Rufus Gifford gave a speech on The new climate policies under the Biden administration and the global challenges for the Paris Agreement.

Rufus Gifford is a former U.S. Ambassador, senior aide to President Barack Obama and President Joe Biden, civic leader, public speaker, an advocate for Democratic causes and current Nominee for Chief of Protocol for the United States with the rank of Ambassador. Most recently he was Deputy Campaign Manager for Biden for President with a focus on finance, external outreach and coalition building. Gifford was responsible for the record-shattering 1.5 billion dollars raised by the Biden Campaign in the general election. Aside from Presidential politics, he is focused on promoting civic engagement, particularly among youth and issue areas ranging from U.S. public diplomacy to renewable energy. From 2013 to 2017, Rufus served as the U.S. Ambassador to Denmark where he led efforts to address the effects of climate change, build international coalitions, and invest in clean energy. He was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog by Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark for his meritorious service. His pioneering tenure as Ambassador has been profiled in the Wall Street Journal, the Atlantic, CNN, and Vice News, among many other national and international outlets, and he has spoken extensively across Europe and the United States about his efforts to break down walls and humanize the work of government. At home, Rufus was the National Finance Director for President Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign, responsible for the record-breaking $1 billion budget. During Obama’s first term, Rufus was the National Finance Director at the Democratic National Committee and supported passage of a number of Obama policy initiatives. Before that, he was an aide on Obama’s historic 2008 presidential campaign. is former U.S. ambassador to Denmark and nominee for Chief of Protocol at the U.S. State Department.

See abstract of speech.