset is about encouraging people from all over the world to feel like they belong, they’re seen, they’re heard. It’s an economic strategy. And I feel like all those values are challenged at the moment,” Newsom said.

Officials said the memorandum of understanding will bolster commercial and research ties between the country and state, which would largely focus on green energy, sustainability and artificial intelligence.

“This is the most comprehensive kind of agreement we have made so far with any American state and we are extremely happy to do so,” said Lars Løkke Rasmussen, foreign minister and former prime minister of Denmark.

Rasmussen cited an example where the two entities are working with Stanford University to map groundwater reservoirs, in which “researchers, companies and policy makers from Denmark and California worked together.”

The governments agreed to the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2045 by transitioning to clean energy and employing “climate smart agriculture,” among other things. They stated an intent to collaborate on “digital and cyber resilience,” and share knowledge on emerging technologies and sustainability. The work would take place through international visits and strategic dialogues.

When asked by a Danish journalist whether he was leading the U.S. resistance against President Trump, Newsom responded, “I don’t know if you’ve been watching my Twitter feed, I’m doing what I can.”

Newsom has recently copied Trump’s social media style, firing off missives with all capitals and lots of exclamation-points, trolling, name-calling and grandiose statements. Newsom’s mocking posts have led to a surge in his social media engagement.

In their press release announcing the Danish-Californian partnership, Newsom officials cited several other examples of collaboration between the state and countries, which included Sweden, Mexico and China.

Chris Field, director of the Woods Institute for the Environment at Stanford, said climate partnerships between California and other countries date back at least to the George W. Bush administration, if not longer.

“International collaboration is going to continue to be an important part of tackling the climate crisis and with the lack of engagement of the federal government, states have an opportunity,” Field said.

“We in California and countries around the world are trying to figure out how to build the economy that’s going to run us through the 21st century,” Field said. “Relevant technologies and agreements like this really help lay the foundations for those technologies being built.”