Media Note
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs Judith Garber will join Laura Buffo, Director for Environment and Natural Resources for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, to represent the United States at the 12th Meeting of the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) Environmental Affairs Council, June 20-21. PDAS Garber will participate in a press conference and ministerial panel with the other council members from Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The panel will focus on opportunities and challenges related to the enforcement of environmental laws.
In the 12 years since the CAFTA-DR entered into force, it has promoted stronger trade and investment ties, prosperity, and stability throughout the region. Additionally, the CAFTA-DR provides governments with a platform to advance common environmental goals. Some achievements include: saving nearly $3 million through private sector practices to reduce energy and water consumption; improving more than 227 environmental laws or regulations; training more than 143,000 people in natural resources management and biodiversity conservation; reaching more than 25 million people through a public awareness campaign on wildlife conservation; and establishing the successful Central American Wildlife Enforcement Network (CAWEN), which has supported wildlife operations and arrests that have helped reduce wildlife trafficking in the region.
For more information, contact OES-PA-DG@state.gov and follow the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs on Twitter @StateDeptOES.
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