The COVID-19 pandemic has generated severe public health and economic impacts in the Appalachian region as throughout the U.S. Focusing now on Ohio, with preliminary findings for Pennsylvania, PERI researchers Robert Pollin, Jeannette Wicks-Lim, Shouvik Chakraborty and Gregor Semieniuk propose a recovery program as a counterforce against the region’s economic collapse in the short run while also building a durable foundation for an economically viable and ecologically sustainable longer-term recovery. The Ohio study demonstrates how a robust climate stabilization project will also serve as a major engine of economic recovery and expanding opportunities throughout the state.