NPR

A Little-Known Climate Fund Is Suddenly In The Spotlight

It's the Green Climate Fund. It was called out by President Trump last week, who said he'd cut off U.S. "billions." What does it do, exactly, and what will be the impact of the cutback?
Wind turbines in Egypt's Sinai Desert. Helping developing countries harness energy from the wind is one of the Green Climate Fund's goals. / Anton Petrus / Getty Images

The Green Climate Fund has been thrust into the spotlight of late.

President Trump singled it out for scorn in his Rose Garden remarks last week announcing his decision to pull the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement. Along with that move, Trump noted, he is ending further U.S. contributions to the "so-called Green Climate Fund — nice name."

Advocates for the environment have countered with op-eds in defense of the fund. Even comedian John Oliver jumped into the fray. In his Sunday night HBO show Oliver offered a point-by-point rebuttal of numerous incorrect statements that Trump made about the fund, including the erroneous claim that the GCF, which is funded through voluntary contributions, would "likely obligate the United States to commit potentially tens of billions of dollars."

Yet it seems

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