Noble Prize winner to be in Obama's cabinet

Chicago, Dec 16: US President-elect Barack Obama on Monday, Dec 15 announced his energy and environmental teams. Steven Chu, Nobel Prize winner for physics 11 years ago, will be Obama's secretary of the Department of Energy.

He is currently the head of the Berkeley National Laboratory and is a specialist in carbon-neutral energy sources. Obama said Chu was 'uniquely suited' to serve in his Cabinet.

Obama also named Carol Browner, former Environmental Protection Agency head under the Clinton administration, to serve as his energy coordinator -- overseeing energy, climate and environmental issues.

In that role, Browner would be responsible for implementing the President-elect's promise to create millions of jobs in a green-energy economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Obama named Lisa Jackson, the former head of New Jersey's environmental protection department, as national EPA head.

In announcing his selections, Obama warned that Americans cannot be 'lulled into complacency' by temporarily falling gas prices.

America must develop new forms of energy and new ways of using it, he said. "This is not a challenge for government alone. It's a challenge for all of us", Obama ascertained.

ANI