I’ll call it a Phoenix… out of the ashes of a dead climate bill in the US Senate, rises an opportunity for our President to be a leader and reincarnate an American industry that could both create jobs and help curb climate change. What am I talking about? Solar on the White House, of course.

President Carter took the ball and ran with it back in the 70’s, when US was still the leader in clean energy technology and production. He put solar panels on the White House to demonstrate their potential and kick-start an energy revolution that would have helped propel us into the 21st century. Unfortunately, President Reagan took them down and the US is no longer the leader in clean tech and energy – the industry is moving to China.

And, in its wake, we have continued high unemployment, seen increases in carbon emissions, and forged “ahead” destruction of our habitats and communities.

Some people in the US right now can’t drink their water or breathe their air without fear of being sickened by gas, oil, and coal extraction and burning. We just experienced the largest environmental disaster in American history (BP and Halliburton’s Gulf Oil disaster) and we are forefitting our opportunity to be the economic powerhouse for the 21st century to China, where they just passed a renewable energy law and are laying the groundwork for what will likely bring economic and energy security. Why are we doing nothing?

Well, we’re not all idle. ACE partners Sungevity and 350.org are spearheading a campaign called “Solar on the White House” (affectionately known as ‘Globama’). The message is simple: put solar panels BACK on the White House!

When Michelle Obama planted a garden, you could barely get seeds the next year because it was so popular to plant gardens. What will happen when our President puts solar back on the White House? Will he even do it?

Sign this petition to encourage him to go for it – Sungevity is even going to DONATE the AMERICAN MADE solar panels if he agrees to it.

Keep up with the Solar on the White House Campaign as Bill McKibben and students from Unity College drive a biodiesel bus to return one of President Carter’s original panels as well as offer President Obama his very own free, American made solar array. The group was just on Democracy Now and I’d imagine that by 10/10/10, we’ll see them all over the place… maybe even on the roof of the White House!