Could NASCAR be the road to greater acceptance of EVs?

Hello and welcome to the AP Climate Watch newsletter. I’m Douglas Glass , an editor for AP’s Climate and Environment team. Today I’m going to write about NASCAR and what its move toward electric cars could mean for attitudes toward climate change.?

As Earth warms dangerously, climate scientists agree that it’s urgent to cut back on the burning of fossil fuels, which feed that warming by releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. In the transportation sector, that means electric vehicles need to be a huge part of the answer.?

But EVs have gotten tangled up in politics, especially in America, where President Joe Biden has sought to boost them in the market while former President Donald Trump and some Republicans have attacked them. Polls, including one in April by The Associated Press and its polling partners, found about half of Democrats were at least somewhat likely to consider buying an EV but only 3 in 10 Republicans were.?

Could a NASCAR move into electrics change that – even a little??

The motorsports group unveiled its first electric racer just a few days ago at an event in Chicago. As AP’s Jennifer G. McDermott reported, the $1.5 million prototype can accelerate faster than a gas-powered rival but loses time on the corners due to its heavier weight.?

But winning NASCAR races isn’t on the immediate horizon. Instead, electric racers may be more about changing attitudes in a fan base that skews rural – not the friendliest territory for EVs.??

Eric Warren heads up global motorsports competition for General Motors. He told McDermott that market research showed that more than half of avid NASCAR fans surveyed would be more interested in buying an EV if they were exposed to it through racing. He called racing “a great platform” to educate fans.?

The electrification company ABB was among several partners with NASCAR in unveiling the electric prototype. ABB executive vice president Michael Plaster told McDermott he hopes kids who see the car will ask questions about moving toward a clean-electricity future.?

Now that would be a win.?

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As climate change puts more pressure on Earth’s living things, adaptation is becoming essential to conservation. Indigenous peoples around the world are seen as natural leaders when it comes to conservation given the deep connection many have to the natural world. In the northern Great Lakes region, members of Ojibwe and other tribes are working hard to maintain walleye fisheries that face a threat from warming waters. Melina Walling has the story.