Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

Biden’s Climate Change Policy: Why His Special Envoy Role Matters

Biden’s Climate Change Policy: Why His Special Envoy Role Matters

President-Elect Joe Biden’s appointment of John Kerry to a newly created climate envoy position shows that he is committed to returning the United States to its status as a global leader on climate change.
What does President-Elect Joe Biden’s creation of a climate envoy position say about his approach to climate change?


Biden has sent three powerful signals to the world in creating the climate envoy position on the National Security Council (NSC), the president’s principal forum for considering national security and foreign policy matters.

First, the move shows that the United States is back in the game internationally when it comes to combating climate change. Second, it demonstrates the Biden administration’s intent to have the United States reassume the mantle of global leadership on climate, while also solidifying U.S. commitment to climate diplomacy. Third, it indicates that the U.S. government will treat climate change not only as an environmental challenge but also as a mounting threat to national security.

What does John Kerry bring to the table?


As former secretary of state and senator, John Kerry brings an extraordinary depth of experience to his new position. In 2009, when he assumed the gavel of the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, he chose climate change as the focus of the first hearing he convened. As secretary of state, he was lead negotiator in 2015 for the historic Paris Agreement on reducing global emissions.

Kerry also negotiated the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol aimed at phasing out the production and use of hydrofluorocarbons, a potent global-warming agent with one thousand times the heat-trapping capacity of carbon dioxide. As chair of the Arctic Council, Kerry steered the focus of the eight-nation consortium toward climate change mitigation and adaptation in addition to Arctic Ocean security and stewardship.

Kerry’s previous successes provide a platform upon which he can build to galvanize international action. His stature, name recognition, and track record give him instant credibility among world leaders.

What will the climate envoy do?


Given that this is the first time a climate envoy will sit on the NSC, Kerry will have latitude to define the role. At a minimum, the climate envoy will have a voice in the president’s most important decisions about foreign affairs and national security. Kerry will be able to ensure that the impacts of climate change and the need to reduce emissions factor into those decisions in a meaningful way.

Whether faced with widespread flooding in Indonesia, unprecedented heat events in India, or unchecked migration to the United States from Central America, the climate envoy can help inform the administration’s responses over the next four years and set the nation on a course to effectively handle the long-term consequences of a changing climate.Most immediately, Kerry will guide the nation’s reentry into the Paris Agreement.

He will aim to reopen dialogues—on a bilateral and multilateral basis—about climate change, seeking ways to reinforce international cooperation and bolster commitments for both mitigation and adaptation. He will likely press the new administration to honor the United States’ pledge to the UN Green Climate Fund designed to help the poorest nations deal with climate change.

Kerry has already called for countries to use the United Nations’ 2021 climate conference as a forum for heightening collective ambitions to establish more aggressive emissions reduction targets. Strengthening alliances to address the accelerating crisis, as well as finding ways to push China to promote cleaner energy, especially in countries that are participating in its Belt and Road Initiative, will undoubtedly also be high on the agenda.

What challenges will the climate envoy face?


If Republicans continue to hold a majority in the Senate, they could disrupt the Biden administration’s efforts to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement given their historic antipathy to climate action, including the regulation of fossil fuel emissions. Additionally, some environmental organizations have criticized Kerry for past policies under the Barack Obama administration that they perceived as insufficient for solving the global climate crisis. He will face questions about the Biden administration’s climate mitigation strategies, including its stance on natural gas production and fracking.

Kerry will also assume the challenging task of restoring U.S. credibility internationally after years of backtracking, withdrawals, and outright denialism from the executive branch dashed confidence in the United States’ commitments to its allies. The past four years will prompt skepticism as the incoming administration attempts to reassert U.S. leadership and inspire more ambitious action on climate change.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
×