Obama’s Green Industry…
To finally spark the creation of a clean energy economy, we will double the production of alternative energy in the next three years. We will modernize more than 75 percent of federal buildings and improve the energy efficiency of two million American homes, saving consumers and taxpayers billions on our energy bills. In the process, we will put Americans to work in new jobs that pay well and can’t be outsourced – jobs building solar panels and wind turbines; constructing fuel-efficient cars and buildings; and developing the new energy technologies that will lead to even more jobs, more savings, and a cleaner, safer planet in the bargain.
–President Barack Obama, January 8, 2009
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the infamous “stimulus plan,” proposes immediate action to improve the United States’ struggling economy. An integral part of the plan, proposed by President Barack Obama, is the creation of new jobs in both the public and private sector. But Obama wishes to correct many of the nation’s woes in one fatal swoop. Thus, he advises creating jobs in a field where America has long lagged behind the rest of the developed world; he wants America to become part of the “green revolution.”
If the plan is approved, the jobs created will encourage environmental protection in a variety of ways including energy independence, new recycling technologies and environmental restoration. Americans across the board could have access to these new jobs, from scientists to blue-collar workers.
The plan proposes $90 billion in infrastructure investments for things such as clean water and restoration, in addition to rebuilding roads and highways. It also calls for $58 billion to be spent on energy in three areas: a new electric smart grid, renewable energy tax cuts and weatherizing homes.
What does this mean for university students? It means that, if we act quickly, we could become a part of this revolution. It means that many jobs we have never even heard of will become commonplace. It means that we are entering a new industrial revolution, but this time the revolution will help the environment as well as the economy. Below are only a few possible fields in which we can participate:
Environmental Education
If you have a Ph.D., getting a job in ecological restoration would be fairly simple; you could be a biologist, a postdoctoral fellow, a civil engineer, you name it. For those of us who don’t have a doctorate, however, and who are not quite sure what this whole ecological restoration thing is about, working with an ecological educational program could be a good start. On the website for the Society for Ecological Restoration International, there are six job postings for camp counselors and/or teachers for educational programs. Many of these jobs only require knowledge of the field and a high school diploma or Bachelor’s Degree. So, if you are outdoors-y and want to spread environmental awareness, this might be the field for you!
Environmental Protection Organizations
In large environmental organizations like The Sierra Club and The World Wildlife Fund you can work in almost any capacity and still be helping the environment. They need biologists, secretaries, lawyers and journalists. Whatever your skill-set and background, you can probably find a job that matches. The great thing about these organizations is that they are located nationally and internationally. Whether you want to catch salmon in Alaska or clean up the beaches in Florida, you can find your ideal location.
Government Jobs
If you would prefer to work the public sector, not the private sector, you should consider looking for a position with the Department of Natural Resources or the Environmental Protection Agency. Both of these organizations have federal and state branches. The new stimulus plan, however, calls for the creation of more jobs in the private sector than the public; so, these organizations may not be hiring for a while.
Green Industry
On top of these organizational and government jobs, the “greening” of America will call for a change in industry—both in how things are produced and what is being produced. Bright minds will be needed to help industry transition to more environmentally friendly practices. New products mean that new processes will need to be developed and improved upon over time.

The current economic crisis had plenty of airtime in recent news cycles, but a shockingly small portion has been substantive. Measures of our economic voodoo god—consumer spending—have been abysmal, and companies with direct consumer interaction are visibly suffering. The supply-side economists in the media extrapolate this onto the population itself. Our new Federal Administration, contrary to the language of the election, seems to constitute the same kind of supply-side thinking that has dominated the past 30 years of public life. Here in Minnesota, we are faced with an enormous state budget deficit and plagued by job losses from prominent companies such as Target and Best Buy. If the unemployment rate today had escaped the last 80 years of academic gerrymandering, the unemployment rate would stand at 17.5 percent by some estimates. Things are bad, and people are unclear, at this point, what progress will look like. Thus, public discourse on the economy tends to fall in the range of “is the economy good yet?” to illogical predictive discourse using the Great Depression as an exclusive model. 
Do you believe in love at first sight? Soul mates? Well, hopeless romantics, those butterflies rising into your chest may simply be a figment of your imagination. New research could prove that instant attraction has nothing to do with the planets aligning or being shot by Cupid’s arrow, but rather it is a biological response a person’s smell. Sure, there are plenty of things that contribute to a person’s attractiveness, but how can we explain the “chemistry” that is felt with a person? The answer is right in front of your nose. Literally.
When money is in short supply, people tighten their purse strings by avoiding restaurants, vacations, and movie dates. 
Where do you come from? This is one of the first questions we always ask each other when introducing ourselves. But really, where do you come from? Your ancestors may have sailed over from Asia or Europe, but what about their ancestors who lived tens of thousands of years ago? From where did they travel and how did their actions result in your existence? Despite your views on human origin, the National Geographic Society, IBM, and geneticist Spencer Wells have theories and data to tickle anyone’s brain.
Where 21st Avenue ends across from the Pioneers and Soldiers Memorial Cemetery stands the Green Institute. This last stop destination conceals the center of environmental activism in Minnesota. The neighborhood surrounding the Institute is America: a hybrid of industrial, residential, and business life forming one community. Here reside the elements that compose human civilization and simultaneously endanger it. In the middle of this quintessential American landscape you’ll find explorer Will Steger, best known for evading it.
His passion for the environment was apparent. This was a man who had left the comfort of his secluded home in the wilderness of Ely, Minnesota for a busy life of presentations, conferences, and speeches in Minneapolis. The sights he has seen throughout 45 years of polar exploration feed his determination. The places he has trekked have been irrevocably damaged; such as the three Larsen ice shelves on the Antarctic Peninsula that have disintegrated in the past ten years, and the Arctic sea ice that decreased by 60% in 2007. He is driven by a need to share what he has seen in hopes that it will spark change.
Do you see what happened there? We saved a few words- and potentially intimate words at that! However in this situation, a couple more intimate words may be helpful, since the cat may already be out of the bag. Kiesling calls this confrontation stance mitigation; because you don’t want to throw down with your broham over some boxers, do you? With the “Dude, get this”, it’s more like “ Hey, here comes a story!” The discourse structure is marked as an upcoming story, which is pretty straightforward, not as much cool solidarity is indexed, however. “Dude, that’s sick” is like “I am celebrating our dude-ness together, your success is my success!” Kiesling calls this exclamation, which is what it is. “Dude, I know what you are saying” is your buddy’s way of really saying, “Brody, the last comment you made really made an impact on me and I think I am beginning to feel a deeper connection to you because of it. But I am totally not gay, I swear. Not that being gay is a bad thing, it’s just not me…I just, I relate to you, especially now.” See? Not so cool Brody knows it, and you know it. 

