And that’s to say nothing, of course, of the community’s role in the 1960’s counterculture and the tech revolution that closely followed on its heels.
So it came as little surprise earlier today to learn that a burgeoning international movement in support of solar power has been steadily gaining steam on the north side of San Francisco Bay.
Less surprise still that its prime mover, long-time public relations executive John Reed, sees the establishment of a worldwide day of observance and recognition of solar power’s promise as tantamount to a mission.
“It’s not an association trade show, as important as those are, it’s not just about community activities… frankly, it’s kind of become my life,” he says good humouredly.
“It would be nice if I could make some kind of living at this, but you know in some cases, spreading the word about something like this is just as important as those kinds of considerations,” he adds.
Established in 2009, when its primary focus was the City of San Francisco and in recognizing the growing role of solar power in California and throughout the US, the “holiday” is celebrated yearly on a weekend day before the Summer Solstice - the longest day of the year.
This year’s observance will include four countries – the US, UK and Canada, where it will be celebrated on 18 June, and Australia, where it will celebrated on 19 November, a nod to the differing seasonal calendars in the northern and southern hemispheres.
“I had been involved with solar power, in one way or another, since 2002, but what really got me interested in doing something on a larger scale was the impending demise of the investment tax credit for solar installations that was slated to end in 2008,” Reed says.
Despite the fact that almost half of the solar-panel systems that have been installed in the US are in California, Reed found that many of his fellow state citizens weren’t as aware of solar power – and to the threats and challenges to its proliferation – as he had long assumed.
“That got me thinking, seriously, about establishing a vehicle through which municipalities and solar companies and others could educate the general public in a very direct way,” he says.
But the professional PR man quickly learned it wouldn’t be easy. A Google-search of the phrase “how to establish a holiday” turned up precious little information. Undeterred, Reed began registering the “Solar Day” domain name around the world, he then began to solicit local governments and residents and businesses that had done solar installations that he could throw a spotlight on.
“It was an enormous expenditure of effort,” Reed says.
Yet the first-ever Solar Day went very well. Bio-diesel powered buses took participants to different sites, and in all, between 20 and 30 different installations were visited.
Since then, the momentum behind the event has been growing. On Friday, 17 June, Reed is doing a 5:30 a.m. interview of the Waking Up With Al program, a popular morning weather-related program on the national Weather Channel in the US.
Asked why he believes the event is beginning to catch on, Reed points not to his own efforts, but to a general recognition that the energy landscape is changing.
“After the Japanese earthquake, nuclear power is dead, and I think people fundamentally understand that as far as fossil fuels are concerned, the party had to end sometime,” Reed says.
“What I always tell people is we had 100 years of coal, 50 years of oil, but we’ve got 5 billion years of solar left… and it’s time to embrace that,” he says.
The other factor that’s helping grow Solar Day is the Internet. Reed points out that it took Earth Day 40 years to be embraced and observed in some 138 different countries.
“But then, they started back when communications was word of mouth and a letter and a stamp and an envelope placed in the mail,” he says. “Technology has definitely removed many of the barriers that prevented people from quickly spreading the word about a growing movement.”
In spreading his own message, Reed has emphasized that embracing solar is a lifestyle chose that extends far beyond simple savings on personal and commercial energy bills.
“A small, residential installation runs you what, $25,000 today?” he asks, hypothetically. “That’s about the same cost as a hybrid automobile. It’s a big investment. And I think while incentives are enticing, it’s far more compelling to explain to people how they can do the right thing, live in a healthier fashion, and do right by their community as well.”
“The other thing is explaining the global story,” Reed continues. “Did you know there are still 1.8 billion people on this planet that are not connected to a power grid of any kind? That’s an amazing reality of the 21st century and it’s something that’s only going to be rectified with renewable energy.”
“So embracing solar and helping it grow is a way to do some good for your neighbours across the entire planet,” he adds.
Reed describes putting together each respective Solar day as a sprint that starts in early January of each year, and picks up momentum after the annual Earth Day observances in April.
“I respect Earth Day, and don’t want to muddle their message or ours,” Reed says. “Besides, the April to mid-June window gives us plenty of time to get our message out.”
Each year, Reed says, he just tries to do a little bit more, refining his solar message and how the Solar day message gets out to the world.
“I don’t run into a lot of resistance, but you know, you’ll always run unto a little bit of the attitude of, ‘If we didn’t invent it, we’re not interested,’” Reed said of the challenges his mission faces.
“What I always say is I’m not working against corporate public relations efforts or looking to diminish solar energy associations in any way – many, many of them are our friends – What I’m trying to do is go directly to the public and teach it about solar power and how it works and why things like energy audits are important.
“I’d love everybody to come on board and join us, but if they don’t… we’ll just keep doing it without them. We are anyway,” he says.
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