Britain has appointed Rachel Kyte, a climate policy professor from Oxford University, as its new climate envoy on Thursday, September 26.
As per several reports, Kyte's role as the UK's Special Representative for Climate comes just six weeks before the COP 29 summit in Azerbaijan, where global leaders will gather to negotiate new agreements on reducing global warming, addressing its effects, and raising funds for the most impacted areas.
British Foreign Minister David Lammy commended Kyte’s expertise, noting that her knowledge would help strengthen the UK’s international leadership on climate issues.
Lammy also mentioned that climate change would play a central role in UK foreign policy, with Kyte taking on the climate brief while another yet-to-be-announced envoy will focus on nature.
Kyte previously worked for the World Bank during the lead-up to the 2015 Paris climate agreement and later served as the UN Secretary-General’s special representative for sustainable energy.
Earlier this week, Energy Security and Net Zero Minister Ed Miliband reiterated Britain’s renewed focus on climate leadership, criticizing the previous government for easing some of its climate goals.
