NAACP to Join EPA on Trip to Africa Solidifying U.S-Africa Partnerships in Climate Justice
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Alicia Mercedes, amercedes@naacpnet.org
January 19, 2024
WASHINGTON – Next week, NAACP President & CEO Derrick Johnson will join EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan as the agency travels to Africa seeking to solidify substantive partnerships with African countries, institutions, and people across the continent. The trip will focus on cultivating relationships and sharing solutions on a range of climate justice priorities, including the development of clean energy, protecting clean air, encouraging responsible mining of critical minerals, and recycling of materials from plastics and electronic waste.
Ahead of his trip, NAACP President & CEO Derrick Johnson released the following statement:
"The NAACP applauds the administration for taking the necessary steps to advance climate justice on a global scale. We have long advocated for the centering of Black voices in all conversations about climate, as our diaspora stands to be most impacted by the increasingly extreme effects of the climate disaster the world is facing. The NAACP looks forward to supporting the cultivation of these crucial partnerships and advancing the priorities of Black communities both in the United States and abroad."
NAACP leadership will join Administrator Regan between January 25-29. During their time together in Ghana, President Johnson and Administrator Regan will meet with distinguished leaders, advance U.S commitments to advance the expansion of key programs aimed at advancing climate justice efforts, tour the home of NAACP founder W.E.B Du Bois, as well as the Cape Coast Castle.
"I am thrilled to be representing the Biden-Harris Administration on this mission to Africa, to further the longstanding and enduring relationship between the United States and this thriving continent,"said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. "Mozambique and Ghana are important partners in our collective work to ensure that economic development and environmental protection go hand-in-hand. We all have a stake in developing clean energy, protecting vital natural resources, and ensuring there's equal access to clean air and clean water."
To learn more about the NAACP's work to advance climate justice, visit our website.
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ABOUT NAACP
The NAACP advocates, agitates, and litigates for the civil rights due to Black America. Our legacy is built on the foundation of grassroots activism by the biggest civil rights pioneers of the 20th century and is sustained by 21st century activists. From classrooms and courtrooms to city halls and Congress, our network of members across the country works to secure the social and political power that will end race-based discrimination. That work is rooted in racial equity, civic engagement, and supportive policies and institutions for all marginalized people. We are committed to a world without racism where Black people enjoy equitable opportunities in thriving communities.
NOTE: The Legal Defense Fund – also referred to as the NAACP-LDF - was founded in 1940 as a part of the NAACP, but now operates as a completely separate entity.
ABOUT EPA
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is a U.S. federal government agency that was created in 1970 to protect human health and the environment. EPA's nearly 15,000 environmental professionals fight the climate crisis, safeguard America's air and water, regulate chemicals and pesticides, respond to chemical emergencies, enforce U.S. environmental laws, and lead innovative research. Because pollution transcends international boundaries, EPA's Office of International and Tribal Affairs works with international organizations and countries to address shared environmental challenges.