NRDC CEO & President Gina McCarthy to Join Biden Administration
NEW YORK – NRDC President & CEO Gina McCarthy has been hand-picked by President-elect Joe Biden to become the nation’s first-ever National Climate Advisor. This senior White House position, reporting directly to the president, will head the newly formed White House Office of Domestic Climate Policy. The Office will coordinate a National Climate Taskforce made up of agency and office heads across the Biden-Harris Administration to deliver an all-of-government response to the climate crisis.
“Leading NRDC has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career,” said McCarthy. “Its policy, legal and advocacy expertise have made NRDC one of the nation’s most effective voices for climate action. In creating the position of National Climate Advisor, President-elect Biden and Vice President Harris have made sure we address the climate crisis with the urgency it deserves. This puts climate action, for the first time, front and center on the agenda for every agency in the federal government. I look forward to working with the new president and his team to restore U.S. climate leadership at home and abroad and to advance the equitable, job-creating climate solutions we need. And I’m confident NRDC will continue to raise its voice, and help raise the voices of others, in the service of this vital mission for progress and change.”
During her tenure, McCarthy has led NRDC’s legal and advocacy resistance against the Trump administration’s assault on air, water and climate protections. Under her leadership, NRDC also continues to drive forward strong, essential and equitable climate solutions at the local, state and global level.
“Gina has led NRDC with a can-do spirit, indomitable will and clear-eyed vision of what it means to address the climate crisis head-on. She brings all that, and the policy expertise she’s honed during a career in public service, to this vital task at this critical moment,” said Kathleen Welch, Chair of NRDC’s Board of Trustees. “There’s no better choice to create the game plan for confronting this global crisis in a way that helps to restore our economy, rebuild our communities and protect the health and homes of our people. On behalf of the NRDC Board and staff, we thank Gina for her leadership at NRDC, congratulate her on this new opportunity to serve and wish her well as she brings her leadership to this essential post.”
McCarthy will step down from her role at NRDC, effective January 8, 2021, with NRDC Executive Director Mitch Bernard taking on the role of interim president & CEO.
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Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. (NRDC) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world's natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC.