Nobel Winner, Mario Molina, Selected to Lead Science and Ecology Efforts

Imagine--a real scientist doing real work on global warming from inside the White House -- and with the President's permission. Dr. Molina took his PhD at Berkeley and was co-developer of the CFC ozone depletion theory in the early 1970s. He has taught at UC Irvine,UC San Diego, and at MIT. He was recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1995.

From the Latin American Herald Tribune:

MEXICO CITY -- Nobel Prize-winning Mexican chemist Mario Molina will be a part of the transition team of U.S. President-elect Barack Obama, the scientist's assistant told Efe.

Lorena Ibarra confirmed that the scientist was invited to join Obama's work team, where he "is going to be managing everything to do with science and ecology," an offer she said he accepted by saying, "Yes, immediately."

Obama on Tuesday promised to give priority to the fight against climate change when he gets into the White House, making his commitment in a videotaped speech that was released at the Bi-Partisan Governors Global Climate Summit in Los Angeles.

Molina, who won the Nobel in chemistry in 1995, will be part of the Executive Office of the 21 leaders of the president-elect's team.

The respected scientist, an expert on climate change, earlier was a science and ecology adviser to Mexican President Felipe Calderon.

He currently lives in Mexico City, but he spends a good part of his time north of the border, teaching at the University of California San Diego and at the Scripps Oceanographic Institute in the same city.

Since 2005, he has headed the Mario Molina Center for Strategic Studies on Energy and the Environment located in the Mexican capital. EFE