EcoHeartland Documentary

Over the past several months, we’ve been hard at work on post-production. We started with over 50 hours of footage and interviews and have been editing that down into a great documentary. We will be sharing video clips over the coming weeks and posting information on our next environmental adventure into the Heartland. 

Since we last wrote, much has changed in terms of energy prices, politics and where our national focus is – but issues relating to green economy have, in many ways, risen in the national conversation. The essay below, based on the research and reporting we’ve done for this project, makes the case that modernizing our electrical grid should be a high priority.

Invest In Electrical Grid To Generate Green Jobs

From Oklahoma we headed west on I-40, tracing the route of Highway 66 with a stop in Historic Sayre for a look at their Main Street project. After a night in Amarillo, we drove north through the Oklahoma Panhandle (now in the grips of a multi-year drought), to Denver for our last interview.

Reverend Peter Sawtell of the Eco-Justice Ministries talked about the moral dimension of environmental challenges, including the injustice of sitting hazardous facilities in low-income communities and the inter-generational debt we are creating via climate change and resource depletion. The organization is helping the faith community learn about environmental issues — including the benefits of green building and purchasing for congregations — and also has some ideas for environmentalists and the wider public.

After our interview, we headed west once again — into the mountains, down Glen Canyon, and then south through the arid reaches of Utah and Nevada. As we drove home, we thought back to the people we met and the stories, solutions, and also warnings we heard during our trip. The environmental challenges we face are serious and pressing, but opportunities abound to create a cleaner, greener and more sustainable United States.

Many thanks to all of the people who have helped us complete the first phase of this project. Stay tuned for details as our project progresses.