Professor resigns from science post in Trump administration | McClatchy Washington Bureau

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Kammen is in early talks with Gov. Jerry Brown about developing a major climate change research institute funded by revenue from the state’s cap-and-trade program, as reported by the science journal Nature. Kammen told Nature the goal of the program is to “develop the research we need, and then put climate solutions into practice.”

Brown and other state leaders recognize the potential global impact of the program in light of Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris agreement, Kammen told the magazine.

“The term we often use is ‘rule from below,’” he said in the article.

As a science envoy, Kammen focused on building capacity for renewable energies, according to a state department website. The science envoy program draws on scientists and engineers to leverage their expertise and networks to build connections and identify opportunities for international cooperation. The state department says 18 envoys, described as “world-renowned scientific experts” in their fields, have traveled to 41 countries since 2010.

Kammen is the director of the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory, chair of the Energy Resources Group and a professor in the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley, according to the university.

The professor’s resignation is another example of fallout from Trump’s messaging about the violent rallies in Virginia. After the rally several chief executives of major US companies dropped out of his manufacturing council, which prompted the president to dismantle the group altogether.