Ian Kim of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights calls for advocacy groups to join forces, to ensure that the stimulus money gets put into green-collar jobs initiatives at all levels of government, to strengthen our most vulnerable communities, and to create sustainable industries for our new century.
Ian lays it out: "We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to get it right -- to forge real working partnerships between community-based and racial justice advocates and organized labor, and intervene in the way that money gets used, this year, in a green way and in an equitable way."
Check out the Ella Baker Center's green-collar jobs campaign.
There could be no better investment in America than to invest in America becoming energy independent! We need to utilize everything in out power to reduce our dependence on foreign oil including using our own natural resources. Create cheap clean energy, new badly needed green jobs, and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. The high cost of fuel this past year seriously damaged our economy and society. The cost of fuel effects every facet of consumer goods from production to shipping costs. After a brief reprieve gas is inching back up. OPEC will continue to cut production until they achieve their desired 80-100. per barrel. If all gasoline cars, trucks, and SUV's instead had plug-in electric drive trains, the amount of electricity needed to replace gasoline is about equal to the estimated wind energy potential of the state of North Dakota. There is a really good new book out by Jeff Wilson called The Manhattan Project of 2009 Energy Independence Now. http://www.themanhattanprojectof2009.com