September 10 Put Solar on It Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 10, 2010

Contact: Jamie Henn, jamie@350.org, 415-601-9337

Bill McKibben’s Statement on Meeting with Administration to Urge
Installation of Solar Panels on the White House Roof

Washington, DC — This morning, Bill McKibben and a team of students from Maine’s Unity College met with White House officials to urge them to install solar panels back on the White House roof.

The meeting came at the end of a four day road trip to return one of President Carter’s original solar panels back to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The trip has attracted significant media coverage, including an oped by McKibben in today’s Washington Post.
 
Upon walking out of the meeting, McKibben reported:

“The White House said they wouldn’t take the panel and that they would continue with their deliberative process in deciding to put solar back on the roof. We passed along the wish of the tens of thousands of people that the Administration would speed up their deliberative process; in any event, we’re actually done deliberating and our supporters are ready to get to work on their own homes, schools and churches on 10/10/10.”

The meeting was hosted by Michelle Moore, the Federal Environmental Executive, Amelia Salzman, Associate Director for Policy Outreach at the Council on Environmental Quality, and Greg Nelson, Deputy Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement.

McKibben said he was especially proud of the Unity College students who drove down the Carter panel from Maine in their attempt to return it to the White House. Jean Altomare, a senior wildlife major, expressed her disappointment in the Administration’s refusal to accept the panel:

“No tears fell in the room, but things were definitely tense. The meeting was a disappointment, but I’m proud that a few students from rural Maine could make these Administration officials feel so uncomfortable. They need to know we’re not going to let them off the hook when our future is on the line.”

According to McKibben, the Administration officials took the opportunity to explain the important work the government is doing on other federal buildings and offer students a 2009 memorandum from the Vice President detailing federal energy plans.

Today marks the one month countdown to 350.org’s 10/10/10 Global Work Party, a day when millions of people will get to work on climate solutions and challenge world leaders to join them. Thousands of “work parties” are already planned in more than 130 countries, including an event in the Maldives where President Mohamed Nasheed will climb on his roof and install a new set of solar panels donated by the California based company Sungevity.

Other 10/10/10 events include sumo wrestlers riding their bicycles through the center of Tokyo, students in Zimbabwe installing solar panels on a rural hospital, women in Pakistan hosting a solar cooking workshop, and home retrofits in New Orleans. 350.org is coordinating the day with the 10:10 Campaign based in the UK and hundreds of partners around the world, from Greenpeace to local groups.

As for the Carter solar panel, it will remain in Washington, a symbolic reminder of a road not taken, yesterday and today.   

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For More Info and hi-res photos:

Visit: http://putsolaron.it/road-trip/media

Contact: Jamie Henn, jamie@350.org, 415-601-9337

About 350.org

Founded by American environmentalist Bill McKibben, 350.org is an international campaign that works to build a global climate movement. On October 24, 2009 they organized what CNN called the “most widespread day of political action in the planet’s history.” 350.org is named after the goal of reducing the concentration of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere from its current level of 390 parts per million to below 350 ppm, the safe upper limit according to the latest science.