221612 Resource 107527 205428 205428 1230073219693 1230073219693 Controlled Obama Selecting Global Warming – Climate Change Advocates for His Science Team

Some big changes may be in store for federal environmental legislation

Echoing his campaign rhetoric, Obama is actively stacking his team with some of the best and brightest climate change minds in the world, which will likely be a top priority for the four most recent additions to Obama's federal appointees for the <a href="http://www.noaa.gov/">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a> and the <a href="http://www.ostp.gov/">White House Office of Science and Technology.</a> GHG is clearly going to be addressed throughout his tenure as President. The nominees come with strong scientific credentials, and favor mandatory limits on greenhouse gas emissions to fight climate change. <o:p />"It's time we once again put science at the top of our agenda and worked to restore America's place as the world leader in science and technology," Obama said in a taped address. <o:p />The Most Recent Appointees<o:p /> <ul type="disc" style="margin-top: 0in;"><li class="MsoNormal">Jane Lubchenco, a marine ecologist at Oregon State University, will head NOAA. </li></ul> <ul type="disc" style="margin-top: 0in;"><li class="MsoNormal">John Holdren, a physicist and professor of environmental policy at Harvard University, will serve as the president's science adviser. He will also direct the White House science office and serve as co-chairman of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.</li></ul> <o:p />Other Co-Chairs:<o:p /> <ul type="disc" style="margin-top: 0in;"><li class="MsoNormal">Harold Varmus, who headed the National Institutes of Health in the Clinton administration</li></ul> <ul type="disc" style="margin-top: 0in;"><li class="MsoNormal">MIT professor Eric Lander, a genome research specialist<o:p /></li></ul> Alan Leshner, CEO of the American Association of the Advancement of Science, said choosing Holdren "would be an enlightened appointment," while the Union of Concerned Scientists released a statement calling Holdren, Lubchenco and Obama's pick for Energy secretary, Steven Chu, "a science dream team."<o:p /> <o:p />As NOAA's leader, Lubchenco would oversee a $4 billion agency whose responsibilities include a large portion of the federal government's climate change research as well as marine issues. If confirmed by the Senate, she would become the first woman, and the first marine scientist, to head NOAA. <o:p />Holdren was a strong force during the Clinton administration, pushing for more attention to climate change matters. As a leader of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, he helped focus more government and industry attention on climate change-related technology and international clean energy initiatives, as well as on a federal program to develop a hybrid-electric car that was later dismantled by the Bush administration. <o:p />Obama called John Holdren, "one of the most passionate and persistent voices of our time about the growing threat of climate change."<o:p /> <o:p />The next four years are shaping up to be very good for the battle against greenhouse gasses and climate change. <o:p /> 10 application/xml false climate change ghg global warming green house gas emissions NOAA Obama transition team Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.8.1.20) Gecko/20081217 Firefox/2.0.0.20 127.0.0.1 127.0.0.1 jwuebben 74.202.198.130 false true false false true 205814 false false true false false false true 107527 blog blogsite/Enviance/web