Hill Heat

Hearing page

Witnesses

• Ernest Moniz, President and CEO, Energy Futures Initiative
• Khalil Shahyd, Senior Advisor, Natural Resources Defense Council
• Zoe Lipman, Director, Manufacturing and Advanced Transportation, BlueGreen Alliance

President Biden invited 40 world leaders to the Leaders Summit on Climate he will host on April 22 and April 23. The virtual Leaders Summit will be live streamed for public viewing.

The Leaders Summit on Climate will underscore the urgency – and the economic benefits – of stronger climate action. It will be a key milestone on the road to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) this November in Glasgow.

In recent years, scientists have underscored the need to limit planetary warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius in order to stave off the worst impacts of climate change. A key goal of both the Leaders Summit and COP26 will be to catalyze efforts that keep that 1.5-degree goal within reach. The Summit will also highlight examples of how enhanced climate ambition will create good paying jobs, advance innovative technologies, and help vulnerable countries adapt to climate impacts.

By the time of the Summit, the United States will announce an ambitious 2030 emissions target as its new Nationally Determined Contribution under the Paris Agreement. In his invitation, the President urged leaders to use the Summit as an opportunity to outline how their countries also will contribute to stronger climate ambition.

The Summit will reconvene the U.S.-led Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate, which brings together 17 countries responsible for approximately 80 percent of global emissions and global GDP. The President also invited the heads of other countries that are demonstrating strong climate leadership, are especially vulnerable to climate impacts, or are charting innovative pathways to a net-zero economy. A small number of business and civil society leaders will also participate in the Summit.

Key themes of the Summit will include:

• Galvanizing efforts by the world’s major economies to reduce emissions during this critical decade to keep a limit to warming of 1.5 degree Celsius within reach. Mobilizing public and private sector finance to drive the net-zero transition and to help vulnerable countries cope with climate impacts.
• The economic benefits of climate action, with a strong emphasis on job creation, and the importance of ensuring all communities and workers benefit from the transition to a new clean energy economy.
• Spurring transformational technologies that can help reduce emissions and adapt to climate change, while also creating enormous new economic opportunities and building the industries of the future.
• Showcasing subnational and non-state actors that are committed to green recovery and an equitable vision for limiting warming to 1.5 degree Celsius, and are working closely with national governments to advance ambition and resilience.
• Discussing opportunities to strengthen capacity to protect lives and livelihoods from the impacts of climate change, address the global security challenges posed by climate change and the impact on readiness, and address the role of nature-based solutions in achieving net zero by 2050 goals.
• Further details on the Summit agenda, additional participants, media access, and public viewing will be provided in the coming weeks.

The President invited the following leaders to participate in the Summit:

• Prime Minister Gaston Browne, Antigua and Barbuda
• President Alberto Fernandez, Argentina
• Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Australia
• Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh
• Prime Minister Lotay Tshering, Bhutan
• President Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil
• Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Canada
• President Sebastián Piñera, Chile
• President Xi Jinping, People’s Republic of China
• President Iván Duque Márquez, Colombia
• President Félix Tshisekedi, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Denmark
• President Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission
• President Charles Michel, European Council
• President Emmanuel Macron, France
• President Ali Bongo Ondimba, Gabon
• Chancellor Angela Merkel, Germany
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India
• President Joko Widodo, Indonesia
• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel
• Prime Minister Mario Draghi, Italy
• Prime Minister Andrew Holness, Jamaica
• Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, Japan
• President Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenya
• President David Kabua, Republic of the Marshall Islands
• President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Mexico
• Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand
• President Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria
• Prime Minister Erna Solberg, Norway
• President Andrzej Duda, Poland
• President Moon Jae-in, Republic of Korea
• President Vladimir Putin, The Russian Federation
• King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
• Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Singapore
• President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa
• Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, Spain
• President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey
• President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, United Arab Emirates
• Prime Minister Boris Johnson, United Kingdom
• President Nguyễn Phú Trọng, Vietnam

Day 1 Schedule:

8:00 a.m.–Session 1

Raising Our Climate Ambition

President Biden and Vice President Harris will open the inaugural session of the Summit. This session will underscore the urgent need for the world’s major economies to strengthen their climate ambition by the time of COP 26 to keep the goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius within reach. It will provide an opportunity for leaders to highlight the climate-related challenges their countries face and the efforts they are undertaking, and to announce new steps to strengthen climate ambition.

