"By a vote of 87 to 11, the Senate approved Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI) chief executive Sally Jewell on Wednesday as the next Interior secretary."

"Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who chairs the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, told his colleagues Wednesday that Jewell had demonstrated 'the kind of leadership' that could reconcile the competing environmental and energy interests any Interior secretary must manage.

A former oil engineer and commercial banker who has spent several years at the helm of REI, the 56-year-old Jewell has never served in public office. But Wyden said she boasts the 'professional track record of actually bringing people together on these sorts of issues.'"

Juliet Eilperin reports for the Washington Post April 10, 2013. [2]