Sally Jewell
President Barack Obama today nominated Sally Jewell, the president of outdoor retailer REI, as Interior secretary.

Jewell’s nomination came as a surprise and may be an indication that other nominations to replace Cabinet officers may not be predictable.

The position is important to rural America because the Interior and Agriculture departments interact on a number of issues ranging from forestry to public lands that are used for grazing. The Obama administration has launched the “America’s Great Outdoors” initiative, a wide-ranging project that involves Agriculture and Interior and encourages more rural tourism.

The Wilderness Society said in a news release that Jewell “is an outstanding choice to serve as the next secretary of the Interior.”

“She has been a tremendous leader for conservation at every level, from her support for the Obama administration’s ‘America’s Great Outdoors’ program to her work on the Mountain to Sound Greenway in Washington State,” the organization said.

“Through her work at REI, she also understands the value of our public lands as a place for every American to enjoy, and how that recreation helps drive more than $600 billion in consumer spending every year.”

Jewell is best known for her work at REI (Recreational Equipment Inc.) and her interest in conservation, but earlier she worked for Mobil Oil and in banking. Jewell was born in England, but moved to Washington state as a child and graduated from the University of Washington in 1978 with a degree in mechanical engineeering.

In an announcement ceremony at the White House, Obama noted that his nominee has experience in a range of areas important to Interior.

“After graduation, Sally went on to work in the oil fields of Oklahoma and Colorado,” Obama said. “Later, she brought her experience in the energy sector to banking, where she spent 19 years determining what makes companies succeed and fail.

“And most recently as the CEO of REI — a position that she’s held for the last eight years — Sally has helped turn a stalling outdoor retailer into one of America’s most successful and environmentally conscious companies. Last year, REI donated almost $4 million to protect trails and parks, and 20 percent of the electricity used in their stores comes from renewable sources.”

Obama added that Jewell “is an expert on the energy and climate issues that are going to shape our future.”

“She is committed to building our nation-to-nation relationship with Indian Country,” Obama said. “She knows the link between conservation and good jobs. She knows that there’s no contradiction between being good stewards of the land and our economic progress; that in fact, those two things need to go hand in hand. She has shown that a company with more than $1 billion in sales can do the right thing for our planet.”

Outgoing Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Jewell “knows firsthand the inextricable link between conservation and the economy,” noting that she was a key contributor to the creation of the “America’s Great Outdoors” program.

“She's been a champion of the Land and Water Conservation Fund and so many other conservation issues of our time,” Salazar said.

Jewell said, “I have a great job at REI today, but there’s no role that compares than the call to serve my country as secretary of the Department of Interior.”
Ken Salazar
In thanking Salazar for his service, Obama noted that his family was in North America “before the Mayflower set sail.”

“Ken has cracked down on waste,” Obama said. “He’s improved the management of the department to make it work better for the American people. He has ushered in a new era of conservation for our land, our water and our wildlife.”

“He’s established seven new national parks, 10 new national wildlife refuges,” the president said. “He has opened more public land and water for safe and responsible energy production, not just gas and oil but also wind and solar, creating thousands of new jobs and nearly doubling our use of renewable energy in this country. He has helped to forge what is probably the strongest working relationship with tribal leaders that the federal government has seen in modern times.

“And when the unexpected has happened — like the Gulf oil spill or Hurricane Sandy — he has been on the ground making sure that people get help right away and we deal with these challenges as professionally as possible.”