Help the Poor Deal with the Effects of Climate Change

I am writing to urge you to protect people living in poverty around the world from the effects of climate change. Please make sure that $3.5 billion of funds generated by climate change legislation are allocated to international adaptation programs by 2012, and rapidly increase that amount to $7 billion annually by 2020.

I support efforts by Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) to ensure that any climate change bill lowers greenhouse gases and protects the poor and vulnerable -- both at home and abroad -- who contribute least to climate change but are likely to suffer its worst consequences.

The needs of the poor and vulnerable should be at the center of climate legislation. Poor people should not bear an undue burden of the impacts of climate change or the global adjustments needed to address it. CRS has already witnessed the tragic consequences of climate change in the daily lives of people living in poverty. CRS is working diligently to help communities adapt to the consequences of climate change and mitigate its effects through health, agriculture, water, and emergency preparedness programs, and its relief and development efforts in 100 countries.

While there are several provisions in the House's climate change bill that I appreciate, I am deeply disappointed that the funding committed to international adaptation only 1% of available resources, or approximately $700 million -- falls fundamentally short of what is needed initially and that increases in resources are pushed too far off into the future. I therefore urge you to ensure that the Senate's bill include at least $3.5 billion of available funding for international adaptation programs that will help poor and vulnerable people adapt to the effects of climate change.

[Your comments]

Thank you for your attention to this critical issue.