(C) U.S. State Dept This story was originally published by U.S. State Dept and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Upcoming Digital Press Briefing on U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Commitments to Africa [1] [] Date: 2024-01 MEDIA ADVISORY | January 29 Digital Press Briefing with U.S. EPA Administrator Michael Regan on EPA Commitments to Africa EVENT: Please join us on Monday, January 29, 2024, for a digital press briefing with U.S. EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan on the last day of his mission to Mozambique and Ghana. During the press briefing, Administrator Regan will announce commitments that EPA is making to share solutions on a range of environmental priorities in Africa. The announcements will include initiatives to protect clean air, encourage the responsible mining of critical minerals, improve recycling of materials from plastics and electronic waste, as well as collaboration between schools in America and Ghana to foster cultural and environmental exchanges of information. Following brief remarks, EPA Administrator Regan will take questions from participating journalists. DETAILS: Speaker: Michael Regan, Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Date: Monday, January 29, 2024 Time: 10:30 a.m. Johannesburg | 8:30 a.m. GMT | 3:30 a.m. ET Language: English – Portuguese interpretation will be provided Ground rules: The briefing will be on the record Login info: To be provided upon RSVP RSVP: Please RSVP by clicking here Twitter: Join the conversation #AFHubPress and follow us on @AfricaMediaHub. BIOGRAPHY Michael S. Regan Administrator U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Michael S. Regan was sworn in as the 16th Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency on March 11, 2021, becoming the first Black man and second person of color to lead the U.S. EPA. Administrator Regan is a native of Goldsboro, North Carolina, where he developed a passion for the environment while hunting and fishing with his father and grandfather, and exploring the vast lands, waters, and inner Coastal Plain of North Carolina. As the son of two public servants – his mother, a nurse for nearly 30 years, and his father, a retired Colonel with the North Carolina National Guard, Vietnam veteran, and former agricultural extension agent – Michael Regan went on to follow in his parents’ footsteps and pursue a life of public service. Prior to his nomination as EPA Administrator, Michael Regan served as the Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). As Secretary, he spearheaded the development and implementation of North Carolina’s seminal plan to address climate change and transition the state to a clean energy economy. Under his leadership, he secured the largest coal ash clean-up in United States history. He led complex negotiations regarding the clean-up of the Cape Fear River, which had been contaminated for years by the toxic chemicals per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS). In addition, he established North Carolina’s first-of-its-kind Environmental Justice and Equity Advisory board to better align social inequities, environmental protection, and community empowerment. Previously, Administrator Regan served as Associate Vice President of U.S. Climate and Energy, and as Southeast Regional Director of the Environmental Defense Fund where he convened energy companies, business leaders, environmental and industry groups, and elected officials across the country to achieve pragmatic solutions to the climate crisis. He began his career with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, eventually becoming a national program manager responsible for designing strategic solutions with industry and corporate stakeholders to reduce air pollution, improve energy efficiency and address climate change. Throughout his career, he has been guided by a belief in forming consensus, fostering an open dialogue rooted in respect for science and the law, and an understanding that environmental protection and economic prosperity go hand in hand. LOGISTICS: [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.state.gov/upcoming-digital-press-briefing-on-u-s-environmental-protection-agency-commitments-to-africa/ Published and (C) by U.S. State Dept Content appears here under this condition or license: Public Domain. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/usstate/