3-7-2007
THE ENVIROLUTION E-NEWS
March 2007
As you know, The Envirolution E-News aims to educate its readers on the latest happenings of The Envirolution and on the green movement in general. However, we don’t just want to educate you. We want you to educate yourself, and, in turn, for you to educate others. It’s through this power of knowledge, awareness, and discussion that we will thrust forward the green wave that we are experiencing all around us. So come on, jump on board. Read. Learn. Listen. Discuss.
It has to be us.
Lead it. Live it.
--The Envirolution E-News Team
-----------
Envirolution Updates:
We are making serious moves on the Envirolution Conference at Yale, which will be taking place April 27-8. Tina and her crew have been getting a bunch of people locked down for the panels. We have already invited about 100 companies from Connecticut and New York to set up booths at the event. We also have four student bands set to play that day. It's going to be a sweet event. Word.
Everyone should go to the website (www.theenvirolution.com) to check out the Meet The Crew, Challenge, and The Conference links. Tuan has REALLY pimped it out. At Meet The Crew, you can check out profiles and photos of members of The Envirolution crew. And at The Yale Conference, you can get details about the event and view photos of the venue. Production on our professional website, with all the dope features of the current website but with so so many more amazing resources, is well underway. Look out for the official launch in April!
In general Envirolution news, we are really starting to create the backbone of The Envirolution clubs. These clubs will be one of the main avenues for everyone to contribute to and tap into The Envirolution movement and network. Local chapters are being created so that our generation can organize itself locally to make a positive impact in our communities. The clubs will be introduced at the high school and college levels, but you don’t have to be a student to join. They have three main missions. 1. Business outreach - reaching out to local companies that are responsible socially and/or environmentally. 2. Tutoring - Mentoring and working with the younger kids to teach them about the issues and the world. 3. Action - local initiatives for making the community better.
If you want to start up a local chapter at your school or at one you previously attended, let us know. We can give you the tools you need to get started and to achieve a lasting impact. Please email Tim at timothypolmateer@gmail.com for more information. We will be sending out more info about the clubs and how you can participate as they take off. Stay tuned.
We are still looking for a Big Keynote for the conference. If anyone has any ideas or connections, we would love them. And, we can use all the staff at the event that we can get, so please email Christina.ramos@yale.edu if you want to be involved or if you have any suggestions.
The Reno/Tahoe chapter is busy organizing a local event and festival for late spring/early summer. Like the conference at Yale, there will be live entertainment, green company info booths and vendors, and speakers and panels. If you are located in Northern Cali or the Reno area and would like to be involved or offer your suggestions, please contact David Woods at dt.woods@gmail.com or Abby Reider at abigail.reider@gmail.com. We could really use your advice and help in making this event as legit and sweet as possible. And check out our headlining band, Sol’Jibe, at soljibe.com. They’re awesome.
Everyone should take the challenge on the website. Don't forget to Vote.
Lead it Live it!
-------
In this edition:
If we are going to take on the responsibility of educating ourselves and others, then it is VITAL that we are all astute, smart consumers—of both products AND ideas.
It is fabulous that mainstream media is finally covering the green movement in a big way. There exists everything from entire green news websites to extensive green sections of the media’s largest and most comprehensive news sources. Below, for example, you will find some of The EE-News Team’s favorite places to get the green info that you crave.
However, remember, there are different shades of green. And these days, green-washing advertising and media campaigning makes for great business. So, be sure to investigate the products you buy. Be a conscious consumer. And be careful not to take everything you read at face value. After all, nothing is totally objective, especially not the media, so it is crucial to evaluate the sources of your information to determine underlying interests and biases.
---------
Here are a few examples of what we’re talking about:
CARBON FOOTPRINT OFFSETS: FALSE SENSE OF SATISFACTION?
By James Kanter
The International Herald Tribune
February 19, 2007
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/02/19/business/carbon.php
How environmentally effective are carbon footprint offsets and the companies that sell them in helping the global warming problem? Are they really helping or just giving polluters (all of US) a clear conscience?
NOW LOOKING GREEN IS LOOKING GOOD
By CLAUDIA H. DEUTSCH
The New York Times
December 28, 2006
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/28/business/media/28adco.html?ex=1173416400&en=26e44940ddfc3a43&ei=5070
GREEN is green.