U.S. Participants:

• Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken
• Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry Leaders:
• United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres
• Prime Minister Gaston Browne, Antigua and Barbuda
• President Alberto Fernandez, Argentina
• Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Australia
• Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh
• Prime Minister Lotay Tshering, Bhutan
• President Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil
• Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Canada
• President Sebastián Piñera, Chile
• President Xi Jinping, People’s Republic of China
• President Iván Duque Márquez, Colombia
• President Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission
• President Emmanuel Macron, France
• President Ali Bongo Ondimba, Gabon
• Chancellor Angela Merkel, Germany
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India
• President Joko Widodo, Indonesia
• Prime Minister Mario Draghi, Italy
• Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, Japan
• President David Kabua, Republic of the Marshall Islands
• President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Mexico
• President Moon Jae-in, Republic of Korea
• President Vladimir Putin, The Russian Federation
• King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
• President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa
• President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey
• Prime Minister Boris Johnson, United Kingdom

11:45 a.m.–Session 2

Investing in Climate Solutions

This session will highlight the urgent need to scale up climate finance; efforts to increase public finance for mitigation and adaptation in developing countries; and efforts to shift trillions of dollars of private investment to finance the transition to net zero by 2050.

U.S. Participants:

• Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen
• Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry
• National Economic Council Director Brian Deese

Leaders:

• President Félix Tshisekedi, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• President Charles Michel, European Council
• Prime Minister Andrew Holness, Jamaica
• Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand

Speakers:

• Akinwumi A. Adesina, President, African Development Bank
• Oliver Bäte, CEO, Allianz
• Jane Fraser, CEO, Citigroup
• Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director, International Monetary Fund
• Marcie Frost, CEO, CalPERS
• David Malpass, Group President, World Bank Group
• Brian Moynihan, Chairman and CEO, Bank of America; Chair, International Business Council; Co-Chair, Sustainable Markets Initiative

Day 1 Featured Speakers:

• Pope Francis
• Carolina Schmidt, Environment Minister, Chile; President, 25th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 25)
• Alok Sharma MP, United Kingdom; President, 26th United Nations United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 26)
• Xiye Bastida, Fridays for Future

12:45 p.m.–Session 3

(Breakout Sessions, Round 1)

Adaptation and Resilience

This session will highlight the climate adaptation and resilience challenges faced by all countries, especially those most vulnerable to climate impacts, and cutting-edge approaches to strengthening resilience in the face of climate change and climate variability.

U.S. Participants:

• Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack
• Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas

Speakers:

• Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, Attorney-General and Minister for Economy, Public Enterprises, Civil Service, Communications, Fiji
• Eamon Ryan, Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications and Minister for Transport, Ireland
• Aziz Rabbah, Minister of Energy, Mines and Environment, Morocco
• Cora van Nieuwenhuizen, Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management, Netherlands
• Malik Amin Aslam, Federal Minister of Climate Change, Pakistan
• João Pedro Matos Fernandes, Minister for the Environment and Climate Action, Portugal
• Abdullah Subai, Minister of Municipality and Environment, Qatar
• Jeanne d’Arc Mujawamariya, Minister of Environment, Rwanda
• Varawut Silpa-archa, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Thailand

Climate Action at All Levels

This session will highlight the critical efforts of subnational and non-state actors (cities, states/regions, and indigenous groups) that are contributing to green recovery and working closely with national governments to advance climate ambition and resilience on the ground.

U.S. Participants:

• Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael S. Regan

Speakers:

• Sinéia B. do Vale, Member, Indigenous Council of Roraima, Brazil
• Mayor LaToya Cantrell, New Orleans
• Mayor Anne Hidalgo, Paris, France
• Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, President of the Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad
• Governor Yuriko Koike, Tokyo, Japan
• Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, New Mexico
• Fawn Sharp, President, National Congress of American Indians
• Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico City, Mexico

2:00 p.m.–Session 3

(Breakout Sessions, Round 2)

Climate Security

This session will highlight the global security challenges posed by climate change, the impact on the military and readiness, and efforts underway to address the threat multipliers to energy, economic, and national security.

U.S. Participants:

• Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III
• Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines
• Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. Representative to the United Nations

Speakers:

• Ben Wallace MP, Secretary of State for Defense, United Kingdom
• Kishi Nobuo, Minister of Defense, Japan
• Monica Juma, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Defense, Kenya
• Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary General, NATO
• Carlos G. Dominguez III, Secretary of Finance, The Philippines
• Jumaah Enad, Minister of Defense, Iraq
• Margarita Robles Fernández, Minister of Defense, Spain

Nature-based Solutions

This session will highlight the critical role of nature-based solutions in reducing emissions and strengthening climate resilience, including efforts to reduce deforestation and the loss of wetlands, restore marine and terrestrial ecosystems, and promote sustainable agricultural practices.

U.S. Participants:

• Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland Speakers:
• Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Canada
• Andrea Meza, Minister of Environment and Energy, Costa Rica
• Lee White, Minister of Water, Forests, the Seas, and Environment, Gabon
• Luhut B. Pandjaitan, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Indonesia
• Gabriel Quijandría, Minister of the Environment, Peru
• Flavien P. Joubert, Minister for Agriculture, Climate Change and Environment, Seychelles
• Tuntiak Katan, General Coordinator, Global Alliance of Territorial Communities
• Archana Soreng, Member, Youth Advisory Group on Climate to the U.N. Secretary General; Kharia Tribe, Sundergarh, India

The summit continues on April 23.

Hearing page

Witnesses

• Dr. Richard Moss, Senior Scientist, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Joint Global Change Research Institute at the University of Maryland, Chair, Convening Board, SCAN, and Non-resident Fellow, Andlinger Center, Princeton University
• Beth Gibbons, Executive Director, American Society of Adaptation Professionals
• Dr. Jeffrey B. Basara, Director, Kessler Atmospheric and Ecological Field Station, Executive Associate Director, Hydrology and Water Security Program, University of Oklahoma
• Liz Williams Russell, Climate Justice Program Director, Foundation for Louisiana

Witnesses

• Michael Regan, Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency
• David Bloom, Deputy Chief Financial Officer, Environmental Protection Agency

• H.R. 998 (Rep. Bill Keating) To establish an offshore wind career training grant program, and for other purposes. Offshore Wind Jobs and Opportunity Act
• H.R. __ (Rep. Paul Tonko) To reauthorize certain leasing on the Outer Continental Shelf, and for other purposes. Restoring Offshore Wind Opportunities Act
• H.R. 1689 (Res. Cmmsr. Jenniffer González-Colón) To amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to apply to territories of the United States, to establish offshore wind lease sale requirements, to provide dedicated funding for coral reef conservation, and for other purposes.Offshore Wind for Territories Act

Earth Uprising’s summit “Youth Speaks: Our Message to World Leaders on Earth Day 2021” will be divided into an opening and closing session, and six short sessions that are based around specific issues. These sessions will inform updates to the opening demands, which will then be presented to President Biden’s World Leaders Summit.

Session 1: Opening

• Moderator: Lucia Urreta
• Speakers: Greta Thunberg, Licypriya Kangujam, Vanessa Nakate, and Xiye Bastida.

The speakers will open the summit with short speeches.

Session 2: Freedom to Peaceful Protest and Protect Democracy

• Moderator: Maria Juliana Duque
• Speakers: Arshak Makichan, Mitzi Jonelle, Khadija Khokhar, and Sonya Epifantseva

The past year has seen many infringements on global youths’ right to organize, peacefully assemble, and protest. This session of “Youth Speaks” asks what kind of action we want from our world leaders to protect our right to protest, our democracies, and address the disproportionate effect on people of color.

