On October 17, 2019 Gov. Tony Evers, along with Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes signed Executive Order #52, establishing the Governor's Task Force on Climate Change at the Urban Ecology Center's Riverside Park location in Milwaukee.
The Task Force on Climate Change will advised and assisted the governor in developing a strategy to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change for the benefit of all Wisconsin communities. Members of the task force worked closely with the Office of Sustainability and Clean Energy, created through Executive Order #38. The task force reported their findings and policy recommendations to Gov. Evers by October 31, 2020.
In the executive order, Gov. Evers stated climate change is a grave threat to the health, safety, and economic well-being of people and communities throughout Wisconsin. Gov. Evers has appointed Lt. Gov. Barnes to serve as chairman of the task force, who noted communities of color and low-income communities experience the first and worst consequences of climate change.