WHITE PLAINS - Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano Tuesday joined hundreds of local governments across the nation in a united effort to present to President-Elect Obama and the newly elected Congress a blueprint to deal with global warming that will invest resources into protecting the environment and at the same time help the economy by creating jobs.

“President-elect Obama has announced his intention to pursue a major economic stimulus package that will include green projects,” Spano said. “We want to make sure our federal officials act to invest resources directly into local communities and infrastructure. We are providing the Obama Transition Team with a list of our projects that are in the planning stages that will help us locally by promoting energy interdependence and will also revitalize our economy.”

Spano teamed up Tuesday with Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi for a video-conference, with each official at his respective office. The event was one of the first of many around the country, part of “Local Climate Action Week,” where dozens of city and county officials are showcasing energy and climate innovations.   The goal is to send the message to federal leaders that local governments must be a critical partner in addressing climate change, achieving energy security and developing a green economy.

Participants want the federal government to take up the recommendations of Climate Communities and ICLEI USA, made in a report titled Empowering Local Government Climate Action: Blueprint for the New President and 111th Congress.