Today, the Biden administration will announce a pledge of $3 billion for the Green Climate Fund (GCF)—the largest global fund supporting efforts to tackle climate change. The GCF is in its second replenishment period which is aimed at raising funding to cover the GCF’s work from 2024-2027. This announcement comes as COP28, the annual U.N. climate talks are underway in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, running from November 30 to December 12.
Below is a statement by Dr. Rachel Cleetus, the policy director and a lead economist in the Climate and Energy Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). Dr. Cleetus has more than 20 years of experience working on international climate and energy issues and is a regular attendee of the annual U.N. climate talks.
“The Biden administration’s announcement of a $3 billion pledge to the Green Climate Fund is welcome news at COP28. The GCF is crucial for supporting the efforts of low- and middle-income countries to scale up clean energy, cut their heat-trapping emissions, and prepare for the worsening impacts of climate change. Congress must now step up to appropriate the funding to ensure this pledge is fully realized, and the funding is delivered quickly.
“While today’s GCF pledge alongside other US climate finance commitments are a significant start, President Biden’s promise to marshal $11.4 billion annually by 2024 is an important benchmark that must also be fulfilled. The United States did not fully meet its previous GCF pledge and continues to fall behind other nations that have ramped up their pledges this year. As the IPCC and numerous other recent scientific reports have underscored, there is an urgent need for significantly more funding to cut emissions sharply and respond to the increasingly severe climate crisis around the world. By living up to its global responsibilities, the United States can help unlock greater ambition from other countries and help build the goodwill and trust it will take for nations to confront this pressing challenge together.”