Characters
cliff etheredge, wind farmer & west texas cotton farmer...
...was tired of watching the large ranches to the south lease their land to wind companies while his smaller ranching neighbors got none of the business. Defying the odds, he organized scores of 500 acre farms and has now created Peak Wind, one of the world's largest wind farms. His town of Roscoe, TX was dying – even their Dairy Queen had closed. Now, his son and many other kids from Roscoe are coming home to work on the wind farms. This is the story of green energy bringing families back together and resurrecting small towns.
dan nolan, former army colonel...
...is our guide into the world of the Green Hawks – the folks in the Department of Defense who are leading the Pentagon's move towards energy efficiency and sustainable power. The U.S.'s forward operating bases in Iraq need diesel fuel for their generators. Convoys transporting this fuel are ideal targets for improvised explosive devices. Getting these bases more energy efficient and even fully wind and solar powered will save more than fuel. It will save lives.
bernie karl, geothermal pioneer and wild alaskan...
...has found a way to use 165 degree water to create geothermal power. Up until now, all geothermal needed at least 250 – 400 degree water temperatures. At most oil wells, 95% of the liquid drilled from the ground is hot water that measures around 165 degrees. The oil industry has always considered this water as waste and a nuisance. If Bernie could install one of these new geothermal units at every oil well in Texas, he'd create the same amount of power as 10 nuclear plants. United Technologies Corp., maker of Carrier air conditioners, has partnered with Bernie – and Goldman Sachs is predicting that they will sell 250,000 units; a true game changing technology.
van jones, civil rights advocate turned green jobs organizer and advocate...
...founded Green For All after a realization: "Green Jobs Not Jails." Green For All is working to get green jobs to disadvantaged communities. He was the main advocate for the Green Jobs Act, which George W. Bush signed into law in 2007. The Act was the first piece of federal legislation to codify the term "green jobs." Under the Obama administration, it has resulted in $500 million for green job training nationally. We share a moving moment with Van when solar panels are being installed by trainees of Solar Richmond & Grid Alternatives in Richmond CA.
michael dunham, of JACO Environmental AKA “Fridge Guy” ...
...is responsible for the successful design and implementation of JACO’s energy efficiency appliance recycling programs. JACO disposes of the nasty and powerful green house gas CFC-11, in old refrigerators in a safe and sustainable manner.
Dr. arthur rosenfeld, the ‘father of energy efficiency.’ ...
... Art advocated California’s building and appliance efficiency standards over 30 years ago, which have saved Californians billions of dollars. Art retired as Commissioner of the California Energy Commission in 2010 and now spends his time championing the benefits of "White Roofs." Thanks to Art, solutions to some of the toughest climate issues the world faces have already been well tested in California.
amory lovins, Chairman and Chief Scientist of the Rocky Mountain Institute...
... For four decades he has worked in energy policy and related areas. Amory worked professionally as an environmentalist in the 1970s and since then as an analyst of a "soft energy path" for the United States and other nations. He has promoted energy efficiency, the use of renewable energy sources, and the generation of energy at or near the site where the energy is actually used. Amory has received ten honorary doctorates and won many awards. He has provided expert testimony in eight countries, briefed 19 heads of state, and published 29 books. In 2009, Time magazine named Amory as one of the world's 100 most influential people.
richard branson, Founder/CEO of Virgin Atlantic Airways...
...Adventurer. Music entrepreneur. Branson is leading the hunt for the biofuel replacement to jet fuel as well. Branson has also offered $25 million to the first scientists who can demonstrably remove CO2 from the atmosphere. He probably will be starting another lucrative industry in the process. Besides the aviation biofuel research he’s funding, he’s also looking to make his Necker Island resort completely net zero by utilizing energy efficient renovations on all the buildings coupled with solar and wind power stations.
r. james woolsey, Former CIA director...
... and Venture Partner, VantagePoint, is the nation’s most vocal proponent for the plug-in hybrid car. He knows or nation’s addiction to oil is the biggest threat to our national security and he finds it distasteful that our oil purchases fund the very nations that profess their hatred for the West.
thomas l. friedman is an internationally renowned author, reporter, and columnist...
... the recipient of three Pulitzer Prizes. The New York Times columnist and best-selling author of "Hot, Flat and Crowded," consistently rings the “green is good business” bell. Going green will save U.S. companies billions of dollars and it will also spur a whole new set of industries worth possibly trillions of dollars.
john rowe, Chairman and CEO of utility company, Exelon Corporation...
... believes the best, most effective place to deal with slowing climate change is in the inner cities, the places where buildings are the most energy inefficient, where appliances are old and in disrepair.
james rogers, CEO of utility company, Duke Energy...
... wants to make energy efficiency in homes and offices universally accessible, just as there was universal access to electricity in the 20th century. He says it’s cheaper to save energy than to make energy.
gary hirshberg, Chairman, President, and CEO of
Stonyfield Farm...
the world's leading organic yogurt producer and the author of Stirring It Up: How to Make Money
and Save the World (Hyperion Books, 2008). Gary is a frequent speaker on topics including sustainability, climate change, the profitability of green and socially responsible business, organic agriculture, and sustainable economic development. Gary on Stonyfield Farm CO2 reduction efforts: "These teams together in the last 3 years have generated $7.8 million of profits for my company. That’s $7.8 million that translates into 46 new jobs and so even through the recession we were growing jobs. And I can tell, it’s been our energy savings – that’s really been our bank. I call it the First National Bank of Conservation. So, there’s nothing that makes more sense from an economic point of view than reducing your carbon footprint."