Secretary Jewell Statement on COP21 Climate Framework Agreement

Date: December 12, 2015
Contact: Jessica Kershaw, Interior_Press@ios.doi.gov

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today released the following statement on the agreement reached at the 21st Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21) in Paris:

“I applaud the more than 190 countries that came together for this historic agreement to chart a cleaner and more sustainable path for our planet. Climate change is evident across our country’s diverse landscapes and waters and one of the most pressing issues of our time. Today’s agreement lays out a durable and meaningful framework that will benefit billions of people now and for generations to come.

“At Interior, we are more focused than ever on contributing to the climate change revolution – fostering clean energy development, reducing harmful carbon emissions, building climate resilient communities, recognizing the benefits of forests, wetlands, grasslands and oceans to carbon sequestration, and supporting investments in sound science.

“America’s spirit of innovation and ingenuity allows us to lead on climate change, but no country can solve this issue alone. The universal agreement reached today will turn our collective achievements into an enduring agenda for a low-carbon future. As many have repeated, ‘we don’t inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.’”