President Obama used Bryan Ritterby as an example of how clean energy can help to create jobs, in his State of the Union address.
Ritterby was present at the speech and was seated in the First Lady’s box. According to the White House website, he had been working in furniture manufacturing, but was laid off from his job.
He went to the Grand Rapids Community College, in a program called the “Composite Technician Training Program,” a partnership with Energetx Composites, a wind turbine manufacturer in Michigan.
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Ritterby now works for Energetx as a lab technician, conducting material tests. In his speech, Obama quoted Ritterby as saying “I’m proud to be working in the industry of the future.”
Obama said that it’s time to stop subsidizing the oil industry, and instead pass clean-energy tax credits. He made further commitments in his speech.
“I’m directing my Administration to allow the development of clean energy on enough public land to power three million homes,” said Obama.
“And I’m proud to announce that the Department of Defense, the world’s largest consumer of energy, will make one of the largest commitments to clean energy in history – with the Navy purchasing enough capacity to power a quarter of a million homes a year.”
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