Mote leads green thinking in Sarasota with annual Electrify the Island
On Sept. 10, electric vehicles and other eco-friendly technologies showed their power during “Electrify the Island”: the Sarasota-based kickoff event for the sixth annual National Drive Electric Week, which features local events across the nation.
It was Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium’s fourth year hosting the event on its City Island campus, and the fifth annual celebration held in Sarasota.
“Mote is always happy to host this event, because it ties in everything we believe in; it’s about sustainability and keeping the ocean and the environment clean,” said Nigel Mould, Mote Trustee. “We live in such a gorgeous area here in Sarasota, and we want to help conserve that beauty by choosing to drive clean instead of pumping out exhaust fumes into the environment that then get absorbed into the ocean.”
Mote is a world-class marine science and education institution that launched a Sustainable Energy Initiative in 2012 to enhance the Lab’s environmentally sound practices including using solar power, electric car chargers and other eco-friendly technologies and practices to conserve energy, water and other natural resources.
This initiative was launched by the installation of three free, electric vehicle charging stations located in the Aquarium’s parking lot and an array of solar panels located on the Lab’s buildings, including the animal hospital.
“Mote was a little ahead of the curve, as we had one of the first charging stations in the County, now Mote has three at its main campus, and Mote also had the first electric vehicle charging station in the Florida Keys and still has the southernmost charging station in Key West,” Mould said.
In 2016, Mote expanded its green thinking by adding reusable water bottle refilling stations throughout the Aquarium and using reusable bags at the gift shop.
Mote is also currently expanding its research infrastructure on Summerland Key, in the Florida Keys, with a new environmentally sustainable LEED-certified facility. The new facility will more than double Mote’s research and education space at the Summerland Key campus, which focuses on studying and restoring the ocean's "rainforests," coral reefs.
- To learn more about how you can help Mote’s coral reef research, visit motereefplate.com.
Electrify the Island featured a plug-in electric vehicle (EV) expo with vendors focused on sustainability and energy efficiency and educational booths provided by Florida Power & Light Company, GoSpace, Freedom for Electric Bikes, Sarasota County, the City of Sarasota, Andrews & Associates Realty, Inc., Freedom 4 Electric Bike, Brilliant Harvest and others.
“We want to thank this incredible community for its support and continuing to move the conversation about driving electric forward,” said Chris Sharek, Co-Chair of Electrify the Island and President of Sharek Solutions. “At the first Electrify the Island there were about only three types of electric vehicles to choose from, and it has just steadily grown throughout the years, and now we have choices. Sarasota has been a leader over these last five years. We were one of only 29 cities across the nation to have a national drive electric event in 2011 and this year there are 241 events globally. We can’t necessarily choose where we get our electricity from, but we can make a decision on what kind of vehicle we drive.”
The event featured two forums free to the public at 11 a.m., a breakout session titled EV 101 and a 1 p.m. breakout session titled Charging Infrastructure. At noon there was a special ceremony where Sarasota County Administrator Thomas Harmer read proclamations honoring Electrify the Island and National Drive Electric Week.
BMW of Sarasota displayed the BMW i8, the first sports car with the consumption and emission values of a compact car. Guests were welcome to speak to BMW of Sarasota representatives about the efficiency and dynamics of the BMW i8, as well as other local electric vehicle car representatives from Gettle Nissan and Sunset Chevrolet, Buick, GMC.
“I love this event, because a lot of people may not know what an electric vehicle is or the progress they are making, so it really is a great, fun event for people to learn and Mote is the perfect place to do that,” said Larry Chanin, President of Florida Tesla Enthusiasts. “The more we all know about electric vehicles, the better decisions we can all make for the future of our environment.”
“And of course, getting people to want to get in these cars is when the ‘ah hah’ moment comes. I love seeing the face of someone after they step out of an electric car for the first time, and they immediately get why this is the way of the future. They are fun cars to drive, but you are also helping making a difference. You can’t get much better than that.”
If you couldn't attend Electrify the Island, consider dropping by Mote on another Saturday this month: Mote's admission is reduced to $6 for Florida residents every Saturday in September 2016.
The 2016 Electrify the Island was made possible by the following sponsors: Florida Power & Light Company; BMW of Sarasota; Brilliant Harvest, LLC; Sunset Chevrolet, Buick, GMC; Gettel Nissan; Apollo Sunguard Systems, Inc.; Willis A. Smith Construction; Andrews & Associates; Freedom 4 Electric Bikes, Suncoast Credit Union; and GoSpace.
