Speeches Shim
“We can no longer delay or do the bare minimum to address climate change. This is a global, existential crisis, and we’ll all suffer the consequences if we fail.”
President Joe Biden
Climate change is a threat that sees no borders and can harm us all. Around the world, temperatures and sea levels are rising. From more intense forest fires in California to more prolonged droughts in the Horn of Africa to recurring typhoons in Southeast Asia—much of the world is already experiencing the negative impacts of a changing climate.
Addressing the climate crisis must be a collective effort. The United States is committed to renewing our strong alliance in the effort to deal with the climate crisis and cooperating with our global partners to strengthen our climate ambition.
Climate change is not just an existential threat, it is currently threatening development progress and exacerbating global inequities; increasing water and food scarcity, the need for humanitarian assistance, and displacement; and contributing to conflict.
USAID plays a vital role in mitigating climate change and addressing its impacts by partnering with more than 45 countries to implement ambitious emissions reduction measures, protect critical ecosystems, transition to renewable energy, build resilience against the impacts of climate change, and promote the flow of capital toward climate-positive investments. We are also integrating climate considerations across USAID’s portfolio to protect development progress.
We have a narrow moment to pursue action in order to protect our environment and to seize the opportunity that tackling climate change presents. Together we can make a difference for a healthier and more prosperous planet.
Key Issues
-
Energy
Supporting the transition to renewable energy and improving energy efficiency to reduce emissions and improve energy access.
-
Forests
Reducing emissions by combating deforestation and improving conservation and management of carbon-rich forests and landscapes.
-
Safety
Helping communities and countries better prepare for, respond to, and recover from climate-related disasters.
-
Food
Strengthening global food and nutrition security by advancing climate-smart agriculture and increased resilience to droughts, rising temperatures, and changing rainfall patterns.
-
Water
Helping people and economies deliver climate-resilient drinking water and sanitation, and manage water resources to cope with growing scarcity. And protecting our oceans by limiting climate impacts and addressing other critical threats, like ocean plastic pollution.
-
Air
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and air pollutants which in turn improves public health, reduces poverty and inequality, and lessens climate change impacts.
Stories
Betting Big on Renewables
Meet Arman, an energy specialist from Kazakhstan. He wants to fight climate change and believes renewable energy is key to the solution. With USAID assistance, Kazakhstan met its renewable energy goal in 2020 and is now working toward 50 percent renewable energy by 2050.
A Flavorful Partnership
With support from USAID and McCormick, Malagasy vanilla farmers form cooperatives and harvest new opportunities. Sustainably grown vanilla has the potential to protect forests and their ability to mitigate climate change, while providing the farmers with much needed income.
How 5 Young African Leaders Are Addressing Climate Change
USAID supports Young African Leadership Initiative (YALI) alumni as they tackle the world’s most pressing issues. USAID is working to elevate diverse local voices—including those of youth advocates for climate action—to empower often overlooked communities to be agents of change.
Harvesting the Bounty of the Sea
In the village of Babuyan, on the Philippine island of Palawan, fisherfolk are venturing into seaweed farming for a sustainable future. Seaweed is an effective natural way to absorb carbon emissions, and unlike trees, it does not compete with land needed for food production.
When Hope Flows With Water
Small-scale utilities in the Philippines bring clean water to local communities not connected to city water service providers. USAID is helping these communities identify water production challenges and integrate climate and disaster resilience into water safety planning.
News & Information
Last updated: November 09, 2021
On November 6 at COP26, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Samantha Power announced a suite of programs and targets to advance Global Action for Climate Equity.
On November 3, Administrator Samantha Power announced a major new initiative to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions as part of the U.S. Government’s efforts to combat the climate crisis. USAID will support partner countries to prevent six billion metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions by 2030. This cumulative amount is roughly equal to total U.S. domestic emissions for one year or the equivalent of removing more than 1 billion gasoline powered cars from the road for one year.
Administrator Samantha Power announced new USAID programs in support of the Plan to Conserve Global Forests: Critical Carbon Sinks, which President Biden announced at COP26 on November 2. The plan—the first of its kind for the U.S. Government—outlines how the U.S. will help protect the Amazon rainforest and other critical ecosystems worldwide that sequester large quantities of greenhouse gases. Conserving these ecosystems is essential for combating the climate crisis.
As President Biden’s Plan to Conserve Global Forests and Critical Carbon Sinks has made clear, conserving tropical forests is no longer merely a stop-gap—it is one of the most important steps we can take to mitigate climate change while reducing the risk of disease spillover and potential future pandemics. Healthy, intact forests are critical for our survival and deliver a wealth of benefits: from the clean air and water they provide, to food and critical medicines. They conserve key biodiversity, store carbon, and shield people from extreme weather, and provide livelihoods to people around the world.
On Earth Day 2021, USAID announced its commitment to developing a new Agency climate strategy, which will guide the Agency’s efforts to target climate change resources strategically, ramp up climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts, and further integrate climate change considerations into international development and humanitarian assistance programs across all sectors.
Comment
Make a general inquiry or suggest an improvement.