Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday is set to attend the COP28 global climate conference in the United Arab Emirates as she aims to tout American leadership on climate change at a key moment for the planet.
Harris’ attendance at the summit in Dubai is in line with her recent steps to ramp up public messaging on climate change. In recent months, the vice president has attended climate-related events, including talking to students and young voters on an issue central to them.
She will be the highest-ranking US official to attend the conference after President Joe Biden decided against attending for the first time during his tenure, having visited both the 2021 and 2022 editions of the conference. Despite the diminished stature of these gatherings in the eyes of some climate activists, the president received some criticism for deciding not to travel to Dubai for this year’s edition. US presidents do not typically attend every edition of the climate conference, often only attending during major years.
Harris is set to deliver a major address at the climate gathering and will also be focused on the Israel-Hamas war during conversations with world leaders, according to the White House.
Harris, the White House said, “will have an opportunity to meet with regional leaders and consult with them on latest developments in Gaza and, in particular, she will focus on day-after planning.”
The summit began this week with global delegates formally adopting a damage fund that was decades in the making. In what represented an early success, several countries pledged millions of dollars to help nations hit hardest by the climate crisis.
But the United States received criticism from international climate experts for contributing an “embarrassing” amount of money to the fund – less than a fifth of the contribution of the UAE, the host country, and 14 times less than the European Union’s. The UAE pledged $100 million, as did Germany. The UK announced £60 million, part of which will be used for “other arrangements,” according to a release, while the US committed $17.5 million to the fund and Japan contributed $10 million.
The administration’s handling of climate change reflects a larger pattern ahead of next year’s general election. Recent polls show Biden receiving low approval ratings from voters and trailing former President Donald Trump, the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, in battleground states. At the same time, the administration has struggled to promote its signature achievements in a way that resonates with voters.
Climate change is often cited by young progressive voters as a top issue. While Biden has made it a top priority since coming into office – he signed into law the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes key provisions to reduce carbon emissions, and has recommitted the US to the Paris Agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions – there is still an undercurrent among young voters that the administration has not done enough.
A Washington Post-University of Maryland poll from July found that 57% of Americans disapproved of the way Biden has handled climate policy, including 59% of 18-29 year olds. Seventy-four percent of Democrats said they approved of how Biden had addressed the issue, but just 40% of independents and 8% of Republicans agreed. Most Americans – 71% – said they had read or heard very little about the Inflation Reduction Act.
CNN’s Priscilla Alvarez, Sam Fossum and Ella Nilsen contributed to this report.
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