Green jobs advocate Van Jones tapped by White House

A native of rural West Tennessee who went on to become a noted attorney, civil rights activist and environmental justice advocate has landed a new job advising President Obama -- a boost for the green jobs movement.

Van Jones, president and founder of Green For All, a national NGO that advocates for building an inclusive green economy, has been tapped to serve as the Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. His duties will include helping craft job-generating climate policy and ensuring equal opportunity in the administration's energy proposals.

"Van Jones has been a strong voice for green jobs and we look forward to having him work with departments and agencies to advance the President's agenda of creating 21st century jobs that improve energy efficiency and utilize renewable resources," said CEQ Chair Nancy Sutley. "Jones will also help to shape and advance the Administration's energy and climate initiatives with a specific interest in improvements and opportunities for vulnerable communities."

Jones received his B.A. from the University of Tennessee at Martin and went on to law school at Yale before moving to San Francisco, where in 1993 he founded Bay Area PoliceWatch to fight police abuse. That project led to the creation of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, named for the noted civil and human rights activist who grew up in North Carolina.

In 2005, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Jones and James Rucker founded Color of Change, a web-based grassroots organization that works to strengthen the political voice of black America. That same year the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights launched a Green-Collar Jobs Campaign, which led to the nation's first Green Jobs Corps in Oakland, Calif., a public-private partnership to provide training and support allowing city residents to pursue careers in the new energy economy.

While attending the Clinton Global Initiative in 2007, Jones announced plans for Green For All, a collaboration with Majora Carter of Sustainable South Bronx. The group formally launched on Jan. 1, 2008 and later that year held "The Dream Reborn" -- the first national green conference where most attendees were people of color.

Last year Jones also published his first book, "The Green Collar Economy," which sets forth a plan for solving the two biggest issues facing the country: the economic crisis and environmental devastation. Despite a limited marketing budget, the book debuted at #12 on the New York Times' bestseller list -- the first environmental book written by an African American to make that list.

Taking Jones' place at Green For All will be Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, currently the head of the South Bay AFL-CIO Labor Council and Working Partnerships USA, a public policy institute that works to improve life for working families in Silicon Valley. San Jose Magazine named her one of the 100 most powerful people in the region.

"I see the work of Green For All as an antidote to fear and pessimism: a statement that we can tackle the difficult problems of poverty, quality employment and environmental sustainability," Ellis-Lamkins said.

(Photo of Van Jones speaking at The Dream Reborn conference by Eclectek)