Governor-elect Jeff Landry announced the first appointment to his cabinet at Wednesday’s press conference held at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

Aurelia Giacometto will be serving as the secretary of the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality. An Indiana native, Giacometto was the first African American woman to serve as director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under President Donald Trump from 2019 to 2021.

Landry touted the appointment as one of the first signs that his administration would be seeking top talent from across the country to Louisiana.

“I’m proud that we’re able to attract someone of her caliber,” Landry said. “She loves the climate, the culture and most importantly the people. She has visited Louisiana many times and has come to love Louisiana.”

Landry said his priority with the Department of Environmental Quality will be to ensure a safe environment for Louisiana despite the many environmental factors that affect the population.

“Whether it be hurricanes, floods, problems in our wetlands and coasts, it’s important our citizens live with good water and air quality,” Landry said.

The governor-elect added that his passion for the resurgence of oil and gas jobs remains, and he will be concentrating on “the businesses and industries that grew this state.”

“Our petrochemical industry, our oil and gas industry has lifted more people out of poverty globally than any other industry,” Landry said.