The Embassy of the United States of America is pleased to announce that Sufina Raihani Hj Mohd Salleh, Special Duties Officer at the Brunei Climate Change Secretariat, has successfully completed an International Visitor Leadership Program on “The Climate Crisis: Working Together for Future Generations” in the United States.
From February 25 and March 18, Sufina Raihani joined over 70 climate experts, advocates, and policymakers from more than 60 countries to address the climate crisis and its impacts.
The participants visited Washington, D.C., to learn about U.S. federal government efforts to mitigate the climate crisis; San Francisco, California, to learn about innovative initiatives by industries to improve and restore the environment; New Orleans, Louisiana, to see the challenges of a region dealing with a need to evolve away from extractive industries while actively managing disasters, displacement, and climate injustice; and Miami, Florida, to participate in local efforts in advocating and implementing sustainable practices.
Following the completion of the programme, Sufina Raihani met with U.S. Ambassador to Brunei Darussalam Caryn McClelland to discuss lessons learned from the programme and explore how Brunei can work together with the United States to combat the climate crisis.
Ambassador McClelland also presented a certificate of completion to Sufina Raihani.
“Tackling the climate crisis is at the center of U.S. foreign policy, diplomacy, and national security,” said Ambassador McClelland. “This IVLP initiative is one of the ways the U.S. government is demonstrating its commitment to addressing the climate crisis by bringing participants from around the world together to share best practices and collaborate together.”
The United States is also supporting the establishment of the new ASEAN Center for Climate Change (ACCC), based in Brunei, through technical exchanges with the premier U.S. climate experts. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory has provided trainings that expand the ACCC’s capacity for decarbonisation research, disaster management planning, and other initiatives.
The International Visitor Leadership Program is the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange programme, connecting current and emerging foreign leaders with their American counterparts through short-term programs to build mutual understanding on a wide range of issues. Nearly 200,000 distinguished individuals have participated in the program, including more than 500 current or former chiefs of state or heads of government, and thousands of leaders from the public and private sectors. – *Analisa Amu*
THE BRUNEIAN | BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN