Dear Friend,

Washington, D.C. is ablaze with activity.  President Obama has made bold moves to set the tone for his administration, and his selections for environmentally important cabinet positions speak volumes on his intention to get serious about energy and climate issues. Ocean Champions applauds Obama's environmental "Dream Team" and we're thrilled at the appointment of a Marine Biologist - Dr. Jane Lubchenco - to head NOAA.   In addition, Ocean Champion, Sen. Judd Gregg has been nominated to be her boss, as Secretary of Commerce.

Sure, it's great that we established fruitful relationships in our efforts to help elect more than two-dozen Ocean Champions to Congress.  But, that's just the first step.  Now, our focus is on tracking committee assignments - where a healthy ocean agenda really gets put into play.  While some assignments are still unknown, we do know that new champions, Cong. Frank Kratovil and Sen. Mark Begich will serve on the Natural Resources and Commerce Committees, respectively - the lead ocean committees.  In addition, Ocean Champions Cong. Nick Rahall and Cong. Bart Gordon will continue to chair the House Natural Resources Committee and the House Science and Technology Committee, respectively.

As the Obama administration and Congress finalize appointments and committee assignments, we'll give you 'up-to-the-minute' reports of these assignments and our analysis of what they mean for our oceans.  In the meantime, we invite you to join the conversation on our blog, invite your friends and family who believe in healthy ocean policy, and become an Ocean Champion.

These are exciting times.

For the oceans,

The Ocean Champions Team