Climate Change is a Priority for First Black Agriculture and Foreign Affairs Committee Chairs

In this moment of colliding crises—COVID-19, racial injustice, and climate change—two representatives are making history as the first Black lawmakers to lead key House committees.

Representative David Scott (D-Ga.) was born on a farm in South Carolina. After his parents moved north to find work, Scott remained on the family farm with his grandparents, where he gained firsthand knowledge of the vital contributions small farms make to their communities and the U.S. economy. Scott, a strong advocate for farmers and rural workforce development, has served on the House Agriculture Committee since he was first elected in 2003. Throughout his time in Congress, he has become an agricultural policy expert and deepened his understanding of the agricultural challenges farmers face today.

In December, Scott was named the Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, the first African American in history to serve in the position. In this role, Scott will oversee the agriculture and forestry industries, nutrition, and rural development. Scott has highlighted the impacts climate change has on the agricultural community and plans to prioritize climate change action throughout his term.

“I will use this critical opportunity to represent the values of our entire caucus and advance our priorities for trade, disaster aid, climate change, sustainable agriculture, SNAP [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program], crop insurance, small family farms, specialty crops, and rural broadband,” Scott said in a statement. “The fault lines dividing our rural and urban communities are running deep, and climate change is now threatening our nation’s food supply. As Chairman, I will lead the fight to rise up and meet these challenges.”

In another historic first for the House, Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) was selected to serve as the Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Meeks is also the first African American to hold the position. Coming from humble beginnings, Meeks grew up in a public housing project in New York City, which he says informed his work as a social and environmental justice advocate in Congress.

In his more than 20 years as an elected official, Meeks has earned a lifetime score of 90 percent on the National Environmental Scorecard from the League of Conservation Voters, which tracks Congressional votes on conservation and environmental justice issues. In his new role, he will work on national security, foreign aid, trade, and reforming the State Department, all while prioritizing climate change as a global crisis that must be addressed by the international community. Meeks voiced his support for international collaboration and stressed that the United States will need to “establish new coalitions to address the existential crisis of climate change and emerging threats.”

“This five year anniversary of the #ParisAgreement marks a moment of opportunity to re-honor that commitment and once again lead as a global climate champion,” Meeks said in a recent tweet.

Congressional climate action will reflect the unique perspectives of these two trailblazers, who are set to make climate change a national priority from the agricultural fields in the Midwest to diplomatic negotiations stretching across the globe. This reflects and reinforces the “whole-of-government” approach President Biden laid out in his January 27 executive order to combat the climate crisis.

“We can no longer be America first, but America forward,” Meeks said in a statement. “Our challenges before us are global in scale, and it will require global cooperation, spearheaded by American leadership.”

Author: Sydney O’Shaughnessy

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