On August 15-19, US Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson will travel to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with the mayor of Philadelphia Michael Nutter and representatives from US industry, government, academia and non-governmental organizations including, CH2MHILL, Morgan Stanley, Microsoft Corporation, Alcoa, the Rockefeller Foundation, Harvard University, C40 Cities and others to establish the United States-Brazil Joint Initiative on Urban Sustainability.
The initiative follows President Obama and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff’s announcement in March launching a set of high-level activities focused on expanding markets for US business and mobilizing innovative finance aimed at demonstrating the economic, environmental, and health benefits of greener and cleaner cities. Administrator Jackson will be joined by her counterpart, Brazil’s Minister of Environment Izabella Teixeira, Governor of Rio de Janeiro State Sergio Cabral, and Mayor of Rio de Janeiro Eduardo Paes.
“This is a perfect example of our environmental and our economic priorities coming together. It is a chance for American businesses, urban development experts and EPA officials to meet with our counterparts in Brazil and talk about our shared opportunities to create jobs while advancing urban sustainability and building healthier places to live and work,” said Administrator Jackson. “With the significant investments in sustainable urban growth that Rio is making in the next four years, it is essential that we go there to both learn and share our expertise. We want to be a part of activities that can create new jobs for American companies and foster cleaner, greener communities for the American people.”
As the upcoming host of both the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics, Brazil has a unique opportunity to leverage approximately $200 billion in traditional infrastructure investments and push sustainable infrastructure to the top of its national agenda in a manner that supports both strong economic growth and sustainable development. Given President Rousseff’s interest in building 21st century cities and the importance President Obama places on building stronger and more sustainable communities, this US-Brazil initiative provides an opportunity to demonstrate global leadership on smart investments in healthier and more prosperous cities. The initiative will showcase the key outcomes of this cooperation at Rio +20 in June of 2012.
Administrator Jackson will lead a number of high-level meetings along with Minister Teixeira, and engage with federal and local officials, industry and stakeholders to advance the initiative. Following the meetings, Administrator Jackson will participate in a number of community development activities and connect with students and faculty at leading universities to build on President Obama’s Memorandum of Understanding on Major Global Sporting Events announced on March 19, 2011.
More information on US-Brazil Joint Initiative on Urban Sustainability: http://www.epa.gov/international/jius.html