The phrase and the concept — there is good money to be made in preserving the environment — is so often repeated that it has become a cliché. So it was probably inevitable that some enterprising advertising agency would figure that there is equally good money to be made from specializing in ads that promote greenness.
BUYER BEWARE: THERE ARE SHADES OF GREENNESS
By James Kanter
The International Herald Tribune
January 26, 2007
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/01/26/business/wbwatch.php
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority orders that Volkswagen change a current ad that misled viewers into thinking "the car had low emissions when compared to all cars," when "it did not."
--------
See what we mean? Not all green is created equal. With this in mind, we’ve compiled a resource list for you to peruse the plethora of information on the green economy and movement on the web. Again, be sure to check the source.
However, don’t become too jaded by our discussion of bias. It’s only meant to make sure we’re all staying aware. After all, there are solutions to the problems we face. We have the technology. The business opportunities are here. Let’s just be sure to work with the reality of the situation in order to make the biggest impact possible.
Online Green News Clearinghouses:
Environmental News Network: www.enn.com/
SustainableBusiness.com: www.sustainablebusiness.com/news
Joel Makower’s GreenBiz.com: www.greenbiz.com
Environmental News Service: www.ens-newswire.com
Environmental Expert: www.environmental-expert.com
Green Maven: www.greenmaven.com/news/2.html
Grist Environmental News and Humor: www.grist.org
Environmental Science and Technology: www.pubs.acs.org/journals/esthag/index_news.html
EnviroLink: www.envirolink.org/categories.html?do=shownews
The Green Directory: www.greendirectory.net/news/
- Green Sections of Major Media Sources
MSNBC Environmental News: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032493/ - SF Chronicle Science Section: http://www.sfgate.com/science/
- NY Times Environment Section: www.nytimes.com/pages/science/earth/index.html
- International Herald Tribune
1) The Business of Green: http://www.iht.com/indexes/special/green/index.php
2) Climate Change:
http://www.iht.com/indexes/special/climate/index.php
Reuters Environmental News: www.planetark.org/dailynewshome.cfm
Educational Resources from Environmental Organizations
National Coucil For Science and the Environment: www.ncseonline.org/NLE/Links/MasterLinksList.cfm?Custom21=Environmental%20News
Environmental Defense: www.environmentaldefense.org
Conservation International: www.conservation.org
The Sierra Club’s Sierra Magazine: www.sierraclub.org/sierra/
Organic Consumers Association: www.organicconsumers.org/organlink.cfm
Green Energy News: www.nrglink.com/
Green Building News: www.buildinggreen.com/
----------
FEATURED ARTICLES
--THE GREEN ECONOMY--
UNLOCKING CLEAN, CHEAP ENERGY
Keay Davidson
The SF Chronicle
March 6, 2007
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/06/MNG71OG4O01.DTL&type=science
California scientists look to ethanol, solar arrays and 1800s engine for answers. Nanotech solar cells, the world's largest planned solar-electricity plant and new technologies for breeding biofuels like ethanol are among the brighter prospects on the energy research front in the Bay Area and the Golden State.
SALES OPEN FOR NYC GREEN CONDO TOWER
SustainableBusiness.com
Feb 07, 2007
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/features/feature_template.cfm?ID=1418
The offering plan for New York's newest green residential tower — a 35-story, 251-unit condo tower called The Visionaire — has been accepted and filed with the New York State Attorney General's office, enabling the opening of sales on March 1.
BofA BANKS $20 BILLION TO GROW GREEN ECONOMY
GreenBiz.com
Mar. 6, 2007
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=34688
Under an ambitious new initiative announced by Bank of America, the financial institution will direct $20 billion to help its corporate, individual and small-business customers take advantage of the business opportunities created by green economic growth.
EVEN THE BIGGEST BOXES CAN GO GREEN
Terry Slavin
Source: Green Futures
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/reviews_third.cfm?NewsID=34594
The man who builds Wal-Mart's massive retail outlets is going against the grain by working from an "eco-template" that saves energy and water and dramatically reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
VENTURE CAPITALISTS WANT TO PUT SOME ALGAE IN YOUR TANK
By CLIFFORD KRAUSS
The NY Times
March 7, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/07/business/07algae.html?ref=environment
Algae may be slime to the average person, but to some venture capitalists it is the path to energy independence.
