Young EV enthusiast and environmental campaigner begins an extraordinary 100 day carbon negative journey. He will travel on electric charge and plant 48 trees, one in each state he passes through.
There are many ways in which we all can contribute to a better and cleaner environment. All it takes is to sacrifice just that little bit of personal comfort, or even just change a nasty habit. Switch off unused appliances, generate renewable energy at home, recycle instead of send to landfill, save some water, save some energy- easy right?
It is all about delayed gratitude- going for that slightly more expensive, but much longer-lasting and energy saving LED light bulb, or getting that electric vehicle, which you might have a bit more trouble charging (for now)- it might be a bigger investment from your side now, but the benefit to the environment is incredible. Yet, the majority of people are still not doing anything about it, and no one can give a reasonable, not-selfish, explanation why.
One person has decided to embark on a 100-day journey to prove that driving an electric vehicle is not as scary or impossible as everyone thinks, especially when it comes to long distances. Meet Brian Kent, the guy who will travel 25,000 miles with his Nissan Leaf, and planting 48 climate-suitable trees in each state he travels through.
Brian has an ongoing Indiegogo campaign, through which he hopes to raise enough money to buy all 48 trees and get them delivered to the location, where he plans to plant them.
All money that he collects will go for this purpose- not for accommodation (as he will be bringing his tent along) and not for gasoline (as his Leaf needs only electrical power). But what he wants from his backers in return is a little bit of extra support. He has planned his route (and stops) based on the estimated range of his vehicle (around 84 miles) and locations of charging stations. Along the way he hopes that some friendly faces could offer him their private charging station at home, so that he will not have to make long detours, and also help him coordinate the addresses for tree delivery.
He also needs a bit of verbal support- he needs people to spread the word, and tell everyone they know about this great 100-day carbon negative journey across the US. As Brian does not plan to spend any of his backer’s money on advertising, he needs people to simply talk about it and convince others to follow his Negative Carbon roundtrip blog (currently under construction).
The trip will start from Albion, New York on 26th August. Until then, Brian’s Indiegogo campaign will be open for backers to show their appreciation and give their financial support. It really does not have to be much- you can give just a dollar if you want to, but you will know that you are making a difference.
Go on, show Brian your support, and take part in removing 100 tons of carbon dioxide in 100 days. And maybe offer him a coffee when he passes by your home town!
Image (c) Brian Kent
Thanks for the great summary and the encouragement, MIla/Ovidiu. Support has been very encouraging, with two couples even going so far as to offer me a place to charge and to stay for the night. EV drivers are just plain awesome!