BeTheExample is an initiative founded by Priscilla (Polly) Rich in 2017. It is a contest that challenges homeowners to be sustainable. We worked on making a documentary based on this contest, trailing families and individuals in our communities who have chosen to live out the principles of reducing their climate impact. 

When I was first introduced to the BeTheExample project, I had no idea that this project would be so time consuming or that it would have such a lasting impact on me Napa Schools for Climate Action (NS4CA) advisor Jim Wilson introduced this during one of NS4CA’s weekly meetings last September, and Maia, a fellow Sierra Club intern, and I volunteered. 

"Personally, this experience taught me a lot about the importance of being genuine in environmental leadership. Being actively involved in climate action also involves actively doing your part to be sustainable and working towards those goals personally. Also, the filmmaking process taught me the importance of educating others about sustainability and raising awareness: this is how to create a ripple effect that makes gradual but impactful change."

The project began with many zoom meetings among a diverse team of students from all over the Bay Area. As we got to know one another, we also assigned project roles. Dahlia, a young filmmaker from Petaluma became our crucial creative director. Dahlia taught her classmate, Bryn, filmmaking essentials, so that Bryn could collect “b-roll” (footage on a second camera). Vivian, who was a friend of Dahlia’s from film camp, became an assistant film director, helping Dahlia with camera angles, lighting, and more. Next, we met Yaowei and Nikhil, high school students from Danville, and leaders of their school’s environmental club. Nikhil became Dahlia’s “slater,” writing the scene number on the clapboard before each shot with a dry erase marker, and, practically every time, accidentally dropping the marker cap on the ground to Dahlia’s dismay. Yaowei, Maia and I alternated between roles: the interviewer (both on and off screen), the interviewee, the organizer, the writer, or sometimes the just-here-for-moral-support member. 

The beginnings of the project were a little rough. None of us had a clear direction on where to go. Before Dahlia joined, we had no one to film. We initially wanted to find families to film, but then we shifted to filming adult homeowners instead, while having a separate shoot for students. We also added environmental workers and advocates like our very own Nick Cheranich, and Sebastian Conn of Marin Clean Energy. From October through January, we met by zoom every Sunday, carefully planning and figuring out the logistics of our documentary before we started filming.

Sunday, January 12th was our first shoot. It was an exciting day for us. I remember that day perfectly, driving to the home of Mrs. Hillyard, the AP Environmental Science teacher at American Canyon High School. I remember the eucalyptus trees, the cute kitchen, and their big, fluffy dog, Xena. I remember meeting my teammates in person for the first time. Most of all, I remember the Hillyards’ profound commitment to sustainable stewardship. They put my composting and Deep Greening to shame! They had native plants, an electric stove, a heat pump, EVs, solar panels, and even reused clothing, furniture and food bags. Why hadn’t I done this my entire life? Why doesn’t everybody else? 

We had six more shoots after that. We interviewed former vice mayor John Shribbs of Petaluma, Polly Rich herself, Peter Cedolini, who was the owner and founder of popular Italian restaurant Mangia Mi  in Danville, and many others. Our second to last shoot was a student shoot, where we students became the interviewees and discussed our environmental passions and goals, including gardening, nature immersion, sustainable fashion, and running environmental clubs. Each shoot was very unique, and we all learned something new each time. 

This whole process was not entirely sunshine and rainbows, though. We had to deal with many difficult, and sometimes amusing, scenarios, such as having to wrap up a shoot early because we were causing Mangia Mi to lose business (customers were uncomfortable dining near a film crew), the lighting not working, and Nikhil getting sprayed by Mrs. Hillyard’s rain barrel when he tried to close the valve on it. But overall, we pulled through, and learned how to become more environmentally conscientious, made connections with peers who cared deeply about our planet, and learned a great deal about filmmaking and professionalism.

Personally, this experience taught me a lot about the importance of being genuine in environmental leadership. Being actively involved in climate action also involves actively doing your part to be sustainable and working towards those goals personally. Also, the filmmaking process taught me the importance of educating others about sustainability and raising awareness: this is how to create a ripple effect that makes gradual but impactful change.

Personal reflections aside, those two months of filming went by so fast, and it felt weird not filming with Polly and the team every Sunday. Polly will have a professional edit the documentary, and it should be released sometime this fall. I am very excited to see the final product, and am eager to see what impact it will have on others.