The End of Climate Shocks

An Address by USAID Administrator Samantha Power

Tuesday, Jan. 30 | 10-11:30 a.m.

Note: This is an edited event recording that reflects the content of the scheduled program. A full recording of the event is available on the USAID website.

With 2023 marked by near-constant record-breaking heat waves, floods, fires, and storms, climate shocks have now become so regular that they can hardly be called “shocks” any longer. Yet despite the regularity of these disasters, we consistently fail to prepare for them, allowing them to shock our systems and destroy infrastructure, crops, and communities. USAID Administrator Samantha Power discussed steps policymakers and business leaders can take to build the market for climate resilience—and put an end to this era of perpetual and deadly shock.

Administrator Power’s address was followed by a fireside chat and audience Q&A moderated by Bloomberg News Washington, DC Bureau Chief Peggy Collins.

About the speaker

Samantha Power is the 19th Administrator of USAID, the world’s largest bilateral development agency with a global staff of over 11,000 across more than 100 countries.

As USAID Administrator, Power has led the Agency in prioritizing efforts to address some of the world’s greatest development and humanitarian challenges, including climate change, the global food crisis, emerging threats to global health, and rising threats to democracy and civil society. Power has also focused on advancing a series of reforms aimed at making USAID’s work more inclusive and effective, and at extending the Agency’s impact beyond its foreign assistance programs. Since 2021, USAID has taken a range of steps to significantly expand partnerships with local organizations, mobilize powerful new investments from nontraditional partners in the private sector, and better attract and retain talent that reflects the best of America. Additionally, Power is the first USAID Administrator to serve as a member of the National Security Council. Read full bio