First Family Celebrates Earth Day 2010: Malia Loves Tigers, Sasha Goes For Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs

As part of her Take Your Child To Work Day and Earth Day speech, Michelle Obama spoke about how The First Family is celebrating with small changes around the White House. Michelle revealed in her answers that it sounds like the first daughters are quite the budding environmentalists!

Michelle let the children visiting for the day ask questions, and one child asked what she was doing to celebrate Earth Day.

MRS. OBAMA: For Earth Day. Oh, I think we're having a reception this evening. Sometimes it's hard for me to keep up with all the things that we're doing. There's a reception here this evening for Earth Day.

And Sasha brought home some energy-efficient bulbs that we have to put in the house. So we're going to do some bulb replacement. All right?

We're glad the youngest member of the family is taking the administration's messages about energy efficiency to heart!

A questioner goes on to ask:

Q What is the thing you care about the most in the environment?

MRS. OBAMA: What do I care about the most in the environment?

Q Yes. Like, what animal or what plant?

MRS. OBAMA: Oh, what animal or what plant. You know, we're big tiger savers because Malia -- Malia's one issue for her father is saving the tigers. So we talk about the tigers at least once a week and what he's doing to save the tigers. (Laughter.) So I think now we are -- you know, he tells her he's working on it and there are a lot of people who are thinking about it. He hasn't come up with a sufficient answer yet, but he's got a couple of more years or so to fix this problem. But I think the Obama household, we're trying to save the tigers.

HuffPost Green is thrilled to learn that Malia is holding the president's feet to the fire on saving endangered species. Way to go Malia!

Comments

[CouldOnlyRememberMyName]

08:20 AM on 06/10/2010

the cfl lightbulbs are screwing up some peoples health(rashes,epilepsy etc ] and i say maybe even killing off honey bees

keep your old bulbs

[andalii]

02:37 AM on 05/16/2010

malia plz add my yahoo [e-mail]

[andalii]

02:35 AM on 05/16/2010

malia am inlove with you

[inkongirl]

09:38 AM on 04/26/2010

In Chinese Astrology, Malia was born in the year of the tiger, so it seems fitting that she would want to save them. She looks so much like her dad.

[janilsal]

01:05 AM on 04/25/2010

What is the First Lady's wishes for the Earth Day. She seems to be well educated, erudite and sensible. I would have liked to hear more on her views of Earth Day.

[janilsal]

01:02 AM on 04/25/2010

The latest issue of Business Week has an interesting article about Nikhil Nagle in India who left a high profile corporate job to save tigers.
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_18/b4176128013448.htm?chan=magazine+channel_etc.

I do hope the first family can probably interact with Nikhil and help tigers around the world.

[Alhitch]

02:47 PM on 04/24/2010

While we take time to celebrate Earth Day and the many successes we have had in saving wildlife habitat, it would be appropriate to thank the people that actually fund these efforts. The American hunters and fisherman are responsible for 9 out of every 10 dollars spent on wildlife conservation in this country. They pay taxes on guns, ammo, rifle scopes, fishing rods, lures, fishing boats, camping gear and virtually everything used for fishing and hunting. Not to mention the liscensing fees, permits, stamps and millions in donations that, all together, add up to more than 1.5 billion in monies that go directly to funding the habitat for Spotted Owls, Red Cockaded Woodpeckers, Bald Eagles, Ospreys, Manatees, Snail darters, Black-Footed Ferrets, California Condors, Florida Panthers and Sea Otters and every other native species in North America. The greenies that enjoy hiking, bird watching, kayaking and camping owe we hunters a debt of gratitude for funding their pastimes.

You are welcome: The American hunters and fishermen

[JenScarlott]

05:17 PM on 04/24/2010

I look forward to the day when hunting is banned. The "sport" of hunting destroys wildlife. Hunted landscapes are places where no one else can safely, or peacefully, enjoy nature. The argument that hunting and environmentalism are synonomous, or that those who love nature owe a debt of gratitude to hunters, is false in the extreme.

