A key element of the discussion about renewable energy is timing.  When do we need to start making measurable progress towards reducing our use of coal, oil, and other fuels where the damage the environment outweighs the benefits of the power created?  A Smart Grid will help us be more intelligent about how we use and conserve energy, but it is 10 years and billions of dollars away from mass-market implementation. Off-shore and remote wind farms that promise hundreds/thousands of megawatts of power are also 10 years and billions of dollars away.  Only a distributed network of community-scale facilities will help reduce demand on an already over-taxed grid because it generates power where the demand is located.

Homes, municipal building, commercial installations, and small utility-scale facilities can generate a large portion of our national demand without causing major upheaval from an environmental or visual impact – and many can be implemented in a short-period of time meeting the ‘shovel ready’ requirement for federal and/or state funding.  Many will understand the analogy to the computer industry, the ‘old’ energy model of major plants run by regulated utilities with power distributed through a grid controlled by quasi governmental agencies is like the Government/conglomerate era mainframe computing; but when a distributed computing model came along and grew into what we now call the Internet the ‘power’ and value it released was orders of magnitude greater for individuals, companies, investors, and society.

A growing number of people envision a future powered by renewable sources, including the many communities, blogs, groups, and networks that have joined the Build Baby Build movement and become Greenspotters in their communities.  As with every moment of great change/opportunity in history the challenge of changing the way we power our world takes a fresh perspective, new eyes, and an open mind.

Lasting, meaningful change can come quickly to a receptive audience – just ten or even five years ago, who would have envisioned how our lives would be changed by YouTube, FaceBook, Blogs, or Google.

What can we see if we look with new eyes, and accept that vision for our future as creators or consumers of energy?

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