This week marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of ecologist Rachel Carson’s groundbreaking 1962 book Silent Spring. By 1970, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was established.

That’s no coincidence.

Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring launched the modern-day environmental movement and changed the world we live in.

In her book, Carson discussed the widespread and detrimental use of certain pesticides – especially DDT, a toxin that almost wiped out our national symbol, the bald eagle. EPA banned the use of that pesticide in 1972.

Rachel Carson’s writing helped Americans see the connections between their health and the health of the environment. Her efforts helped ignite the conversation on environmentalism in America.

One of my priorities as administrator of EPA has been to continue what Rachel began by working to expand the conversation on environmentalism. Bringing people together around environmental issues is essential. We want mothers and fathers to know how important clean air, water and land are to their health and the health of their children. We want to continue to engage African Americans and Latinos and expand the conversation on environmental challenges, so we can address health disparities resulting from pollution that affects low-income and minority communities. Environmental justice will be achieved when everyone enjoys the same degree of protection from environmental and health hazards and equal access to the decision-making process to have a healthy environment in which to live, learn, and work.

Though we’ve made a great deal of progress since Silent Spring, we still have much work to do. Heart disease, cancer and respiratory illnesses are three of the top four most fatal health threats in America. They account for more than half of the deaths in the nation – and all three have been linked to environmental causes. Environmental issues are critical health issues, and we need all Americans to participate in this conversation.

Rachel Carson helped show many Americans that, though they may not think of themselves as environmentalists, environmental issues invariably play a role in their health and in the future of the nation.

Her message remains as true and as critical today as it was 50 years ago.

by Administrator Lisa P. Jackson

Summertime is coming to an end, and kids are heading back to school. And even though they’ll be spending less time outdoors, we should still be thinking about how to protect the environment and safeguard our children’s health. Fortunately, small actions can turn into big results for protecting the environment, and can even save extra money for the school year.

For example, try to cut down on waste. More than 30 percent of what we throw away comes from cardboard and plastic packaging. Look for pens, pencils, and other supplies that are packaged with recyclable materials. That goes for spiral notebooks and notebook paper, too. For every 42 notebooks made from 100 percent recycled paper, an entire tree is saved.

Buying school supplies every year can get expensive. A good way to save money is to conserve energy use around the house. Energy Star products – from lightbulbs and laptops to televisions and air conditioners – are more energy efficient, which means you’ll pay less in utility bills every month. In 2011, the use of Energy Star products helped Americans save $23 billion on their utility bills, and prevented more than 210 million metric tons of green house gas emissions.

There are also ways to make sure our schools are environmentally friendly. In addition to choosing products made from recyclable materials and using energy efficient appliances, check to make sure the products used to clean your child’s classrooms carry the “Design for the Environment” label. This label means those products are safer for students and better for the environment.

Every child deserves a clean and healthy place to learn – and all parents should be able to trust that their children’s health is not at risk when they send them off to school. The EPA is working hard to reduce health threats in the air we breathe and the water we drink, and we want to make sure schools and parents have what they need to minimize pollution in and around classrooms and give all of our kids healthy places to learn.

Last but not least, these actions help teach children the importance of a clean, healthy environment. Making “green” a part of everyday learning – both inside and outside the classroom – is an easy way to engage our kids in the efforts to safeguard the planet they will inherit, and protect their future.

Lisa P. Jackson is the Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

by Todd Park, David Danielson and Richard Kauffman

Previously posted at WhiteHouse.gov.

Freely-available data from the Federal government and other sources can be a powerful input to private sector innovation. Open data can spur entrepreneurship, empower citizens, and create jobs. As just one example, data from the US Global Positioning System have been utilized by entrepreneurs to power navigation systems, precision crop farming tools, and other innovations that add over $90 billion in value to our economy each year and have improved the lives of Americans in many ways.

The Obama Administration recently launched a series of Open Data Initiatives—in health, public safety, education, and energy. The Energy Data Initiative aims to help Americans benefit from entrepreneurial innovation enabled by open energy data from the US government and other sources. By working to make energy data more available and useful to entrepreneurs, we’re confident that new products and services will continue to emerge to help American families and businesses save energy and money, protect the environment, and ensure a reliable energy future.

With this goal in mind, staff from the White House, Department of Energy, and the Environmental Protection Agency participated in an “Energy Data Jam” on Monday at the Google offices in New York City. This week’s event was the second “Energy Data Jam” this year and included approximately 50 private-sector leaders from energy companies, finance firms, real-estate developers, Web start-ups, and other digital innovators.

One of the goals of the half-day workshop was to brainstorm how publicly available datasets might be put to use in the continuing transition to a clean energy future. Participants brainstormed ingenious new ideas for products, services, features, and apps that could be built using open energy data as an input. If you have an idea or an example of an innovation (a product, service, website, app, or feature) that uses open data as an input, you can let us know by sending an email to: DataInnovation@hq.doe.gov

Open data can also include companies that make private-sector data more accessible to their own consumers using open industry formats. A recent example is the Green Button Initiative, a White House catalyzed, industry-led effort that provides electricity customers with easy and secure access to their own energy usage information in a consumer-friendly and computer-readable format. Thanks to commitments from industry to date, over 31 million households and businesses will be able to securely download the details of their own energy usage with a simple click of an actual “Green Button” on websites of electric utilities and retail electric providers.

The Energy Data Jam also highlighted the role energy data can play in lowering the cost of and improving access to energy financing, especially around commercial building upgrades. Accurate and robust building energy performance data can help investors and lenders better gauge risk and gain confidence to finance building energy upgrades, ultimately leading to new construction jobs.

Later this year, we plan to hold an event to celebrate private-sector energy and environmental innovation fueled by open data.  If you’d like more details about this upcoming “Energy Datapalooza,” please send an email to: DataInnovation@hq.doe.gov

Todd Park is U.S. Chief Technology Officer and Assistant to the President. David Danielson is Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy. Richard Kauffman is Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Energy.

By EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack

Left to right Tuskegee University President and Council of 1890 Universities Chair Gilbert Rochon, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Lisa Jackson sign the 2012 Memorandum of Understanding among the department, agency and council on Friday, June 29, 2012, in Washington, DC. It has been150 years since the first Morrill Act of 1862, which was signed by President Abraham Lincoln. The action established land-grant universities in every state and territory. The second Morrill Act of 1890 provided funding to designate separate institutions of higher learning for blacks in those states that did not open the doors of their universities to black students. USDA photo by Lance Cheung.

Previously posted at the USDA Blog.

One hundred fifty years ago – just two months after the creation of the U.S. Department of Agriculture – President Lincoln signed the Morrill Act, a historic measure that created the land-grant university system. Twenty-eight years later, Congress enacted a second Morrill Act to establish African American land-grant universities.

Commonly referred to as 1890 Universities, these schools have remained the custodians of access to and opportunity for higher education in underserved communities, as well as leaders in agricultural, environmental and public health studies.

Understanding the special role 1890 Universities play in preparing the next generation of American leaders, on Friday, June 29, we signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between USDA, EPA and the Council of 1890 Universities, an organization comprised of presidents and chancellors of historically black colleges and universities (HBCU), to help build upon their rich history.

Originally, 1890 Universities taught agriculture, military tactics, and the mechanical arts, as well as classical studies. Over time, as those studies evolved to incorporate the breadth of college academics, HBCUs have proven to be a vital link between African Americans and higher education. Read More »»