|
-
Energize: Director Jeff Barrie will speak on the importance of energy conservation at the Energy Fair this weekend.
-
The future is now: Stills from the movie 'Kilowatt Ours' show TVA solar panels at work; Jeff and Heather Barrie at home; and a mining explosion. |
BY RYAN MARR
With national health care debates hogging the media spotlight, and the shocking novelty of a $3 gallon of gas wearing thin, the green movement has slipped, relatively unnoticed, into the shadows of America's conscience.
That hasn't deterred Jeff Barrie and his team at Kilowatt Ours, a nonprofit dedicated to energy conservation, from their mission to enact a nationwide shift toward environmental awareness, one city at a time.
On Sunday, Jan. 31, Barrie will bring that awareness to Fredericksburg as part of the Rappahannock Valley Garden Club's first energy fair at James Monroe High School.
Featuring informational booths for Dominion Power, Friends of the Rappahannock and the Garden Club, among others, the fair should be a fitting complement to Barrie's speech, which will focus on conserving energy in the home.
Growing up in Southern California during the oil embargoes of the '70s, Barrie got a firsthand lesson in environmental awareness at the gas pumps.
Those lessons, coupled with Barrie's early love of film--he's an admitted "Star Wars" fanatic--led him to a career of environmental filmmaking. He picked up his first camera at the age of 12.
"I wanted to be a part of the magic on the screen," Barrie said in a recent phone interview with Weekender. "But, for whatever reason, using a fictional narrative just didn't seem right to me."
Now 40, Barrie has put out over 12 award-winning documentaries since 1993, including his latest, 2004's "Kilowatt Ours."
The documentary, which mostly details Barrie and his wife's attempts to conserve energy in their own home, has sparked a grass roots movement nationwide.
"My goal is nothing short of a cultural shift in our country," Barrie said. "I'd like to see us become good stewards of our natural resources. That's my dream."
Barrie describes "Kilowatt Ours" as the first movie in which he not only explores the problems at the root of energy conservation, but also emphasizes their simple solutions.
Last Saturday night, local residents, who came out to see the Garden Club's free public screening of "Kilowatt Ours" at the Central Rappahannock Regional Library, testified to the documentary's motivational power.
"It definitely made me think more about turning our lights off and shutting our computers down more regularly," said Debbie Hamilton, a member of the Garden Club, after viewing the film. "I'm going to be much more conscientious."
On the other hand, Julie May, who works for the Fredericksburg regional landfill, found the film reaffirming many of the steps she has already taken to conserve energy in her home.
Besides changing all of her home's incandescent light bulbs to fluorescent ones, May has also installed programmable thermostats and sealed all air ducts to conserve energy.
"Short of putting solar panels on the roof, I've made all the changes I can," said May. "I have a 2-year-old, and we live two miles from [Interstate] 95. So naturally, I've given a lot of thought to air pollution. It's a pretty big concern of mine."
Both May and Hamilton plan to attend the energy fair on Sunday.
The film will be shown again on Saturday at two separate locations: Snow Library and The Free Lance-Star.
Garden Club President Betsy Carey is especially excited about the enthusiasm she hopes the fair will inject into the community.
"We thought this would be a good investment to motivate and inspire the community to take action and utilize renewable energy," Carey said. "I'm hoping we can make a difference saving money and the environment."
Barrie's speech will also stress the value of helping others along with the environment. According to Barrie, since "Kilowatt Ours" came out in 2004, his speeches have shifted toward the ideology of his current mantra, "I can serve when I conserve."
"It goes beyond just saving kilowatts or saving mountains from turning into coal mines," Barrie said. "It's become something deeper and more spiritual."
Ryan Marr: 540/374-5000, ext. 5617
Email: rmarr@freelancestar.com