[Alhitch]

06:05 PM on 04/24/2010

Nobody has more incentive for wildlife conservation than hunters and fishermen. It may make you feel good about yourself to demonize hunting, but the reality is that one hunter does far more for conservation than you and all of your tree hugging friends combined.

[Alhitch]

06:06 PM on 04/24/2010

And BTW: Hunting will never be banned in North America...so get over yourself!

[JenScarlott]

02:29 PM on 04/24/2010

To the person who is concerned about efforts to protect iconic animals such as tigers, rather than "bugs": many wildlife scientists and conservationists deliberately choose top predators to work on because protecting them protects the large ecosystems that they need, benefitting all of the flora and fauna in those areas. Good for Malia, for her interest in tigers and biodiversity. And for her mother for sharing Malia's interest with the public. Tiger numbers are plummeting. There are many times fewer tigers in the wild throughout Asia now than in captivity in the United States. Please go to www.saveourtigers.org to sign a petition to India's Prime Minister. Make a donation to a fundraising drive going on right now with the Wildlife Conservation Society, one of the most effective tiger conservation organizations in the world: www.wcs.org. Another superb tiger conservation organization that needs financial assistance is Panthera: www.panthera.org. Watch the website of the Humane Society International, which will soon have new information on how to help wild tigers: www.hsi.org.

[Gladys1963]

09:27 PM on 04/24/2010

was about to post the same thing. The tiger is an umbrella species--save the tiger and you save every species in its ecosystem.

[TheFriendlyAtheist]

08:44 PM on 04/23/2010

Tiger, tiger, burning bright,
In the forest of the night,
What brave heart,
What brave child,
Can save you from the hand of man.

[Pema]

12:24 PM on 04/23/2010

i am surprised mrs obama didnt take earth day more seriously. laughing at your childs desire to save a species isnt funny. its like they are dissing what is really in her heart.
theres so much to save, let her save the tigers, someone else go after the garbage island, someone go plants trees for goodness sakes there are a million positive things. lets not nit pick.

[LARRYB28]

08:33 AM on 04/23/2010

Happy earth day
http://nycaviation.com/2010/04/21/obama-and-biden-to-celebrate-earth-day-by-flying-separate-carbon-belching-jets-to-the-same-city/

[Pema]

12:26 PM on 04/23/2010

did you want them to fly in on bikes? or some fuel effiencent plane that the gop with their years and years in power never came up with like no health care?

[rougebaisers]

03:43 AM on 04/23/2010

How about passion for saving 300,000 teachers jobs?

[NoahVail]

11:10 AM on 04/23/2010

There will be more teachers. We are running out of tigers. She's 12.

[TheSardonicAtheist]

01:10 AM on 04/23/2010

Yea, Tigers are very important. Say.. Has anyone thought about the bee shortage? Without honey we're all screwed.

[NoahVail]

11:12 AM on 04/23/2010

Did you know that the European honey bees were introduced from Europe? They are not well suited to North America, and have displaced the native varieties only because of bee keeping.

[Bartel5]

10:14 PM on 04/22/2010

Typical. Save the 'pretty' animals. Tigers yes. But who cares about the bugs?

[Gladys1963]

09:28 PM on 04/24/2010

Without bugs, we'd all be dead in about 20 minutes.

[elan4444]

09:17 PM on 04/22/2010

According to reliable sources, there are more tigers in Texas than there are in India. They're not relaxing there in a refuge, however, the name "Texas" should definitely tip you off. Yes, they are kept as "game," where they are let out to lope off a few yards before being brought down wealthy macho dudes with a high-powered rifle with scope. Then their taxidermied remains can adorn said macho dude's fabulous office.

[Bartel5]

10:15 PM on 04/22/2010

So, hunting them INCREASES their population? So that's a GOOD thing, yes?