Was Gerald Ford one of our first leaders to advocate for sustainability?  From the Ford presidential library Website, here are some of the proposals he submitted to congress:

• Stimulate effective conservation, including revitalization of our railroads and the expansion of our urban transportation systems;
• Develop more and cleaner energy from our vast coal resources;
• Create a new national Energy Independence Authority to stimulate vital energy investment;
• And accelerate development of technology to capture energy from the sun and the earth for this and future generations.

Of course he was responding to the threat posed by middle east oil cartels forcing gas prices through the roof.  At the time his solutions seemed like the right approach, especially for the long term health of the country.  Sadly we didn't choose to make these goals a priority, but it's not too late.