By Luis Hestres
By 1Sky interns Florencia Foxley and Emma Fernandez, soon-to-be graduates of Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C.
Yesterday, the Washington Post ran an article about the Obama administration’s new plan to fund and train workers in clean energy jobs. Part of the $4 billion budgeted to renovate public housing will be set aside to create jobs that make the houses more energy efficient. The project highlights the administration’s dedication to making our economy green.
This plan is a perfect example of how going green is win-win. It will not only make public housing more energy efficient, but also lower energy costs for the residents and provide jobs to out-of-work Americans that cannot be easily outsourced.
Greening public housing is one important step toward creating millions of new jobs, breaking our dependency on foreign oil, and pulling ahead in the world-wide race to develop a green economy. Did you know that China’s government is investing $12.6 million every hour towards a green economy? This new program shows that the Obama administration has chosen a clean energy plan instead of sticking with the Bush-Cheney policies that led to $4 gas and a continued dependence on foreign oil. Obama knows that a green economy is the only thing that can "help pull the U.S. out of its worst downturn since the Depression."
