4 Climate Finance Priorities for the Biden Administration

This briefing by the World Resources Institute outlines four strategic priorities for the Biden administration to restore U.S. leadership in international climate finance. It argues that the U.S. must scale up funding to meet global commitments, specifically targeting the Green Climate Fund, other multilateral institutions, the integration of climate goals across all development funding, and the alignment of multilateral development banks with the Paris Agreement.

• The United States has significantly underfunded international climate efforts relative to its status as the largest cumulative greenhouse gas emitter and its federal budget. While the U.S. suffered $600 billion in direct losses from climate and weather-related events over five years, only $2.5 billion, or 0.07% of the annual federal budget, is dedicated to international climate change efforts.
• The Biden administration is urged to prioritize the Green Climate Fund (GCF) by paying the $2 billion still owed from an original 2014 pledge and making a new commitment of $6 billion. This would align the U.S. with other developed nations that have doubled their original pledges to help poorer countries build low-carbon, resilient economies.
• The U.S. should expand its support for other multilateral climate institutions, including becoming a first-time contributor to the Adaptation Fund and renewing pledges to the Least Developed Countries Fund at levels similar to its 2015 pledge of $51 million. Additionally, the administration should increase contributions to the Global Environment Facility for the 2022-2026 replenishment period.
• The administration should mainstream climate considerations across all development spending and coordinate across agencies such as the Departments of State and Treasury, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation. This includes ending overseas financing for fossil fuels.
• The U.S. should leverage its position as a major shareholder to push multilateral development banks to align with the Paris Agreement. This includes ending fossil fuel funding and ensuring pandemic recovery funds support cleaner, more resilient societies, potentially by updating Treasury guidelines for how U.S. representatives vote in these banks.

APA

Thwaites, J. (2021). 4 Climate Finance Priorities for the Biden Administration. World Resources Institute. https://www.wri.org/insights/4-climate-finance-priorities-biden-administration

Chicago

Thwaites, Joe. 4 Climate Finance Priorities for the Biden Administration. World Resources Institute, 2021. https://www.wri.org/insights/4-climate-finance-priorities-biden-administration.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Thwaites |first1=Joe |title=4 Climate Finance Priorities for the Biden Administration |publisher=World Resources Institute |date=28 January 2021 |url=https://www.wri.org/insights/4-climate-finance-priorities-biden-administration |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{thwaites2021climate, author = {Thwaites, Joe}, title = {{4 Climate Finance Priorities for the Biden Administration}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2021}, month = jan, url = {https://www.wri.org/insights/4-climate-finance-priorities-biden-administration}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }