On June 24, 2013, The European Institute welcomed His Excellency Petr Gandalovic, Ambassador of the Czech Republic to the United States, to a discussion on the challenges of moving towards a low-carbon economy at a time of economic austerity. The Ambassador gave prepared remarks on behalf of the Minister of Environment, The Honorable Tomas Chalupa, and offered his country’s perspective on mitigating the impact of climate change, while furthering efforts to diversify energy resources and build a sustainable economic recovery. The Honorable Tomas Tesar, Deputy Minister of the Environment of the Czech Republic, also participated in the panel discussion.