Monday, April 20, 2009

Van Jones & Robert Redford Discuss Green Jobs on CNN

PRESIDENT'S CORNER

By Norris McDonald

Van Jones, right, President Obama's new Green Jobs Czar (he doesn't particularly like the Czar part) brings, along with other interesting folk, new energy to Washington's environmental movement. Jones' rise over the past four or so years has been phenomenal, just like President Obama's rise to the presidency. As Green Jobs Adviser at the Counsel on Environmental Quality (CEQ), Jones is not only a major asset to President Obama, he will bring renewed attention to 'greening the economy.' He was great on "Larry King Live," but I have to say that Redford took up a lot of his time. We suspect that Jones will get his time in the spotlight though. He is a great new dynamic presence on the environmental scene.

Actually, a little over 25 years ago, I hung out with Redford for a bit on the Navajo Reservation. Redford was on the board of what is now Friends of the Earth and I spent a few days with him and Navajo Nation Chair Peterson Zah. I think it was 1983 when I first met Redford at the White House Ruins at Canyon de Chelly in Arizona (click on photo below to enlarge). I am in the middle of the photo and Redford is kneeling in front of me. Well let us hope that substantive results will not only come from Jones at CEQ, but let us also hope that Redford will branch out a little bit more into new territory.

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