$45 BILLION TXU DEAL IS AN ENVIRONMENTAL WATERSHED
By Andrew Ross Sorkin
The NY Times
February 26, 2007
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/02/26/business/txu.php
DALLAS: TXU, the largest power producer in Texas, agreed Monday to be sold to a group of private equity firms in a deal valued at $45 billion. It was a watershed deal not just for its size, but for its confluence of business decisions and environmental concerns, as well as a vow by the buyers to cut residential electricity prices.
EVOLUTION, NO, REVOLUTION NEEDED IN THE AUTO INDUSTRY.
Green Energy News
March 2, 2007
http://www.nrglink.com/arch/nrgs2007/20070030.html
The oil war in Iraq, lakes forming under Antarctic glaciers, a steadily sinking US auto industry, a crash in global stock markets and a lackluster US economy: All the worries are there for a major global meltdown. But all those frightening cards could be turned upside down - the brighter side up - too.
--THE GREEN MOVEMENT--
A WARMING WORLD — AS WARNINGS GROW MORE DIRE, NOBELIST EMERGES AS LEADER
Rick DelVecchio
March 5, 2007
The SF Chronicle
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/05/MNG18OFHF41.DTL&type=science
As warnings grow more dire, Nobelist emerges as leader. The director of Lawrence Berkeley lab is pushing his scientists and industry to develop technologies to reverse climate change.
GLITZ AND GOOGLE — TECH TITAN TOSSES A-LIST BASH FOR X-PRIZE FOUNDATION
By Catherine Bigelow
March 5, 2007
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/05/DDGFOOEF4C1.DTL&hw=google&sn=001&sc=1000
Forget global domination of the Internet.
If Google Inc. can provide heated toilet seats for its almost 7,000 employees at Googleplex world headquarters, then it's a cinch that Google is well suited to help save humanity.
100 LEADING COLLEGES GRADED: SUSTAINABILITY REPORT CARD RELEASED
SustainableBusiness.com
Feb 26, 2007
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/features/feature_template.cfm?ID=1423
The College Sustainability Report Card grades 100 leading colleges on their campus greening practices and endowment policies. It includes Ivy League and Big 10 schools, and other top public and private colleges. Only four institutions received an "A": Harvard University, Stanford University, Dartmouth College, and Williams College. 22 schools earned a "B", 54 earned a "C", and 20 earned a "D."
YOUTHS MOBILIZE ON GLOBAL WARMING
SustainableBusiness.com
Feb 07, 2007
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/features/feature_template.cfm?ID=1419
In the largest youth mobilization on global warming to date, over 50,000 students at 575 college and high school campuses across the U.S. and Canada organized events January 29-February 2 calling for immediate solutions to deal with climate change.
BREATHING EASIER AS THE BATTLE FOR GREEN SKIES PAYS OFF
By THOMAS FULLER
Bangkok Journal
March 6, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/06/world/asia/06thai.html?ref=environment
BANGKOK — Black smoke billowing from tailpipes into the humid, tropical air was once a Bangkok trademark. But a decade and a half after Thailand began a battle for better air quality, this erstwhile icon of smog has emerged as a role model for pollution-choked capitals in Asia, with considerably cleaner air than Beijing, Jakarta, New Delhi and Shanghai.
ENERGY DEPARTMENT FUNDS 6 CELLULOSIC ETHANOL PLANTS
Environmental News Service
March 5, 2007
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2007/2007-03-05-09.asp#anchor3
The Department of Energy, DOE, will invest up to $385 million for six biorefinery projects over the next four years. When fully operational, the biorefineries are expected to produce more than 130 million gallons of cellulosic ethanol per year. Cellulosic ethanol is made not from food crops such as corn, but from agricultural waste, yard waste, trees, forest residues, and perennial grasses.
SMALL VILLAGE IN GREECE ILLUSTRATES PROBLEMS OF COAL
Residents get little help from the EU
By Niki Kitsantonis
The International Herald Tribune
February 28, 2007
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/02/28/news/greece.php
Akrini is a village in northern Greece peopled by the descendants of refugees who fled their homes near the Black Sea when war broke out with Turkey early in the last century. Now the villagers want to flee again.
