Background

In the fall of 2007, the CSIS Energy Security and Climate Change Program and the World Resources Institute’s (WRI) Climate and Energy Program launched a partnership on energy security and climate change.  The purpose of the partnership is to develop an effective U.S. climate change and energy policy framework that will enable the United States to better engage the international community on these important issues.

The challenges that face our world today are daunting. On the economic front, a global recession, with attendant unemployment and hardship looms.  On the environmental front, climate change threatens to put millions at risk from rising sea levels, disease, water and food scarcity, and instability resulting from mass migration.  The energy system is also under siege, threatened by a wide array of geopolitical, technological, security, infrastructure and investment challenges – all contributing to volatile prices, which in turn carry environmental and economic consequences.

And while there is an undeniably clear interconnection between these issues, with a few notable exceptions (e.g., an aggressive effort to promote energy efficiency) their collective resolution requires a comprehensive and balanced approach that recognizes the importance of environmental protection, economic prosperity, and energy security.

Energy security and climate change are global issues, requiring a coordinated international response.  However, global action to address these issues hinges most immediately on U.S. action and re-engagement.  With this understanding, working with the international, policy, business, and research communities, WRI and CSIS developed several reports and a roadmap to guide energy and climate policies for the new administration and Congress.  These reports and the roadmap focus primarily on the U.S. policy but with the ultimate goal of more effective international engagement.

This work is made possible through the generous support of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Connect US Fund of Tides Foundation, and the Energy Foundation.