Today we witness history, the 59th United States Presidential Inauguration.

And a long time coming, right? It’s been 4 years of destructive and incompetent leadership on climate from the United States federal government, but today the U.S. is BACK. Not only formally back in the Paris Climate Agreement, but back at the table with leadership and new positions in the White House creating the policy, action, and messaging around climate action.

So who better to talk to on this historic day than the incoming National Climate Policy Chief, and a beloved friend of this podcast, Gina McCarthy. Most recently President and CEO of NRDC, she was also the 13th administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under President Obama, where she ushered in a paradigm shift in national environmental policy, which expressly linked it to global public health.

Literally on her way to receive her COVID vaccine in DC so she can work at the White House, Gina pulled over to talk about what we can expect from this new office, new administration, and new moment.