We have unilaterally declared September SOLAR MONTH.

There are some Solar events in September that you will not want to miss:

*Tuesday September 13: Film Screening
THE 4TH REVOLUTION & Reception

*Friday September 30: Green Party!
Meet and Greet with Other Enviros and plan our field trip to see the Solar Decathalon on Saturday October 1st.

Further Details Below.

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 13
Screening THE 4TH REVOLUTION

Directed by Carl A. Fechner

DC Solar United Neighborhoods invites you to a screening of Carl Fechner’s The 4th Revolution — Energy Autonomy, courtesy of the Goethe Institut, at 700 Eye Street, NW on Tuesday, September 13, 2011 at 6:30 PM.

Scott Sklar, of The Stella Group, will introduce the film and moderate a panel discussion — “A global context for US renewable advocacy” — immediately after the film.

If Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth begged the central question of climate change “What is to be done?” Fechner’s lushly photographed film provides a substantive answer that is well worth the wait.

The late Dr. Hermann Scheer, German Bundestag member and Chair of the World Council for Renewable Energy presents proofs that renewables can replace fossil and nuclear fuels, while offering a way out of the environmental rock and the economic hard place in which oil dependence has trapped developed and developing countries alike.

The film goes directly to Mali, the Amazon Rainforest, China, Bangladesh and Europe — to show how renewables are doing just that.

A reception will be held afterward, provided by the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, DC.

Seating is Limited. Admission by VOLUNTARY DONATION / RESERVATION:

SEE TRAILER BELOW

FILM SYNOPSIS
From office buildings that produce more energy than they use to electric cars with style, visionary and entrepreneurial minds today are working across the globe on the technologies that will take us away from reliance on fossil fuels and towards clean, renewable energy for all.

The stakes are enormous, and so are the obstacles: lack of political will in the United States and many other countries, entrenched interests in the coal, gas and oil industries and the simple fact that reworking our energy infrastructure will be a difficult process. Instead of lingering on the problems, The 4th Revolution focuses on the solutions, also showing that these new methods and technologies are no longer distant dreams, but within our grasp.

Sun, wind, hydro and geothermal energy are natural sources accessible to everyone all over the world without making any difference. And they are renewable, free and available in the long run. Only the widespread knowledge about the possibilities of renewable energy can ignite an international movement and take the absolutely necessary energy transition.

THE 4TH REVOLUTION describes the possibility to switch to 100% renewables within the next 30 years by telling the stories of its protagonists, a prominent environmental activist, Nobel laureates, innovative businessmen and politicians. It demonstrates the opportunities which will be provided by the energy revolution regarding the sustainable economic development and social and economic fairness.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 30
GREEN PARTY Enviro Meet & Greet

Solar Decathalon Field Trip Planning

The Washington Film Institute invites you to a GREEN PARTY! on Friday, September 30th, 2011 from 6:00 – 10:00 PM also at The Goethe Institut.

The party will feature open bar wine, beer, soft drinks, snacks and the opportunity to meet other enviros and build the GREEN community in DC!

We will also plan a field trip to visit the SOLAR DECATHALON for the next day: Saturday October 1st.

ABOUT THE SOLAR DECATHALON

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon is an award-winning program that challenges collegiate teams to design, build, and operate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive. The winner of the competition is the team that best blends affordability, consumer appeal, and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum efficiency.

The first Solar Decathlon was held in 2002; the competition has since occurred biennially in 2005, 2007, and 2009. The next event will take place at the National Mall’s West Potomac Park in Washington, D.C., Sept. 23–Oct. 2, 2011. Open to the public free of charge, visitors can tour the houses, gather ideas to use in their own homes, and learn how energy-saving features can help them save money today.

The Solar Decathlon’s Purpose:

*Educates student participants and the public about the many cost-saving opportunities presented by clean-energy products

*Demonstrates to the public the opportunities presented by cost-effective houses that combine energy-efficient construction and appliances with renewable energy systems that are available today

*Provides participating students with unique training that prepares them to enter our nation’s clean-energy workforce.

The Decathlon’s Impact:

Since 2002, the Solar Decathlon has:

*Involved 92 collegiate teams, which pursued multidisciplinary course curricula to study the requirements for designing and building energy-efficient, solar-powered houses

*Expanded its outreach to K–12 students by inviting schools in the Washington, D.C., area to visit on class tours.

THE 4TH REVOLUTION TRAILER