Joe Biden announces his team to combat climate change

Biden praised his chosen ones and assured that, like the rest of his government, they are “brilliant, they are qualified, they have experience and they break barriers.”

After Biden, it was Haaland’s turn, who visibly moved recalled the attempts of the U.S. government in the nineteenth century to “civilize” or exterminate Native Americans.

“I am a living testimony to the failure of that horrible ideology. I stand on the shoulders of my ancestors and all those who sacrificed so that I could be here,” said Haaland, a native of New Mexico state and a member of the Pueblo of Laguna tribe.

Biden’s election marks a turning point in the 171-year history of the Interior Department, which is charged with managing the country’s natural resources, including tribal territories, and which has had a complicated relationship with the 574 federally recognized tribes in the U.S.

Haaland promised to turn that department into an institution that mitigates the climate crisis, after years in which it has been the main promoter of fossil fuels.

On the other hand, Biden announced that he has chosen as director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The U.S. Department of African-American Michael Regan, who is currently the head of environmental quality in North Carolina and previously worked at the EPA during the administrations of Bill Clinton (1993-2001) and George W. Bush (2001-2009).

“We will act urgently on climate change, protecting our water and implementing an environmental justice framework,” Regan promised today, who in a conciliatory tone extended a hand to the fossil fuel industry to find “common ground” and work for a better future.

For his part, Biden announced the appointment of the former governor of Michigan between 2003 and 2011, Jennifer Granholm, to lead the Energy portfolio.

Granholm is an advocate for the electric vehicle and the development of alternative energy technologies, so her appointment is interpreted as Biden’s endorsement of the fight against the climate crisis.

In addition, Biden has chosen Gina McCarthy, EPA administrator from 2013 to 2017 under Barack Obama (2009-2017), for the position of senior adviser on climate change, a position the Democratic leader has created to prioritize that issue.

Source: Atresmedia