President Obama on Tuesday will unveil new executive actions that require all federal agencies consider climate change resilience when investing in international projects.
According to a White House official, Obama will announce the new action during his speech Tuesday at the United Nations Climate Summit in New York.
The measure means agencies will have to consider how rising sea levels, droughts, wildfires and extreme weather tied to climate change would affect development programs as well as investments overseas.
{mosads}Obama will also lay out new tools to capture the scientific and technological capabilities of the U.S. to help vulnerable populations around the world better prepare for the impacts of climate change and strengthen their resilience to it.
He will additionally announce U.S. leadership and participation in more than a dozen new climate change partnerships finalized at the summit.
Tuesday’s daylong summit is meant to build momentum for talks next year in Paris where all nations will work to sign a global climate accord to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
The administration plans to continue its international push to help other countries develop and implement actions tackling climate change, the White House official said.
“Internationally, the U.S. continues to press for an ambitious, inclusive and pragmatic global climate agreement in 2015, and intends to put forward a robust post-2020 climate commitment in the context of other major economies doing the same,” the official said.
Tuesday’s commitments steer more toward preparations and adaptation to the impacts of climate change instead of cutting emissions to stave off an increase in temperatures, which is the purpose of next year’s talks.
The United Nations stressed that the summit in New York was not meant for negotiations but for countries to display their commitments to fighting global warming.
Still, Obama, flanked by White House adviser John Podesta and Environmental Protection Agency chief Gina McCarthy will hold bilateral meetings with leaders from other countries, continuing to foster an open dialogue in the final 15 months before Paris.