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John Kerry: ‘We’re Behind. We’re Way Behind.’

America’s climate envoy on what it will take to turn things around for the planet.

By , the editor in chief of Foreign Policy.
Former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks during a Commonwealth Club of California event in San Francisco on Sept. 13, 2018.
Former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks during a Commonwealth Club of California event in San Francisco on Sept. 13, 2018.
Former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks during a Commonwealth Club of California event in San Francisco on Sept. 13, 2018. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

When John Kerry took on his role as America’s climate envoy last year, he approached the job with his usual gusto, traveling around the world in a flurry of diplomatic engagements, convincing world leaders that America was indeed “back”—as U.S. President Joe Biden promised—and ready to take the lead on mitigating the impacts of climate change.

Ravi Agrawal is the editor in chief of Foreign Policy. Twitter: @RaviReports

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