THE CARBON FOLLY
By Emily Flynn Vencat
Newsweek
March 12, 2007 issue
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17435875/site/newsweek
Policymakers have settled on 'emissions trading' as their favorite global-warming fix. But it isn't working.
-----------
Q&A with LAWRENCE BENDER
Co-Producer of An Inconvenient Truth
For the full interview: http://www.grist.org/news/maindish/2007/03/06/bender/index.html
Q: How do you think An Inconvenient Truth has influenced Congress?
A: I'll give you some examples. I met recently with a Republican congressmember who I'm not going to name. He had seen the movie, and asked the Republican staff scientists to watch the movie and report back to him. They all sit down in his office and he says, "Tell me, is there any information in this movie that is not accurate?" They said, "It is all accurate." That's a big step, a big deal. Then his 18-year-old son saw the movie and said, "Dad, I'll vote for you, but only if you do something about global warming."
Another story: I was down at the Conference of Mayors, I was sitting next to Barbara Boxer who was saying that the movie really helped the Democrats to do their job, because it gives a broadened awareness of the problem, it gives wind to their backs. It's powerful to hear somebody say that.
Q: Do you see a renaissance of socially engaged filmmaking?
A: Absolutely, 100 percent. But we're not the beginning of it. I feel like we're a big part of the movement, but what's been wonderful is, there have been documentaries every year now for the last few years that stand out. Super Size Me, Fahrenheit 9/11, Bowling for Columbine, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room. It's what happens at a time of crisis and volatility. So much has been happening in the world -- war, global warming, and other destabilizing forces -- that people are craving meaning and importance. I feel like people are looking to documentaries to fill that need.
Q: You have been closely involved with Wal-Mart and Yahoo! in launching the 18Seconds.org campaign, which aims to help push the compact fluorescent light bulb into the mainstream. Tell me about it.
A: The idea is that if you take 18 seconds out of your life to change one bulb, you're going to save $30 over the course of the light bulb and use 75 percent less energy. Beyond that, you're going to become part of a movement that's going to better your country. For me, the compact fluorescent light bulb is like a Trojan horse into people's minds: They start thinking, "Oh, that was easy -- I'm saving money, and I'm helping my country. What else can I do? Oh, I've got my appliances, my thermostat, my this, my that." There are 50,000 things you can do.
Q: What convinced you to take up the climate cause? Was there some kind of conversion moment?
A: Growing up, my parents always took me to do things in nature, so I had this foundation of respect for the natural world.
The first really pivotal moment for me was in 1998, when I was invited to go to Camp David to screen the movie Good Will Hunting. It was a period in my life when I felt there was something missing. I couldn't figure out what it was. That was the first time I'd ever met an elected official -- here I am meeting the president [Bill Clinton] and Hillary and Madeline Albright and all these people, and I quickly came to realize that these people are actually making a difference in the world, and that's what I needed to do.
As far as committing myself to the climate issue, the really big moment for me was seeing Gore. I guess you could say he was the high priest of my conversion. I believe if we lick this climate crisis, people are going to look back and the tipping point is going to be one person: Al Gore.
----------
Lead it Live it
http://www.iht.com/indexes/special/climate/index.php
Reuters Environmental News: www.planetark.org/dailynewshome.cfm
Educational Resources from Environmental Organizations
National Coucil For Science and the Environment: www.ncseonline.org/NLE/Links/MasterLinksList.cfm?Custom21=Environmental%20News
Environmental Defense: www.environmentaldefense.org
Conservation International: www.conservation.org
The Sierra Club’s Sierra Magazine: www.sierraclub.org/sierra/
Organic Consumers Association: www.organicconsumers.org/organlink.cfm
Green Energy News: www.nrglink.com/
Green Building News: www.buildinggreen.com/
----------
FEATURED ARTICLES
--THE GREEN ECONOMY--
UNLOCKING CLEAN, CHEAP ENERGY
Keay Davidson
The SF Chronicle
March 6, 2007
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/06/MNG71OG4O01.DTL&type=science
California scientists look to ethanol, solar arrays and 1800s engine for answers. Nanotech solar cells, the world's largest planned solar-electricity plant and new technologies for breeding biofuels like ethanol are among the brighter prospects on the energy research front in the Bay Area and the Golden State.
