Congressman Kucinich, along with Congressmen Grijalva (D-AZ), Payne (D-NJ) and Ellison (D-MN) and 15 other Members of Congress today called for President Obama to work toward global commitments to greenhouse gas reductions as well as a framework to provide assistance to developing countries during his trip to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) negotiations in Copenhagen.

 

"Fighting climate change overseas will help the U.S. economic recovery because of the expected demand for American goods and services in areas of green technologies, providing job growth here at home," said Kucinich.

 

Priorities of 80 countries at the UNFCCC include obtaining mitigation and adaptation assistance and commitments by developed nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to levels that will stabilize the climate.

 

"Developing countries will feel the effects of climate change with the most intensity.  If left to their own resources to cope, fertile grounds for political instability will be created.  Climate change is a threat to our own national security according to the intelligence community," said Kucinich.  

 

"If we are going to be taken seriously at the negotiating table and make genuine progress toward addressing climate change, we need to show developing countries that we hear their concerns, we need to demonstrate that we recognize that as the country disproportionately responsible for climate change, we have a disproportionate obligation to help those who will be affected the most," said Kucinich.

Read the full letter HERE.

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