Can Evangeline Lilly, Ian Somerhalder, Malin Akerman, and Phillipe Cousteau succeed where others have failed? I don’t know. I don’t know who those people are. I’m guessing the last is Jacques’ son, and Lilly is an actress, I’m pretty sure, but I’m not going to Google her.

These are some of the 24 (!!!) celebrities who have signed a letter to the president initiated by the Sierra Club. It quotes Obama’s inaugural speech and then reads:

The letter in ad form. Click to see bigger version.

An ad featuring the letter. Click to see big PDF version.

Your legacy as 44th president of the United States rests firmly on your leadership on climate disruption. Only the president has the power to lead an effort on the scale and with the urgency we need to phase out fossil fuels and lead America, and the world, in a clean energy revolution.

Grist thanks its sponsors. Become one.

To support our nonprofit environmental journalism, please consider disabling your ad-blocker to allow ads on Grist. Here's How

WE SUPPORT YOUR DEMONSTRATING THE STRONGEST RESOLVE IN FIGHTING THE CLIMATE CRISIS ON EVERY FRONT.

Emphasis and capitalization in the original because pay attention, Obama.

The ad ran in the D.C.-politics-focused The Hill, which I’m not sure Obama reads. But maybe! If not, he’ll probably read this post, anyway.

And when he does, he’ll count the celebrities listed and put them into his calculator. Adam Levine is famous enough to represent 10,000 Americans; Linkin Park, 18. He’ll total it up, and if it passes the figure he’s set for “Taking Action on Climate Change” in his Excel spreadsheet — whammo. Leadership.

Grist thanks its sponsors. Become one.

To support our nonprofit environmental journalism, please consider disabling your ad-blocker to allow ads on Grist. Here's How