Madame VP Kamala Harris’ Closet

 With no none public events for Monday 28th and Tuesday 29th, on Wednesday Madam Vice President took part and delivered opening remarks at the UN’s Generation Equality Forum, “a global gathering for gender equality convened by UN Women in a live speech. The forum was co-hosted by the Governments of Mexico and France in partnership with youth and civil society.

Photo Credit: White House/Youtube

According to the United Nations: The Forum kicked off in Mexico City in March and will culminate in Paris from 30 June to 2 July 2021, launching a series of concrete, ambitious and transformative actions to achieve immediate and irreversible progress towards gender equality. The event also marked the 25th anniversary of the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing.

Vice President Harris lead the U.S. virtual delegation to the Generation Equality Forum in Paris, and provided live opening remarks alongside co-hosts French President Emmanuel Macron, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and U.N. Secretary General António Guterres. 

2) In the afternoon, Vice President Harris joined President Biden in the South Court Auditorium for a meeting with some Western Governors to discuss ways and briefings to address this year’s current and upcoming severe fire danger, titled "Western Wildfires."

They were accompanied by Cabinet officials, and private sector partners to discuss the devastating intersection of drought, heat, and wildfires in the Western United States, and strengthening prevention, preparedness and response efforts for this wildfire season

Cabinet Officials who attended were:

• Secretary of the Interior, Deb Haaland
• Energy Department's Secretary Jennifer Granholm,
• White House National Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy 
• White House's Chief of Staff, Ron Klein
• Deputy secretary of Defense Kathleen Holland Hicks 
• EPA Administrator Michael Regan,
• Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall  who serves as the Homeland Security Advisor for U.S. President Joe Biden
• Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas
• Tom Vilsack, SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE

 Governors attending were: 

 At a White House announcement on June 3rd, Vice President Kamala Harris was joined by Secretary of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Secretary of the Interior, Secretary Deb Haaland in the Southern Auditorium to speak about Investing in High Speed Internet in rural and tribal Communities. 

The leaders issued joint calls for significant broadband investments in the American Jobs Plan to make affordable high-speed internet available to all Americans.

Vice President Kamala Harris announced that the U.S. Department of Commerce will invest nearly $1 billion in their National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) grants to expand broadband access and adoption on Tribal lands.

Secretary Raimondo said, "These investments will help many Native American, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian communities gain long overdue access to life-saving technologies, economic opportunities, remote learning and countless other benefits."

Whilst Secretary Haaland who spoke virtually said, "For generations, a lack of infrastructure investment in Indian Country has left Tribes further behind in the digital divide than most areas of the country. We have a responsibility as a country to build infrastructure that will fuel economic development, keep communities safe, and ensure everyone has opportunities to succeed."

The grants will be made available via the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program, which was established by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. All Federally recognised, Eligible Native American, Alaskan Native, and Native Hawaiian tribes will be able to apply and use the grants for broadband deployment, as well as for digital inclusion, workforce development, telehealth, and distance learning.