SALES OPEN FOR NYC GREEN CONDO TOWER
SustainableBusiness.com
Feb 07, 2007
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/features/feature_template.cfm?ID=1418
The offering plan for New York's newest green residential tower — a 35-story, 251-unit condo tower called The Visionaire — has been accepted and filed with the New York State Attorney General's office, enabling the opening of sales on March 1.
BofA BANKS $20 BILLION TO GROW GREEN ECONOMY
GreenBiz.com
Mar. 6, 2007
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=34688
Under an ambitious new initiative announced by Bank of America, the financial institution will direct $20 billion to help its corporate, individual and small-business customers take advantage of the business opportunities created by green economic growth.
EVEN THE BIGGEST BOXES CAN GO GREEN
Terry Slavin
Source: Green Futures
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/reviews_third.cfm?NewsID=34594
The man who builds Wal-Mart's massive retail outlets is going against the grain by working from an "eco-template" that saves energy and water and dramatically reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
VENTURE CAPITALISTS WANT TO PUT SOME ALGAE IN YOUR TANK
By CLIFFORD KRAUSS
The NY Times
March 7, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/07/business/07algae.html?ref=environment
Algae may be slime to the average person, but to some venture capitalists it is the path to energy independence.
$45 BILLION TXU DEAL IS AN ENVIRONMENTAL WATERSHED
By Andrew Ross Sorkin
The NY Times
February 26, 2007
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/02/26/business/txu.php
DALLAS: TXU, the largest power producer in Texas, agreed Monday to be sold to a group of private equity firms in a deal valued at $45 billion. It was a watershed deal not just for its size, but for its confluence of business decisions and environmental concerns, as well as a vow by the buyers to cut residential electricity prices.
EVOLUTION, NO, REVOLUTION NEEDED IN THE AUTO INDUSTRY.
Green Energy News
March 2, 2007
http://www.nrglink.com/arch/nrgs2007/20070030.html
The oil war in Iraq, lakes forming under Antarctic glaciers, a steadily sinking US auto industry, a crash in global stock markets and a lackluster US economy: All the worries are there for a major global meltdown. But all those frightening cards could be turned upside down - the brighter side up - too.
--THE GREEN MOVEMENT--
A WARMING WORLD — AS WARNINGS GROW MORE DIRE, NOBELIST EMERGES AS LEADER
Rick DelVecchio
March 5, 2007
The SF Chronicle
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/05/MNG18OFHF41.DTL&type=science
As warnings grow more dire, Nobelist emerges as leader. The director of Lawrence Berkeley lab is pushing his scientists and industry to develop technologies to reverse climate change.
GLITZ AND GOOGLE — TECH TITAN TOSSES A-LIST BASH FOR X-PRIZE FOUNDATION
By Catherine Bigelow
March 5, 2007
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/05/DDGFOOEF4C1.DTL&hw=google&sn=001&sc=1000
Forget global domination of the Internet.
If Google Inc. can provide heated toilet seats for its almost 7,000 employees at Googleplex world headquarters, then it's a cinch that Google is well suited to help save humanity.
100 LEADING COLLEGES GRADED: SUSTAINABILITY REPORT CARD RELEASED
SustainableBusiness.com
Feb 26, 2007
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/features/feature_template.cfm?ID=1423
The College Sustainability Report Card grades 100 leading colleges on their campus greening practices and endowment policies. It includes Ivy League and Big 10 schools, and other top public and private colleges. Only four institutions received an "A": Harvard University, Stanford University, Dartmouth College, and Williams College. 22 schools earned a "B", 54 earned a "C", and 20 earned a "D."
YOUTHS MOBILIZE ON GLOBAL WARMING
SustainableBusiness.com
Feb 07, 2007
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/features/feature_template.cfm?ID=1419
In the largest youth mobilization on global warming to date, over 50,000 students at 575 college and high school campuses across the U.S. and Canada organized events January 29-February 2 calling for immediate solutions to deal with climate change.
BREATHING EASIER AS THE BATTLE FOR GREEN SKIES PAYS OFF
By THOMAS FULLER
Bangkok Journal
March 6, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/06/world/asia/06thai.html?ref=environment
BANGKOK — Black smoke billowing from tailpipes into the humid, tropical air was once a Bangkok trademark. But a decade and a half after Thailand began a battle for better air quality, this erstwhile icon of smog has emerged as a role model for pollution-choked capitals in Asia, with considerably cleaner air than Beijing, Jakarta, New Delhi and Shanghai.
