President Obama, a Few Green Habits You Could Pick Up in 2009

President Obama, we here at EarthFirst are incredibly proud and excited to watch your inauguration today and we’re so very hopeful about what you can do for clean energy and the environment during your time as our country’s leader. The next four years are a crucial time, when we must ramp up our efforts to fight global warming and help our economy recover through the creation of green jobs.

When it comes to greening America, we already know that you believe that changing a few light bulbs in your home isn’t enough – and you’re right. We all need to do more than that – and as much green change as you’ll be pushing through on a national and international level, there are some things you could do in your own personal daily life that would be a boon to your health and an inspiration for billions of people across the world.

1. Quit smoking. You set out to quit during your presidential campaign, and then admitted to falling off the wagon. It’s a tough process, but we’ve got faith that you can handle it. And, quitting this dirty habit will not only set a better example for your two young daughters, but will enable you to stop contributing to pollution and deforestation (wood is used in just about every step of cigarette production). Tobacco production in developing countries uses child labor and causes food shortages by diverting farmland usage, not to mention all those noxious chemicals left behind in butts that litter virtually every corner of every state in America.

2. Become a vegetarian. Factory farms are among the worst polluters in the world, and generate disgusting quantities of waste filled with bacteria, diseases, pharmaceuticals and other contaminants. Ranching is a major driver of deforestation worldwide, overgrazing has turned a fifth of all pastures and ranges into desert and the impact of methane emissions from all those cows is greater than that of CO2 from cars. A cruelty-free diet is easy to stick to when you’ve got an uber-talented White House chef who can prepare healthy vegetarian meals for the whole family.

3. Plant a White House victory garden. Instead of that vast expanse of useless, resource-hogging grass, the White House lawn could be home to an organic farm that provides fresh produce for the White House kitchen with the remainder going toward local food pantries. We’d love to see a Victory Garden replanted at the White House to serve as an example for all of America and provide food for needy Washington DC communities at the same time.

4. Evaluate & improve energy use in the White House.  In your December interview with Barbara Walters, you stated your plans to green the White House and conduct an energy efficiency evaluation as soon as possible. We’d like you to not only follow through on that but make the results public so we can all see how making small changes can use fewer resources and save us money during tough economic times.

Related Posts:

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Obama: ‘We Can’t Solve Global Warming Because I F—ing Changed Light Bulbs’
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What Was Green at the 2008 Democratic Convention
Obama’s Eating Sustainable & Local at the White House