Image credit: The White House by Kristina Volgenau on Unsplash
On Thursday, October 7th, the White House published plans developed by more than 20 federal agencies aimed at helping the U.S. federal government adapt to a warming world and become more resilient in the face of the climate crisis.
A total of 23 federal agencies are releasing Climate Adaptation and Resilience plans, including the Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Transportation and the Department of Energy. The Biden-Harris Administration shared highlights from this year’s plans, which include safeguarding federal investments, developing a more resilient supply chain and building a more equitable future.
This announcement from the White House is indicative of the Biden Administration’s “whole of government” approach to addressing the climate emergency and serves as a testament to the importance of building with longevity, sustainability and resilience in mind.
While climate scientists recommend that governments and businesses take drastic emissions reduction measures to avoid the worst effects of climate change, a certain amount of warming is already baked in, and some effects of climate change—like continuing sea level rise—may take hundreds to thousands of years to reverse, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Across the Atlantic, the U.K. government published a report on October 13th assessing the country’s readiness to deal with the dangers a warmer world entails. This report also underscores the need for adaptation and resilience, prompting the chair of the U.K. Environment Agency to remark, “It is adapt or die.”