Today, the Biden-Harris Administration launched the American Climate Corps, prioritizing environmental justice projects that meet the Administration’s Justice40 Initiative goals.
The Climate Corps will:
- Create a workforce training and service program to train over 20,000 young people in clean energy, conservation, and climate resilience, such as restoring coastal wetlands and deploying clean energy technologies;
- Offer paid jobs that provide pathways to high-quality careers;
- Coordinate across six federal agencies, including the Department of Interior, the Department of Energy, the Department of Labor, the Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and AmeriCorps, through a memorandum of understanding;
- Include five states (Arizona, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Utah) launching their own Climate Corps, which will work as implementing partners of the American Climate Corps.
In response, Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous released the following statement:
“We need an all hands on deck approach to address the climate crisis, and the Biden-Harris Administration establishing an American Climate Corps – with specific opportunities for youth to work in climate resilience careers – is a historic effort to meet this moment. The Climate Corps will mobilize young people, workers, and federal resources in a way never seen before. The Sierra Club celebrates the Biden-Harris Administration for scaling up clean energy, increasing well-paid union jobs, and fostering environmental stewardship — exactly the path we must take to protect people and the planet.”
This content originally appeared on Common Dreams and was authored by Newswire Editor.