Letter to Kay Granger, Chairwoman of the House of Appropriations Subcommittee; to Nita Lowey, Ranking Member of the House of Appropriations Subcommittee - In Support of the Green Climate Fund

Letter

Dear Chairwoman Granger and Ranking Member Lowey:

We are writing to express our strong support for the Green Climate Fund (GCF). As you develop the Fiscal Year 2017 (FY17) appropriations bill, we respectfully request your support for the President's budget request of $750 million for the GCF.

The Green Climate Fund is a critical tool to the multinational effort to address climate change, and funding will be used to invest in resilient and low-emission development around the world. U.S. support for the GCF is absolutely critical to the fund's success and ensuring that developing nations are engaged in addressing our climate challenge.

Although established under auspices of the United Nations (UN), the GCF is an independent institution, governed by an independent Board, and through an independent Secretariat. It is not part of the United Nations system, is not staffed by the UN, and does not receive money from the UN.

The threats of climate change to the world's least developed countries are grounded in sound, peer-reviewed science by the world's top experts, and therefore need to be taken seriously. The GCF will invest in sustainable development in some of the most vulnerable countries, complementing existing efforts to alleviate poverty and promote global health, stability and democracy.

After all, the Department of Defense, along with various members of the security community, has called climate change a "threat multiplier." The recent National Security strategy elaborated, explaining that climate change is "an urgent and growing threat to our national security, contributing to increased natural disasters, refugee flows, and conflicts over basic resources like food and water." Through the GCF we have the potential to minimize future national security threats that will be exacerbated by climate change.

We agree that climate change is not a problem that the U.S. can tackle alone. Demonstrating strong support for the GCF will help protect our nation's interests and ensure every country does its fair share.

Thank you for your consideration of this request.

Sincerely,