President Obama Calls Young Leaders

Yesterday afternoon, President Obama called three young leaders to thank them for the work they did on a range of topics from youth civic engagement and interfaith issues to roundtables with Young Americans, and summits on youth entrepreneurship & employment. The President wanted to let Reshma Saujani, Erik Kamrath, and Haris Tarin know what a big difference the work that they, and scores of other young people like them make every day when they participate in community engagement and help solve major issues that affect all Americans.

The President spoke with Reshma on her partnership with young business owners and advocates around our #1 priority - employment and entrepreneurship – in this case youth employment. He connected with Haris on his work with interfaith communities and the American Muslim community in assuring that no American slips through the cracks and that young Americans of all backgrounds feel connected and engaged in the work of our nation, and he spoke with Erik on the issues of student aid, the Dream Act, and youth jobs that were discussed at the roundtables he hosted.  

President Obama also talked with them about ways in which the Administration will be taking their feedback, and that of young Americans of all backgrounds and opinions seriously as we continue to move forward.

Get engaged and stay in touch with us: Whitehouse.gov/YoungAmericans

Inspiring Students To Environmental Literacy

Ed. Note: Champions of Change is a weekly initiative to highlight Americans who are making an impact in their communities and helping our country rise to meet the many challenges of the 21st century.

When I was honored last Friday as a Champion of Change and participated in the subsequent video conference event with the other honorees, it became clear to me that the White House Administration and fellow youth around the nation have a commitment to environmental literacy. This essential commitment will engrain environmental consciousness into the next generation of decision makers.

During the summer of my freshman year of high school, I was a volunteer docent at "Cool Globes," an environmental exhibit at the California Science Center, providing tours and engaging public elementary schools students visiting on field trips. While volunteering, I noticed that the majority of students visiting the exhibit had difficulty answering what I thought to be basic questions, such as "Why is it important to protect our environment" or "Why is recycling good for the environment?"

I quickly understood my community's need for environmental education in public elementary schools and decided to create The GreenTeens, a program to increase students' understanding, inspire them to take action, and empower them to lead their communities toward green citizenship.

How Kids Can Do Something to Protect the Earth

Ed. Note: Champions of Change is a weekly initiative to highlight Americans who are making an impact in their communities and helping our country rise to meet the many challenges of the 21st century.

I am Grace Cortese, and I am 10 years old. You might think I’m too young to make a difference in the environment. The reason I don’t believe that is because of my science teacher, Jillian Esby. She cares a lot about the environment and she teaches us that there are a million ways we can help if we pay attention and are willing to change our habits. Even the little things can add up, like turning out the light when you leave a room, or using both sides of the paper. Now my whole school is doing things to help protect the earth.

My school has a composter for our lunch leftovers, a waste-free lunch program, recycle bins all over campus and a book swap. Our school made a carpool program to reduce the number of cars on campus, and we have a “Walk to School” day once a year. We also did a really cool thing to eliminate paper napkins and disposable water bottles. Each classroom has a party pack with cloth napkins, plastic cups and plates and we use those for all the class parties and events. My science teacher Mrs. Esby has a “Teenie Greenies” club at lunch and she teaches a class in “up-cycling” after school. Last year, we planted a fruit orchard on campus. We will give the fruit to the local food bank. My school does a lot to help others, too. We collect canned food for the Westside Food Bank and we fix meals for the homeless. Last year we collected 17,720 pounds of food and fixed 285 meals. In second grade, we “adopt a beach” through Heal the Bay and we do beach clean-ups. I learned a lot about the disgusting things that end up in the ocean, like cigarette butts and plastic bags. Last year at school, we had a read-a-thon to raise money for malaria nets in Malawi, Africa for a place called. G.A.I.A. I called my friends, grandparents, aunts and uncles and I raised $2,000! That is enough for 200 bed nets, and I feel really happy that I helped keep kids in Africa safe from malaria.