Chris Paine

Chris Paine's award winning documentary feature film Who Killed the Electric Car? premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2006 before its worldwide release by Sony Pictures Classics. Nearly 5,000 pure electric cars were collected and destroyed by GM, Ford, Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and many others despite the efforts of activists to save them. Three years in the making, the film's murder mystery spin on an almost unreported story captured public attention and stimulated substantive change in the industry.

Five years later, electric cars are back… with a vengeance. Revenge of the Electric Car  (Spring 2011) is the new documentary from director Chris Paine — who took his film crew around the world to chronicle the resurgence of electric cars. From backyard mechanics converting Porsches to electrics, to the multi-million dollar Silicon Valley startup Tesla Motors, to deep behind closed doors at two of the world’s biggest car makers; Revenge of the Electric Car tells the electrifying story of the race to bring EVs back from the dead — just as the perils of the oil age are the deepest they’ve ever been.

Chris will share the journey that became Marrakesh House - an original Mid 20th Century Modern home that he purchased in 2007 and transformed  into a model for sustainable living in the 21st century. Marrakesh House is a private residence that doubles as venue for art, music and culture in the surrounding community. Paine rarely wavered in his commitment to remodel the 4,300 square-foot house using environmentally friendly guidelines. 

He will be joined by project manager, noted LEED AP, Shellie Collier of Homagedesign. Their team succeeded in making most changes to the house in accordance with the motto ‘reduce/reuse/recycle’. According to Collier, this motto means “using as much existing material as possible in order to significantly lower the carbon footprint during the remodeling process.” Paine ensured that measures were taken to harness the renewable, sustainable energy of the bright Southern California sun by installing roof panels to generate solar power for both plug-in electric vehicles and the residence itself.

Kevin Foster O’Donnell

Kevin Foster O’Donnell educates from local, regional, and national platforms, including UCLA Extension and FMI, AIA, ASID, IRDC, and NeoCon events. Through The Climate Project (TCP), Kevin trained with Al Gore to present An Inconvenient Truth, the basis of book and movie. Kevin custom-tailored the show with current technologies and strategies that can lead to a more stable global climate, which was later adopted as TCP’s official Built Environment Module.

Kevin has worked in the retail industry for more than twenty years, championing cutting edge design, carefully integrated architecture and store décor, creative brand development, insightful business strategy, inventive conceptual approaches and innovative use of materials and production methods via key projects for Tesco’s Fresh & Easy, Whole Foods Market, The Kroger Co., and Wegmans. 

Kevin runs the design and consulting studio thread collaborative. The thread team researches, develops, designs, and writes about innovative strategies to achieve sustainable building development.

Nancy Barba

Nancy Barba, a Los Angeles native, is committed to a sustainable future. Nancy began her career by volunteering her time at environmental nonprofits while simultaneously working on her BS in Business Administration at Cal State Long Beach. There she explored environmental issues through classes in renewable energy, sociology and the environment. She is a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accredited professional and has taught environment classes at the Pathways program at UCLA Extension. Nancy currently works for Bevilacqua-Knight, Inc. (BKi), an energy efficiency consulting firm whose Los Angeles office will be managing the Energy Upgrade California Program in the Los Angeles County. Previously Nancy was the Director of the Residential Greening Program. In that capacity she was responsible for the marketing, curriculum, and development of the Green Living Workshop. Under her direction the program grew to serve the Los Angeles community with the largest workshop participation in the program's history. She lives in Venice where she grows her own tomatoes and feeds the composting worms weekly.

André Villaseñor

André Villaseñor has 15 years of experience as an environmental professional both abroad and in the U.S.  He lived and worked in Chile for three years where he coordinated environmental impact studies for airport expansions and mining projects.  He served as a U.S. Peace Corps Habitat Conservation Specialist in Ecuador where he worked with community members on sustainable small business enterprises and restoration of the Amazon rainforest.  His work in Southern California includes three years at the L.A. County Metropolitan Transportation Authority as an environmental compliance specialist.

He has worked at the U.S. EPA since 2005 where he serves as the Southern California Sustainability Coordinator in the L.A. Field Office.  He currently works with local governments on climate action.

He has an M.S. in Environmental Science and an M.A. in International Environmental Policy.

In his spare time, Mr. Villaseñor enjoys guerrilla recycling, vegetarian cooking, and exercise.