Director Gregory Kallenberg takes you through his journey of discovery about the energy issue, to the idea for the Rational Middle, to finding support for this imperative discussion in the most unlikely of places.
Energy is complicated. It's so entwined in our lives that we barely know it's there. Most of us only recognize energy at the pump or on a monthly bill statement, but energy is a part of everything we do, even more than you might think.
When we think about energy, we sometimes forget how much of our society relies on it to be available when we want it, where we want it and the importance of having inexpensive, secure source to power our lives.
What do you think about energy? What concerns you? The Rational Middle team hit the streets to find out what people know, and don't know about energy and then turned to experts to find the answers.
For most people, natural gas is simply what heats their homes or flows through their stove-tops. But what they may not know is what else it's used for. This piece will show some of the many current and proposed uses of natural gas - from fertilizers to a manufacturing feedstock, producing electricity, and fueling transportation.
Drilling for oil and gas is a touchy subject for most Americans. The desire for quality of life, cleaner energy, local human and environmental considerations, and an awareness of global climate change all come to a head in the first of a two-part episode which delves into the potential benefits and risks of new drilling techniques including horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing.
The conversation about drilling continues in part two of this dual episode. This second piece focuses on water usage and some of the other risks of drilling. Can we mitigate these potential issues in order to access a cleaner, domestic resource?
