GSA Blog

Introducing the 28 Advisors Who Will Help GSA Address Climate and Sustainability in Federal Buying

When I go out and talk to people, I tell them we’re building a government that looks like, works with, and delivers for all of America.

I’m so proud to come to work with the team at GSA who keeps that front and center in all we do every day.

Often we invite specialists across and outside the government to join us in this work. Especially when we’re working on something as big as transforming the way the government buys things and uses its buying power to advance important policy goals.

That’s why I was pleased to join Administrator Robin Carnahan last week to kick off the first public meeting of the GSA Acquisition Policy Federal Advisory Committee and welcome its 28 inaugural members.

More than 100 highly experienced and knowledgeable experts raised their hands when we called for nominations to serve as advisors. I am beyond grateful to this first group of professionals who have agreed to volunteer their time and talents to help us.

The GAP FAC, as we have already begun to call it, will advise us on emerging acquisition issues, challenges, and opportunities to support our role as America’s buyer. Their first charge will be driving regulatory, policy, and process changes required to embed climate and sustainability considerations in federal acquisition.

“The best news of all is that the timing could not be better because we have both momentum and money to do this important work,” said Administrator Carnahan about the Biden-Harris administration’s commitment to have the U.S. government lead by example with Buy Clean initiatives across the country.

“In fact, not only do we have President Biden’s executive orders, we also have the biggest investments ever in rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure and combating climate change. Nearly $370 billion dollars. It’s an unprecedented moment for GSA and this Committee to help influence how those dollars will be spent across government, so we need your wisdom, sound judgment, and game-changing ideas to make sure we get it right,” Carnahan said to the assembled advisors.

As GSA and our federal agency partners look to implement last year’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act, advancing sustainability and tackling climate change are top priorities.

I felt so much energy and passion among the group. I’m truly looking forward to the Committee’s recommendations about how to address these top priorities, and to solve other emerging federal acquisition challenges.

I am thrilled to introduce the Committee members and their organizational affiliations:

Each meeting of the GAP FAC will be open to the public unless otherwise notified, in accordance with the Government in the Sunshine Act, and those meetings will be fully accessible to individuals with disabilities.

I invite you to listen in any time. Stay posted to our webpage or the Federal Register for notices of upcoming public meetings.