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the couple working toward their dream of opening their small town's first farm-to-table
restaurant as a part of the movement for community-supported agriculture.
Yetthosewhowanttogrowthebusinessofsolarfaceauniquechallenge.Theseentre-
preneurs have ol' King CONG to contend with, and they need a particular determination
andsenseofhumortotakeonsuchabehemoth. Wecan'tbescaredoffbytheaggressive
methods the fossil-fuel industry used to kill off earlier generations of the electric car and
a lot of electric public transportation systems to protect their interests. But the solarrikin
grits his teeth, braces for the fight, blows a raspberry, and keeps in mind that the struggle
is half the fun, no matter how bloody the battle.
As Dan Epstein, who runs a business incubation and acceleration organization known
as the Unreasonable Institute, says, entrepreneurs have to be “unreasonable” in the sense
that George Bernard Shaw meant when he said, “Progress depends on the unreason-
able man.” Unreasonable men andwomen are goingtobethe activist-entrepreneurs who
lead the charge away from Dirty Energy companies that cling to the unsustainable stored
powerofKingCONGandtowardthedirectsolarresourcesthatwegetfreefromthesky.
These are the folks who will get sustainable, affordable, transformative solar products
into the market on a worthwhile scale.
But where are all these rooftop revolutionaries, these role models, these activists and
entrepreneurs who are going to act as the examples of what I call the New Greatest Gen-
eration—the folks who are going to stand up to the challenge of our time, bring on the
best form of electricity generation, and create a universe of opportunity that makes the
Internet look like small beer? Well, they're all around the globe. Allow me to introduce
you to some who have inspired me and are sure to inspire you. Look 'em up, read their
stuff, replicate their approach to business and life, emulate their attitudes, and begin the
work of transforming energy in our world. We need them, but more importantly we need
you
to look upward, not underground, for electricity.
Mohamed Nasheed: Carrying the Torch
You've already met Mohamed Nasheed, who epitomizes the kind of solar champion we
need. If reelected he plans to create a demonstration project of our global solar poten-
tial. The personal challenges that this man has taken on are hard to overstate. Aside from
having suffered exile and torture, he now carries the torch for the fledgling democracy
of the Maldives, whose economy hinges on how much it must spend on oil imports for
electricity and how much money it can generate from tourism.
Nasheed's plan was profound. His government was collaborating with resort owners
to bring renewable energy to the country—not just to tourist locations but also to the is-
landsneighboringtheresorts,wherethetypicalMaldivianslive.Therewereeffortsafoot
