The Power of Clean Air and Water: What If Your Employees Are Divided About Climate Change?

Speakers

• Peter Byck, Director and Producer, Carbon Nation

Highlights

• There is vast common ground in the United States when it comes to energy efficiency, national security, and clean energy, but due to a lack of good, compelling storytelling on these issues, a large majority of Americans are not aware of current innovations in green technology and how they can learn and benefit from climate change solutions.
• Individuals and communities are taking proactive approaches to developing green technologies to spur sustainable and economic growth.
• Realizing the economic, social, and environmental value in creating strategies and programs targeted in response to climate change, companies are prioritizing efforts to develop innovative solutions to increasing energy efficiency, reducing carbon emissions, and encouraging clean air and clean-water practices.

Memorable Quotes

“What I think is going on is that there’s a lot more people working on [energy efficiency, clean air, and clean water] then we know because it has not coalesced yet. At Carbon Nation, we want to give an extra boost and help coalesce your companies to show people how much common ground there is. I suggest finding the skeptics within your company, engage them in conversation on these issues, and test for yourself to see how much common ground you find.” —Peter Byck, Carbon Nation

“There’s nothing that makes more sense from an economic point of view than reducing your carbon footprint.” —Gary Hirshberg, Stonyfield Farm (as quoted in Carbon Nation)

“If you believe that climate change is real and happening and caused by humans, it’s important for you to say that. People respect it when others stand up for what they believe.” —Peter Byck, Carbon Nation

Overview

Byck opened the session with an introduction of his film Carbon Nation: A Climate Change Solutions Movie [That Doesn’t Even Care If You Believe in Climate Change]. Inspired by Al Gore’s film Inconvenient Truth, Byck started filming Carbon Nation in February 2007. With the support of donors, Byck and his team completed the film in three years, ending with a world premiere in March 2010. Throughout the filmmaking process, Byck interviewed 326 people eager to share their views on climate change and their innovative solutions to achieving energy efficiency for their communities. Byck noted that his initial goal for making the documentary was not to prove climate change but instead to find and show solutions to climate change. Byck highlighted that he knew he needed to tell good, solid stories with good, solid storytellers—his starring characters in Carbon Nation. Following his introduction, Byck showed the audience four short video clips.

In the first video, Byck interviewed Cliff Etheredge, a wind farmer and cotton farmer from Roscoe, Texas. After seeing large ranches lease their land to wind companies, leaving small ranches behind, Etheredge decided to organize his smaller ranching neighbors to create Peak Wind, now one of the world’s largest wind farms. Once suffering from the economic downturn, Roscoe is now experiencing social and environmental benefits from Peak Wind in the form of job creation and green energy. Outspoken and candid, Etheredge declared that Roscoe, Texas, is the best and greatest example of a town being revitalized by wind power. Byck viewed Etheredge’s account as a true American story and a testament to how clean energy in the form of wind power can shape a town and energize its residents to become proactive in the pursuit of energy efficiency.

The second clip featured Bernie Karl, a proud, wild Alaskan and geothermal engineer. As a response to discovering that the resort he purchased, Chena Hot Springs Resort, was heated by 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel every month, costing US$730 a day, Karl found a way to generate electricity using 165-degree water. With the implementation of geothermal power, it now costs merely US$12 a day to heat the resort’s swimming pool and hot springs. Karl acknowledged that it doesn’t matter whether someone believes that humans are causing climate change or not, what matters is that it is happening and something needs to be done about it through innovations in green technology.

For the third video clip, Byck found himself lucky enough to secure an interview with James Woolsey, a former CIA Director. By interviewing Woolsey, Byck wanted to expose the immense and irresponsible oil use by the U.S. Department of Defense. Woolsey told Byck that the Department of Defense was notified of its oil usage by the Defense Science Board. The Defense Science Board found that the department uses approximately 3 million barrels of oil a day, making the department one of the biggest users of oil in the United States. In Woolsey’s view, if oil is the problem, then more oil is not the answer.The United States has to find ways to unleash itself from the tethers of fuel.

The fourth and final video clip shared what Byck indicated as the missing piece to his documentary—an outlook on how businesses are responding to climate change. To set up the clip, Byck provided examples of companies that are actively responding to climate change. According to Byck, The Walt Disney Company instituted an internal carbon tax to inspire employees to emit less carbon, and Dow Chemical spent approximately US$1 billion on energy efficiency and has earned US$9 billion in energy savings. Both examples demonstrate that responding to climate change has become incorporated into the sustainability agendas of companies around the world. In the clip, Byck interviewed Gary Hirshberg, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Stonyfield Farm. As the world’s leading organic yogurt producer, Hirshberg knew that it was essential for his company to reduce its carbon emissions through socially responsible business.

Byck closed his presentation by reminding the audience that it was most important for those who believe in climate change to speak up, share their views and solutions to the problem, and not shy away from critics and skeptics.