For Will Rex-Weaver, the popular slogan, ‘think globally, act locally? isn’t just a bumper sticker, it’s a way of life.
‘My main goal is to leave a better world behind for my kids,? said the 43-year-old Oxford resident. ‘It’s real clear, unless we change some of our practices, the world’s not going to be in better shape than when I got here.?
Rex-Weaver is doing his part to preserve the environment for his daughters, Ashlynn, 5, and Alivia, 3, by serving as the new executive director of the Upland Hills Ecological Awareness Center (EAC) located on Indian Lake Road in Addison Township.
He took over the job June 1.
Built in the 1970s as a demonstration model for doing more with less, energy conservation and alternative energy, Upland Hills EAC is a nonprofit organization that regularly hosts workshops, seminars, conferences and tours centered around the concept of green living and promoting a sustainable relationship with the natural world.
‘My passion is sustainability and community,? said Rex-Weaver, who’s a native of Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
Prior to arriving in Oxford in April 2008, he lived and worked as a carpenter in a 250-acre intentional community in upstate New York called PeaceWeavers.
Sustainable living, organic farming and building with natural materials are a large focus of this community founded in early 1990s as a reaction to the First Gulf War. Rex-Weaver ran a contracting company in the community.
After his family came to live in Michigan, Rex-Weaver learned about Upland Hills EAC during an Earth Day Expo at Oakland University.
‘It inspired me to work there,? he said.
He spent nearly a year serving as vice president of the EAC’s Board of Directors. During that same time, he worked as an intern at Upland Hills School and got to know the community.
He’s currently working side-by-side with his wife of nine years, Janice, who’s the EAC’s office manager.
Given green living and alternative energies are in vogue right now, Rex-Weaver hopes to capitalize on the trend by exposing more people to all the EAC has to offer.
Those eager to see green technology for themselves are welcome to visit the center’s ‘energy park,? which consists of photovoltaic solar panels that track the sun, a wind generator, solar hot water system and the EAC building’s plant-covered ‘living roof,? which provides an excellent layer of insulation and improved drainage.
‘People can actually come out, see what these things look like and get a sense of how it would feel to incorporate it into their home or into their business,? Rex-Weaver said.
Upland Hills EAC is one of eight designated Michigan Energy Demonstration Centers throughout the state.
Every year, the EAC gives countless two-hour tours to businesses, school classes, groups and individuals who want to learn more about energy efficiency, renewable energy, green building and sustainable living. ‘Upland Hills has a great history of what works and what doesn’t to share with people,? Rex-Weaver said.
Given President Barack Obama’s pro-green policies and initiatives, the EAC is hoping to help surrounding communities put together sustainability plans in order to capture federal dollars.
‘There are a lot of federal monies coming down from the Recovery Act (i.e. the $787 billion federal economic stimulus package) for communities that put energy conservation into their plans,? Rex-Weaver said. ‘We want to be there to assist with that.?
‘We’ve got a broad network of people across the country that are really on the cutting edge of renewable energy and sustainability,? he noted.
The EAC is also at the forefront of the burgeoning ‘locavore? movement, the advocates of which prefer to eat locally-grown/produced foods because they’re more nutritious, taste better and are environmentally friendly.
Earlier this year, the center launched a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, which provides fresh, organically-grown vegetables for its 60 participants.
The vegetables are grown at Upland Hills Farm and Living Tree Farm, a local organic farm. ‘Potatoes, lettuce, carrots, beets, corn, you name it, we grow it,? Rex-Weaver said.
For $500, CSA participants receive a weekly box of vegetables, capable of feeding four people, for 16 weeks.
‘If you’re willing to come out and work (in the field) for two hours a week, we knock $100 off of that,? Rex-Weaver noted.
For more information about Upland Hills EAC please visit www.uheac.org or call (248) 693-1021.