Hello everyone, and welcome to the 2012 Bureau of Indian Education Summer Learning Institute.
It’s hard to believe that it’s been one year since we planted the Three Sisters in
the White House garden to help kick off our Lets Move! in Indian Country initiative. Now
this is such an important effort. We know that children in American Indian and Alaskan
Native Communities experience higher rates of obesity. We know they’re more likely
to develop related diseases like Type II diabetes than the national averages. But we also know
that there are so many people in these communities who want to make a difference for the health
of their kids. And that’s what has defined Let’s Move! in Indian Country in our first
year. We’ve seen tribal nations develop food policy councils to examine the food habits
of their communities; schools have re-introduced lacrosse programs; Native businesses are adding
healthy, traditional foods like buffalo meat into school lunches; the Bureau of Indian
Education implemented a new health and wellness policy for its schools; and nearly ten thousand
people across Indian Country earned a Presidential Active Lifestyle Award for getting up and
exercising. So we have come a very long way, but we know that there’s more left to do.
And that’s where all of you come in. We need your help to get more schools serving
healthy foods and finding new ways to get kids to get active. We need more doctors and
nurses talking to parents and kids about their nutrition habits. We need more leaders bringing
people together from businesses, government, non-profits and faith groups to create solutions
that work for their communities. Because, in the end, that’s really what Let’s Move!
is all about. It’s not about what happens in Washington. It’s about people just like
all of you, taking action on behalf of your kids, your community, and our country. And
this first year of Let’s Move! in Indian Country has convinced me again and again that
if we keep stepping up, if we keep innovating and getting people involved, then we can give
our children the healthy futures they deserve. So thank you all for everything you’ve already
done and I look forward to working with you in the months and years ahead. Take care.
