Commissioner Jacobs appointed to President Obama’s National Ocean Council

Broward County Commissioner Kristin Jacobs has been appointed to the Obama Administration’s National Ocean Council’s Governance Coordinating Committee. The administration says the group is the nation’s first “comprehensive, integrated” group to work on stewardship policies involving oceans, coasts and the Great Lakes. America’s oceans and coastal regions support tens of millions of jobs and contribute trillions of dollars a year to the national economy.

“Our coastlines, oceans and lakes are some of our nation’s greatest natural treasures and provide tremendous job opportunities. It is the honor of a lifetime to have been selected to help fulfill President Obama’s vision for preserving America’s oceanic legacy,” said Commissioner Jacobs.

An executive order signed by President Obama in July created the cabinet-level National Ocean Council to coordinate across the federal government on ocean policy, and directed the establishment of the inter-governmental Governance Coordinating Committee (GCC). The 18-member GCC will coordinate with the National Ocean Council on inter-jurisdictional ocean policy issues. Members of the committee were chosen from pools of candidates submitted by governors, tribal and local officials across the country.

The Committee is comprised of mostly professional staff with the exception of three elected officials. Commissioner Jacobs is one of three elected representatives selected to represent the coastal states. “More than fifty percent of the nation’s population lives in a coastal community. It is a huge honor to represent the coastal states. I am greatly looking forward to serving alongside some of our country’s most professional and dedicated public servants who are committed to sound, forward-thinking ocean policy,” said Commissioner Jacobs.

Commissioner Jacobs was elected to office in 1998 and has been at the forefront of environmental issues locally and nationally, leading the state and country in implementing innovative and award-winning environmental programs. She is a featured speaker on water and environmental issues throughout the state of Florida and the nation and has testified before the U.S. House of Representatives on water quality issues impacting the country.

“The National Ocean Policy helps us to manage the significant and often competing demands on the ocean to ensure these resources can continue to fuel our communities and economies in the long term,” said Nancy Sutley, Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality and co-chair of the National Ocean Council.

“I welcome the inaugural members of the Governance Coordinating Committee and thank them for their willingness to serve in this important capacity,” said John P. Holdren, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and Co-chair of the National Ocean Council. “The range of skills and experiences these new members represent will be crucial to ensuring the success of the National Ocean Policy.”

We congratulate Commissioner Kristin Jacobs on her appointment!

Commissioner Jacobs is a member of the South Florida Water Management District’s Water Resource Advisory Committee as well as a co-chair of the National Association of Counties’ Energy, Environment and Land Use Committee. In 2007, she created the Broward County Climate Change Task Force. As chair of the Climate Change Task Force she brought together the governing bodies of four Southeast Florida counties, who in 2009 signed the precedent-setting Southeast Florida Climate Change Compact. In 2005, she was selected to serve as Broward County Mayor and named that year the “Year of the Environment.” Her preservation efforts have earned her the James D. Webb Public Service Award. She has also been recognized by the Florida Environmental Resource Agency, the Southeast Society of Environmental Engineers, and the Broward County Audubon Society.

Commissioner Jacobs is a longtime advocate of sustainable growth, eco-tourism and public transportation. Her passion for the environment is matched by her compassion for people. She pushed through a living wage ordinance in Broward County and has been widely recognized for her continued support for women and children who have been victims of abuse.

For more information on Broward County Commissioner Kristin Jacobs, visit www.broward.org/jacobs.

Related posts:

1. BROWARD COUNTY COMMISSIONER SUPPORTS CLEAN WATER ACT
2. County commissioner holding town hall in Margate Dec. 10
3. Operation Clean Ocean on Memorial Day
4. No means no! Stop the oil madness and take action today!
5. Census forms reaching Broward homes this week

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Posted by Andrea Freygang on Feb 25 2011. Filed under Broward County, Emerging Green. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry