News

On Wednesday, May 26, a group of Full Circle Fund members were part of a select crowd of 250 guests at President Obama’s visit to Solyndra, where he touted the importance of a clean economy and green collar jobs. In attendance were Environment/Energy Circle Chair Melanie Nutter and Vice Chair Braden Penhoet, Global Economic Opportunity Circle Member Christopher Mondini, Co-Founder/Board Chair Josh Becker and CEO Amy Lesnick.

Based in Fremont, CA, Solyndra is a local solar photovoltaic manufacturing and design company that received a $535 million loan through the Department of Energy Recovery Act as a way to encourage the construction of a commercial-scale manufacturing plant for solar panels. As a company, it’s one of the most successful Recovery investments in terms of stimulating green collar job creation, employing more than 1,000 workers, and eventually will employ up to 3,000 once the facility is opened.

The President referred to the the oil spill in the Gulf Coast, and emphasized the urgent need for clean energy and for the United States to stay competitive.

“We’re poised to transform the ways we power our homes and our cars and our businesses. And we’re poised to lead our competitors in the development of new technologies and products and businesses.”

Green jobs have long been a priority for Full Circle Fund, too, as we began partnering with the Ella Baker Center in 2007 on first the Green Jobs Corps and more recently on the creation of Making Green Work, a green collar jobs best practices toolkit. The toolkit will be presented this summer at workforce development conferences across the nation.

Read the complete transcript of the President’s speech on Solyndra’s website.
Download the toolkit on the Ella Baker Center website.

Thank you to Melanie Nutter who took the photo.

Posted in Barack Obama, Braden Penhoet, Melanie Nutter, Christopher Mondini, Amy Lesnick, green jobs, Josh Becker, environment, Ella Baker Center, member leaders