Secretary Jewell's Farewell Message to Employees

This is simply a note to say thank you.

Thank you for what you do, every day, to serve the American people. The Department of the Interior’s work is inextricably linked to the health of our Nation, and our economy, and our heritage, and I couldn’t be more proud of your efforts to uphold our important and diverse missions.

Thank you for work during the Obama Administration to implement a bold agenda for American land and water conservation; to spur a renewable energy revolution and chart a path for a safe and secure energy future; to restore our nation-to-nation relationships with tribes; to ensure healthy watersheds and sustainable, secure water supplies; to launch science-based strategies to address current and future impacts of climate change; and to engage and empower young people. Together, we have made unprecedented progress.

Finally, thank you for welcoming me into the Interior family. I have great admiration and respect for the civil servants in this Department, and I will forever cherish the people I have met along this journey.

Being your Secretary has been the honor of a lifetime. I look forward to cheering you on in my new role as citizen.

 

Warmly,

Sally

01/19/2017

Secretary Jewell's Farewell to Employees

Transcript:

One of the joys of this job has been working with our career staff who year in and year out protect and preserve and understand places like this. My message to our employees is, "Thank you for your service. Thank you for taking the heat that it takes to be a federal government official in this day and age and recognizing that you have the gift of a higher calling. You have the gift of making a difference that will impact people for generations to come, from furthering our knowledge of science the deepening our trust and treaty responsibilities to our nation's first people, the indigenous people of this nation -- to protecting and preserving land water and wildlife and doing it in a way that's really thoughtful and that includes balancing conservation with development in a way that's really smart." So, I want to thank the employees of the Department of Interior for your incredible work day in and day out to take that long view, to do what's right not just for now but for future generations, because remember we don't inherit the earth from our ancestors we borrow it from our children -- and you are crafting that world that our children will take on to the next level and there's no greater gift and be able to then being able to make that kind of difference in the lives of other people.