Last August, when the United States passed the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), commentators celebrated the fact that the world’s biggest economy would slash its carbon emissions and provide massive tax credits to programs investing in clean energy. It took only a short while, however, for complaints to emerge. European and Asian leaders began to call the IRA unfair competition and protectionist.
Jonathan Pershing, formerly the Biden administration’s No. 2 global climate envoy, joined FP editor in chief Ravi Agrawal to discuss Washington’s climate policy, and how it is being seen around the world. The two also discussed climate cooperation with China, the road to COP28, and much else.
Jonathan Pershing explains the costs and benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act for the rest of the world.
Jonathan Pershing offers insight into the possible hurdles that a Republican-controlled House may bring when it comes to climate initiatives.
Jonathan Pershing, a former advisor to four U.S. presidents on climate policy, shares that despite the COVID lockdown, a U.S. delegation was allowed to enter China twice for climate negotiations within the first year of the Biden administration.
Jonathan Pershing on the debate over the loss and damage fund that was agreed upon at COP27 and the United States’ role in that debate.
Jonathan Pershing
Program Director of Environment, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
Jonathan Pershing is the program director of environment at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. From 2021 to 2022, he served as deputy special envoy for climate at the U.S. State Department. Previously, Pershing served as special envoy for climate change at the State Department and lead U.S. negotiator to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change. He served under four U.S. presidents and helped negotiate the 2015 Paris climate agreement.
Host
Ravi Agrawal
Editor in chief, Foreign Policy
Ravi Agrawal is the editor in chief of Foreign Policy and the host of FP’s Global Reboot podcast. Before joining FP, Agrawal worked at CNN for more than a decade in full-time roles spanning three continents, including as the network’s New Delhi bureau chief and correspondent. Agrawal has shared a Peabody Award and three Emmy nominations for his work as a TV producer, and his writing for FP was part of a series nominated for a 2020 National Magazine Award for columns and commentary. Agrawal is the author of India Connected: How the Smartphone Is Transforming the World’s Largest Democracy. He is a graduate of Harvard University. Agrawal is a frequent commentator on world affairs on CNN, MSNBC, NPR, and the BBC.
