Global Climate Change Diplomacy Act
This bill requires the Department of State to take specified actions to address global climate change.
Specifically, the State Department must establish and staff Climate Change Officer positions, the holders of which shall be assigned to U.S. embassies, consulates, or diplomatic missions. Each officer shall provide climate change mitigation expertise, engage with international entities concerned with addressing climate change, and facilitate U.S. engagement in bilateral and multilateral cooperation on climate change.
Each chief of mission in a foreign country must take certain climate change-related actions, including (1) developing a strategy to improve and increase studying, mitigating, and adapting to climate change; and (2) certifying that considerations related to climate change are incorporated in activities, management, and operations of the U.S. embassy or other diplomatic post under the director of the chief of mission.
The State Department must also establish a curriculum at its Foreign Service Institute to provide employees with specialized climate change training, and it must ensure that embassy personnel responsible for contracts, grants, or acquisitions are trained on evaluating such agreements for considerations related to sustainability and climate change.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2887 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2887
To provide for certain Department of State actions relating to global
climate change, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 28, 2021
Mr. Keating (for himself and Ms. Kaptur) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for certain Department of State actions relating to global
climate change, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Global Climate Change Diplomacy
Act''.
SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF STATE ACTIONS RELATING TO GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE.
(a) Climate Change Officers.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of State shall establish and
staff Climate Change Officer positions. Such Officers shall
serve under the supervision of the appropriate chief of mission
or the Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the
Environment of the Department of State, as the case may be. The
Secretary shall ensure each embassy, consulate, and diplomatic
mission to which such Officers are assigned pursuant to
paragraph (2) has sufficient additional and appropriate staff
to support such Officers.
(2) Assignment.--Climate Change Officers shall be assigned
to the following posts:
(A) United States embassies, or, if appropriate,
consulates.
(B) United States diplomatic missions to, or
liaisons with, regional and multilateral organizations,
including the United States diplomatic missions to the
European Union, African Union, Organization of American
States, Arctic Council, and any other appropriate
regional organization, and the United Nations and its
relevant specialized agencies.
(C) Other posts as designated by the Secretary.
(3) Responsibilities.--Each Climate Change Officer shall--
(A) provide expertise on effective approaches to--
(i) mitigate the emission of gases which
contribute to global climate change and
formulate national and global plans for
reducing such gross and net emissions; and
(ii) reduce the detrimental impacts
attributable to global climate change, and
adapt to such impacts;
(B) engage and convene, in a manner that is
equitable, inclusive, and just, with individuals and
organizations which represent a government office, a
nongovernmental organization, a social or political
movement, a private sector entity, an educational or
scientific institution, or any other entity concerned
with--
(i) global climate change; the emission of
gases which contribute to global climate
change; or
(ii) reducing the detrimental impacts
attributable to global climate change;
(C) facilitate engagement by United States entities
in bilateral and multilateral cooperation on climate
change; and
(D) carry out such other responsibilities as the
Secretary may assign.
(b) Responsibilities of Under Secretary.--The Under Secretary for
Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment of the Department of State
shall, including by acting through the Bureau of Oceans and
International Environmental and Scientific Affairs of the Department of
State--
(1) provide policy guidance to Climate Change Officers
established under subsection (a);
(2) develop relations with, consult with, and provide
assistance to relevant individuals and organizations concerned
with studying, mitigating, and adapting to global climate
change, or reducing the emission of gases which contribute to
global climate change; and
(3) assist officers and employees of regional bureaus of
the Department of State to develop strategies and programs to
promote studying, mitigating, and adapting to global climate
change, or reducing the emission of gases which contribute to
global climate change.
(c) Actions by Chiefs of Mission.--Each chief of mission in a
foreign country shall--
(1) develop, as part of annual joint strategic plans or
equivalent program and policy planning, a strategy to promote
actions to improve and increase studying, mitigating, and
adapting to global climate change, or reducing the emission of
gases which contribute to global climate change by--
(A) consulting and coordinating with and providing
support to relevant individuals and organizations,
including experts and other professionals and
stakeholders on issues related to climate change; and
(B) holding periodic meetings with such relevant
individuals and organizations relating to such
strategy;
(2) hold ongoing discussions with the officials and leaders
of such country regarding progress to improve and increase
studying, mitigating, and adapting to global climate change, or
reducing the emission of gases which contribute to global
climate change in a manner that is equitable, inclusive, and
just in such country; and
(3) certify annually to the Secretary of State that to the
maximum extent practicable, considerations related to climate
change adaptation and mitigation, sustainability, and the
environment were incorporated in activities, management, and
operations of the United States embassy or other diplomatic
post under the director of the chief of mission.
(d) Training.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall establish
curriculum at the Department of State's Foreign Service Institute that
supplements political and economic reporting tradecraft courses in
order to provide employees of the Department with specialized training
with respect to studying, mitigating, and adapting to global climate
change, or reducing the emission of gases which contribute to global
climate change. Such training shall include the following:
(1) Awareness of the full range of national and subnational
agencies, offices, personnel, statutory authorities, funds, and
programs involved in the international commitments of the
United States regarding global climate change and the emission
of gases which contribute to global climate change, the science
of global climate change, and methods for mitigating and
adapting to global climate change.
(2) Awareness of methods for mitigating and adapting to
global climate change and reducing the emission of gases which
contribute to global climate change that are equitable,
inclusive, and just.
(3) Familiarity with United States agencies, multilateral
agencies, international financial institutions, and the network
of donors providing assistance to mitigate and adapt to global
climate change.
(4) Awareness of the most frequently announced goals and
methods of the entities specified in subsection (a)(3)(B).
(e) Contracting.--Contracting and agreements officers of the
Department of State, and other United States embassy personnel
responsible for contracts, grants, or acquisitions, shall receive
training on evaluating proposals, solicitations, and bids, for
considerations related to sustainability and adapting to or mitigating
impacts from climate change.
(f) Reporting.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act and biennially thereafter, the Secretary of State
shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and
the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives a
report that includes a detailed breakdown of posts at which staff are
assigned the role of Climate Change Officer, the responsibilities to
which they have been assigned, and the strategies developed by the
chief of mission, as applicable.
(g) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that climate
diplomacy tools, including the establishment of Climate Change Officers
and supporting staff under this section, are critical for demonstrating
the commitment to include climate changes issues as core tenets of
foreign policy priorities, as well as preserving the United States role
as a global leader on climate change action.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Europe, Energy, the Environment and Cyber.
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