Deutsche Version
Environment, Climate Change, Science & Technology
The United States recognizes that all nations bear responsibility and all nations must work together to find solutions to the global climate crisis. In December 2009, governments from all over the world will meet in Copenhagen and try to negotiate a successor to the Kyoto Protocol. In the lead-up to Copenhagen, the United States will continue to engage constructively to contribute to an agreed outcome on a post-2012 arrangement that is both environmentally effective and economically sustainable. The United States sees the meeting in Copenhagen as a critical milestone and will work hard with all its partners to reach an agreement by then.
From his first days in office, President Obama has made it a top priority of the United States to accelerate our transformation to a clean energy economy and combat climate change. President Obama is committed to leading the way through strong domestic actions and working with partners around the world to achieve an international agreement that will promote the clean energy technologies necessary to lower global greenhouse gas emissions in the developed and developing worlds alike.
As a key part of this effort, President Obama launched the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate.
Latest Developments
August 10, 2009. North American Leaders’ Declaration on Climate Change, Energy - Leaders reaffirm urgency to take aggressive action on climate change.
July 9, 2009. July 9, 2009. At the G-8 summit in L'Aquila, Italy, President Obama remarked on the major economies forum declaration: “[C]limate change is one of the defining challenges of our time... Every nation on this planet is at risk, and just as no one nation is responsible for climate change, no one nation can address it alone.” more
• Briefing by Special Envoy on Climate Change
• Fact Sheet: Meeting the International Clean Energy and Climate Change Challenges
June 29, 2009. Remarks by the President on Energy: "Actions to promote energy efficiency across America"
June 29, 2009. Secretary Clinton’s remarks on the Signing the Statute of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009: Opening the Door to a Clean Energy Economy
June 26, 2009. The President praised historic energy legislation passed by the House of Representatives. The legislation would help America create green jobs, ensure clean air for our children, move towards energy independence and combat climate change: "[T]here is no longer a disagreement over whether our dependence on foreign oil is endangering our security. It is. There is no longer a debate about whether carbon pollution is placing our planet in jeopardy. It’s happening. And there is no longer a question about whether the jobs and industries of the 21st century will be centered around clean, renewable energy." Please note: The bill has been placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders.
Bonn Climate Change Conference
June 12, 2009. In his opening remarks at the U.S. Press Conference in Bonn, Deputy Envoy for Climate Change Jonathan Pershing said: “Climate change is an absolutely urgent problem. It needs a global and immediate response if we are to achieve a low-carbon future. We are working both domestically and in this forum as well as in others to achieve that outcome.” full remarks
• Spiegel online interviews Jonathan Pershing (June 12, 2009)
• Climate Talks: DW interviews Head of US climate delegation (June 05, 2009)
New Report - Climate Change Impacts Across America
June 16, 2009 – The White House helped to launch a new science report representing a consensus of 13 agencies developed over a year and half and focused on potential climate change impacts on the United States. It’s the most comprehensive report to date on the possible impacts of climate change for everyone across the United States, and begins an important process of redefining the sort of information that is needed in order to deal with climate change at national and regional scales. The report’s findings are located at the new home of the U.S. Global Change Research Program, the interagency Government program that commissioned the report. Read the report
President Obama Announces National Fuel Efficiency Policy
May 22, 2009 – President Obama – for the first time in history – set in motion a new national policy aimed at both increasing fuel economy and reducing greenhouse gas pollution for all new cars and trucks sold in the United States. The new standards, covering model years 2012-2016, and ultimately requiring an average fuel economy standard of 35.5 mpg in 2016, are projected to save 1.8 billion barrels of oil over the life of the program with a fuel economy gain averaging more than 5 percent per year and a reduction of approximately 900 million metric tons in greenhouse gas emissions. Remarks
Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate
The first preparatory session of the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate took place at the Department of State on April 27-28, 2009 at the level of leaders’ representatives. Secretary Clinton addressed the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate at the Department of State. Remarks/ in German
President Barack Obama announced the launch of the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate on March 28, 2009. The Forum is intended to facilitate a candid dialogue among major developed and developing economies, help generate the political leadership necessary to achieve a successful outcome at the December UN climate change conference in Copenhagen, and advance the exploration of concrete initiatives and joint ventures that increase the supply of clean energy while cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
The 17 major economies participating in the Major Economies Forum are: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Denmark, in its capacity as the President of the December 2009 Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, and the United Nations have also been invited to participate in this dialogue. White House Announcement
President Obama declared Climate Change a National Priority
Climate change and energy security are among today's most important and far-reaching policy challenges, destined to affect the future of generations to come. The Obama Administration has a comprehensive plan to invest in alternative and renewable energy, end the United States’ addiction to foreign oil, and address the global climate crisis.
President Obama – “Urgent dangers to our national and economic security are compounded by the long-term threat of climate change, which if left unchecked could result in violent conflict, terrible storms, shrinking coastlines and irreversible catastrophe… America will not be held hostage to dwindling resources, hostile regimes, and a warming planet. We will not be put off from action because action is hard. Now is the time to make the tough choices. Now is the time to meet the challenge at this crossroad of history by choosing a future that is safer for our country, prosperous for our planet, and sustainable.” read transcript
On January 26, President Obama signed two related presidential memorandums. In what he called “a down payment on a broader and sustained effort to reduce our dependence on foreign oil,” Obama directed the Department of Transportation to establish higher fuel efficiency standards for carmakers’ 2011 model year. The second memo directed the Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider a petition by California to set more stringent limits for greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles than those set by the federal government. See “Obama Sets Bold New Principles for U.S. Energy, Climate Policies.”
Secretary of Energy Steven Chu: Dr. Steven Chu was sworn in as the Secretary of Energy on January 21, 2009. Prior to his assignment at the Department of Energy, Dr. Chu served as the head of the Berkeley National Laboratory. He is a specialist in carbon-neutral energy sources and won the 1997 Nobel Prize in physics. “Dr. Chu has devoted his recent scientific career to the search for new solutions to our energy challenges and stopping global climate change – a mission he continues with even greater urgency as Secretary of Energy.” Secretary Chu sees his main task in finding and financing the scientific breakthroughs that will end the United States' dependence on carbon-based fuels and solve the climate change problem. read bio
Special Envoy for Climate Change: In late January, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton introduced Todd Stern as the nation’s new special envoy for climate change. “We are sending an unequivocal message that the United States will be energetic, focused, strategic and serious about addressing global climate change and the corollary issue of clean energy,” said Secretary of State Clinton. Stern serves as a principal adviser on international climate policy and strategy and as the administration’s chief climate negotiator. He will lead U.S. efforts in U.N. negotiations and will be a lead participant in developing climate and clean energy policy. “Containing climate change will require nothing less than transforming the global economy from a high-carbon [dioxide] to a low-carbon energy base,” Stern said.” America.gov
Todd Stern met with German Government officials on March 27 and represented the U.S. at the March 29 meeting of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bonn.