Session 3: Climate Education and Climate Literacy

• Moderator: Mohammad Ahmadi
• Speakers: Anisa Nanavati, Farah Mahmoud, Sari Hellara, Nour Al-Kaaby, and Sumayyah Ajani Adetomiwa.

For youth, it is important for us to be taught that climate change is real, and that it is possible to mitigate and adapt. Climate education is needed for a fast, green transition because it will prepare us for green jobs and lifestyles. This education needs to be accessible to everyone, regardless of who they are and where they come from.

Session 4: Climate Migration, Borders and Human Rights

• Moderator: Mohaddeseh Barghamadi
• Speakers: Jesus Villalba, Ayisha Siddiqa, Mohab Sherif, and Nadiya Khalif.

Because of climate change, youth are on the frontlines of the growing crisis at the US border, while small island nations in the South Pacific are going underwater threatening their lives and futures. This session discusses why climate migration is a youth issue and asks what kind of action we want from our world leaders.

Session 5: Zero Emissions Timeline and Transition to Renewable Energy

• Moderator: Brooke Nelson Muzzatti
• Speakers: Jana Jandal Alrifai, Muska Sadat, and Ayesha Imtiaz.

A rapid decrease in fossil fuel extraction and emission, along with a high speed transition to renewable energy is the key to a habitable planet and livable future for youth. At the core of this transition is climate justice, ensuring that those most impacted by the climate crisis are supported and protected. This session concentrates on obstacles to a just transition and how we can push through them.

Session 6: Preparing the Youth Movement for COP 26 and 2022

• Moderator: Kevin Mtai
• Speakers: Kaluki Paul Mutuku, Wendy Gao, Maria Fernanda Duràn, Alisa Salıcı, and Maria Serra Olivella

The youth movement needs to work together to fight for ambitious and productive climate action that acts with the urgency required of this crisis, without empty promises. This session will emphasize how COP26 must be an inclusive space for young people, especially Indigenous and disabled youth climate activists and those from the most affected areas. Past COPs have been funded by the fossil fuels industry, and it is high time that these polluters no longer have influence and presence within these discussions.

Session 7: The Youth Perspective on Adaptation

• Moderator: Ananya Guruprasad
• Speakers: Razan Ahmed, Hania Imran, Afrah Qaisar, Daphne Frias, and Aman Sharma

This session will focus on areas of adaptation within policy including disaster management and recovery, and youth climate anxiety and eco grief.

Session 8: Closing

• Moderator: Christine Leung
• Speakers: Jerome Foster, Jamie Margolin, Leah Namugerwa, and Catarina Lorenzo.

The moderator and speakers will review the updated youth demands.

Hearing page

Witnesses

• Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Former Ambassador of Mexico to Germany and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mexico
• Frans Timmermans, Executive Vice-President for the European Green Deal, European Commission, Former First Vice-President of the EU Commission in charge of Better Regulation, Inter-Institutional Relations, the Rule of Law, and the Charter of Fundamental Rights
• Rachel Kyte CMG, Dean, The Fletcher School, Tufts University, Former Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary General
• Nicolas Loris, Deputy Director, Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies and Herbert and Joyce Morgan Fellow in Energy and Environmental Policy The Heritage Foundation

hearing page.

Hearing page

Witnesses

• Subin DeVar, Director, Initiative for Energy Justice
• Chandra Farley, Just Energy Director, Partnership for Southern Equity
• Donnel Baird, Chief Executive Officer, BlocPower
• Kiran Bhatraju, Chief Executive Officer, Arcadia
• José L. Pérez, President and Chief Executive Officer, Hispanics in Energy
• Louise Carter-King, Mayor, City of Gillette, Wyoming

Hearing page

Witnesses

• Pete Buttigieg, Secretary, Department of Transportation
• Michael Regan, Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency
• Gina Raimondo, Secretary, Department of Commerce
• Marcia Fudge, Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development