Flashlights for Haiti

Press Release: Clinton Foundation Launches “Take Initiative” Earth Day Campaign
April 09, 2010 | New York, NY | Clinton Foundation | Press Releases
Features local volunteer events in several cities nationwide, online Earth Day forum with President Clinton

New York, NY – The William J. Clinton Foundation today launched its "Take Initiative" Earth Day campaign featuring a website www.clintonfoundation.org/earthday encouraging people to take initiative to combat climate change and improve the environment. The campaign is supporting local volunteer events in several cities nationwide, culminating in a special online forum with President Bill Clinton on April 22.

During his administration, and now through his Foundation, President Clinton has worked to address global challenges, including climate change and sustainable economic growth and development.

"Since 2006, my Foundation has worked to fight climate change by increasing energy efficiency and decreasing greenhouse gas emissions on a large scale, including projects that have helped to retrofit tens of millions of square feet of building space and enabled smallholder famers to plant millions of fruit and forest tree seedlings," President Clinton said. "To commemorate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, my Foundation invites everyone to join us in the fight by taking initiative in their own homes and communities. I look forward to a lively and interesting dialogue about what we can all do to build a more sustainable world."

Throughout the campaign, an online quiz will test people’s knowledge on climate change. For every person who takes the quiz, $2 will be donated toward buying solar flashlights for people living in tent camps in Haiti. If 100,000 people take the quiz, the Foundation will reach its goal of sending 20,000 solar flashlights to improve safety conditions in camps.

By visiting www.clintonfoundation.org/earthday, people can also learn about the Foundation’s climate and environment-related initiatives and sign up to participate in local volunteer events in several cities nationwide.

At the end of the campaign, President Clinton will answer questions in an online forum on Earth Day, April 22. Details will be made available on the website in the coming days.

To date the Clinton Foundation’s climate and environment-related accomplishments include:

The Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI) has helped initiate more than 250 energy efficiency building retrofit projects in more than 20 cities around the world. In Los Angeles, CCI is helping the city replace 140,000 streetlights with LED fixtures, which will cut CO2 emissions in the city by 40,500 tons and save the city up to $10 million each year in energy and maintenance costs. CCI is also part of the team that is helping to make the Empire State Building more energy efficient by reducing its energy usage by 38 percent, saving $4.4 million in annual energy costs, and preventing 105,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions over the next 15 years.
Through projects implemented by government, business, and nonprofit partners of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), enough clean energy has been generated to power more than 400,000 homes, and CGI commitments have prevented 60 million metric tons of CO2 emissions.
The Clinton Hunter Development Initiative instituted a large-scale carbon sequestration program with thousands of local farmers in Africa by growing and planting over 4 million trees in the region that are estimated to be saving approximately 450,000 tons of carbon.
For more information about the "Take Initiative" Earth Day campaign and the online forum with President Clinton, visit www.clintonfoundation.org/earthday.

About the William J. Clinton Foundation
Founded by President Bill Clinton, the William J. Clinton Foundation focuses on worldwide issues that demand urgent action, solutions, and measurable results —— global climate change, HIV/AIDS in the developing world, childhood obesity and economic opportunity in the United States, and economic development in Africa and Latin America. For more information visit www.clintonfoundation.org.