ENERGY DEPARTMENT FUNDS 6 CELLULOSIC ETHANOL PLANTS
Environmental News Service
March 5, 2007
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2007/2007-03-05-09.asp#anchor3
The Department of Energy, DOE, will invest up to $385 million for six biorefinery projects over the next four years. When fully operational, the biorefineries are expected to produce more than 130 million gallons of cellulosic ethanol per year. Cellulosic ethanol is made not from food crops such as corn, but from agricultural waste, yard waste, trees, forest residues, and perennial grasses.
SMALL VILLAGE IN GREECE ILLUSTRATES PROBLEMS OF COAL
Residents get little help from the EU
By Niki Kitsantonis
The International Herald Tribune
February 28, 2007
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/02/28/news/greece.php
Akrini is a village in northern Greece peopled by the descendants of refugees who fled their homes near the Black Sea when war broke out with Turkey early in the last century. Now the villagers want to flee again.
THE CARBON FOLLY
By Emily Flynn Vencat
Newsweek
March 12, 2007 issue
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17435875/site/newsweek
Policymakers have settled on 'emissions trading' as their favorite global-warming fix. But it isn't working.
-----------
Q&A with LAWRENCE BENDER
Co-Producer of An Inconvenient Truth
For the full interview: http://www.grist.org/news/maindish/2007/03/06/bender/index.html
Q: How do you think An Inconvenient Truth has influenced Congress?
A: I'll give you some examples. I met recently with a Republican congressmember who I'm not going to name. He had seen the movie, and asked the Republican staff scientists to watch the movie and report back to him. They all sit down in his office and he says, "Tell me, is there any information in this movie that is not accurate?" They said, "It is all accurate." That's a big step, a big deal. Then his 18-year-old son saw the movie and said, "Dad, I'll vote for you, but only if you do something about global warming."
Another story: I was down at the Conference of Mayors, I was sitting next to Barbara Boxer who was saying that the movie really helped the Democrats to do their job, because it gives a broadened awareness of the problem, it gives wind to their backs. It's powerful to hear somebody say that.
Q: Do you see a renaissance of socially engaged filmmaking?
A: Absolutely, 100 percent. But we're not the beginning of it. I feel like we're a big part of the movement, but what's been wonderful is, there have been documentaries every year now for the last few years that stand out. Super Size Me, Fahrenheit 9/11, Bowling for Columbine, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room. It's what happens at a time of crisis and volatility. So much has been happening in the world -- war, global warming, and other destabilizing forces -- that people are craving meaning and importance. I feel like people are looking to documentaries to fill that need.
Q: You have been closely involved with Wal-Mart and Yahoo! in launching the 18Seconds.org campaign, which aims to help push the compact fluorescent light bulb into the mainstream. Tell me about it.
A: The idea is that if you take 18 seconds out of your life to change one bulb, you're going to save $30 over the course of the light bulb and use 75 percent less energy. Beyond that, you're going to become part of a movement that's going to better your country. For me, the compact fluorescent light bulb is like a Trojan horse into people's minds: They start thinking, "Oh, that was easy -- I'm saving money, and I'm helping my country. What else can I do? Oh, I've got my appliances, my thermostat, my this, my that." There are 50,000 things you can do.
Q: What convinced you to take up the climate cause? Was there some kind of conversion moment?
A: Growing up, my parents always took me to do things in nature, so I had this foundation of respect for the natural world.
The first really pivotal moment for me was in 1998, when I was invited to go to Camp David to screen the movie Good Will Hunting. It was a period in my life when I felt there was something missing. I couldn't figure out what it was. That was the first time I'd ever met an elected official -- here I am meeting the president [Bill Clinton] and Hillary and Madeline Albright and all these people, and I quickly came to realize that these people are actually making a difference in the world, and that's what I needed to do.
As far as committing myself to the climate issue, the really big moment for me was seeing Gore. I guess you could say he was the high priest of my conversion. I believe if we lick this climate crisis, people are going to look back and the tipping point is going to be one person: Al Gore.
----------
Lead it Live it
posted by Antuan @ 12:48 PM
0 comments
