The Biden-Harris Administration hosted the first swearing-in ceremony for members of President Biden’s landmark American Climate Corps – a groundbreaking initiative modeled after Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Civilian Conservation Corps that will put a new, diverse generation of young Americans to work fighting the impacts of climate change today while gaining the skills they need to join the growing clean energy and climate-resilience workforce of tomorrow. At the end of this month, AmeriCorps expects more than 9,000 American Climate Corps members – nearly halfway to President Biden’s goal of 20,000 members in year one – will serve across the country, going to work conserving and restoring our lands and waters, bolstering community resilience, deploying clean energy, implementing energy efficient technologies, advancing environmental justice and more.
“Today’s inaugural swearing-in ceremony for the American Climate Corps marks a new era of youth-powered climate action that will advance President Biden’s ambitious climate, conservation, and clean energy priorities,” said Michael D. Smith, CEO, AmeriCorps. “The President’s landmark initiative is fulfilling a key promise to mobilize a new, diverse generation of Americans – and we couldn’t be more excited to see the enthusiasm from so many young people who are eager to get to work protecting their communities and building a cleaner, healthier future.”
“When President Biden hears climate, he thinks jobs – and the President’s American Climate Corps shows clearly how tackling the climate crisis spurs job creation and strengthens our workforce,” said President Biden’s National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi. “Whether it’s managing forests in the Pacific Northwest, deploying clean energy across the Southwest, or promoting sustainable farming practices throughout the Heartland, the President’s American Climate Corps is providing thousands of young Americans with the skills and experience to advance a more sustainable, just tomorrow. This inaugural cohort of American Climate Corps members will tackle longstanding environmental challenges in their communities and across the country, advance environmental justice, and build America’s clean energy future.”
Members being sworn in will recite a pledge, written by Pulitzer Prize-winning author and environmentalist Barbara Kingsolver, that embodies the spirit and vision for the President’s landmark initiative. Today’s swearing-in follows a suite of actions President Biden announced in April to stand up the American Climate Corps, including launching climatecorps.gov – a new website and application portal for prospective ACC members and implementing partners to enhance pathways into federal service and registered apprenticeships and a new interagency partnership to place ACC members directly in organizations supporting energy communities.
The swearing-in also builds on a series of listening sessions Biden-Harris Administration officials convened earlier this year to hear directly from prospective American Climate Corps applicants and implementing partners, as well as conservation and service corps, labor unions, educational institutions, employers, and state, local, territorial and Tribal governments about their priorities for the American Climate Corps. The listening sessions provided participants with the opportunity to engage directly with Administration officials who are overseeing the initiative.
Additional swearing-in ceremonies will take place over the coming weeks and months, as additional members continue to be placed into ACC positions across the country. AmeriCorps, the federal agency for national service, serves as the hub for the American Climate Corps.
