SXSWorld
Issue link: https://sxsw.uberflip.com/i/600882
1 2 S X S W o r l d | N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 5 | S X S W. C O M XSW Eco is no place to find climate change deniers. Wander into any presentation at last month's confer- ence, and you might hear activists, industry experts, investment advisors, city staff, federal employees and academicians speaking from a single baseline assumption: that clean energy and climate change are the defining challenges of our time. But at a societal level, that point of view is paralyzing, says filmmaker and SXSW Eco keynote speaker James Redford. Media coverage of melting ice caps, species die-offs, California in flames and Manhattan underwater renders us incapable of actions that might delay our demise. "We're all completely overwhelmed by the challenges that are in our faces with cli- mate change," he says. "A vast majority of people not only aren't thinking about this issue day to day; they actively don't want to think about it." The politicization of the issue is equally problematic, with our dominant political narrative pitting conservatives against progressives. This dynamic, Redford believes, leaves a vast, well-meaning populace alienated and uninterested. A storyteller by trade, Redford's latest documentary, HAPPENING (to be released next year), provides an alternate narrative that seeks to connect and inspire viewers from across the political spectrum. Redford's specific lens is renewable energy, and by casting his eye on advances in technology, decreases in cost and the potential for mass job creation, he seeks to inclusively celebrate what is real, good and current. All is neither lost nor highly politicized, he wants to remind us. To gather material for HAPPENING, Redford and his crew have spent the last year crisscrossing the country, trying to find sto- ries that showcase just how powerful the changes that are already taking place are. One of the most compelling narratives comes out of Georgetown, Texas. Located 30 miles north of Austin, Georgetown is a picturesque, politically conservative city of 60,000. With 7.6 percent popula- tion growth just last year, it is the second fastest growing city in the country. It is also the second city in the country to commit to transi- tioning to 100 percent renewable energy. The other city, Burlington, Vermont, is a bastion of progressivism, and its eagerness to plunk for renewables should surprise exactly no one. ("We would be disappointed if they didn't!" jokes Redford.) Georgetown's move is, by contrast, something else altogether and to Redford, it drives straight to the heart of his thesis: That the move to renewables depends on clear-eyed business acumen as much as it does on passion for nature. Georgetown's mayor, Dale Ross is, in many political and cultural ways, Redford's antithesis. However, the two are linked by a shared conviction that we owe it to future generations to leave the world better than we found it. They are both impatient with ideology and ready for action on a broad, pragmatic scale. When it came time to renew Georgetown's energy contracts, Ross and his staff threw national and state politics aside in favor of getting their constituents the cheapest, most reliable form of energy avail- able. "Look," Ross told Redford in an onstage interview at SXSW Eco, "I have a duty to the citizens I serve, an obligation: To get them the best possible deal on their bills." To that end, Ross invited all the major energy providers in Texas to sit down and negotiate. While oil companies, accustomed to short- term price fluctuations, balked at the long-term contracts Ross was seeking, wind and solar companies were eager to make a deal. They offered the city the rates it was looking for at locked-in prices for 25 years. The city expects to go all-renewable on New Year's Day, 2017. Still, neither Ross nor Redford is sentimental about the stakes or the challenges ahead. Ross brings his CPA self to the fore when dis- cussing the issue. He likes to say, often and proudly, that the decision to transition to renewables was a "no brainer." And when skeptics question him, he shows them his team's cost projections and then asks, "What do you think there'll be more of in Texas in 200 years? Fossil fuel, or wind and sun? I'm betting on wind and sun." For his part, Redford remains deeply concerned about our current trajectory, but he takes hope from the diverse set of non-ideological players, from the U.S. Nav y to 36 major global companies, including Walmart, Johnson & Johnson, Nike, IKEA, Goldman Sachs and others, who have made substantial, time-bound commitments to moving to renewable energy sources. "Look, renewable energy will win," he says. "The economics just make sense. Think about it: whales used to be a major source of fuel. We didn't stop using whale oil because we killed all the whales. We found something cheaper. We're beginning to be at that point with renewables. But if you don't know what's happening that's right, you're just missing out on an opportunity to feel engaged and encour- aged. It's happening. It's good news. So let's get it out there." T Selling Clean Energy As Common Sense by ashley cRaddock J a m es Re d fo r d s p e a k i n g a t SX S W Eco 20 1 5 S R O B S A N T O S