"Among the environmental trends undermining our future are shrinking forests, expanding deserts, falling water tables, collapsing fisheries, disappearing species, and rising temperatures. The temperature increases bring crop-withering heat waves, more-destructive storms, more-intense droughts, more forest fires, and, of course, ice melting. We are crossing natural thresholds that we cannot see and violating deadlines that we do not recognize."
      — Lester Brown, author of Plan B, v3.0

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Staff

Carolyn Scott, Executive Director:

Carolyn M. Scott is an award-winning filmmaker, educator and creative director. Her work includes innovative educational technology and interactive media. Carolyn is a recipient of the National Women’s History Projects: Women Taking the Lead To Save The Planet! She is one of a hundred women worldwide chosen for this one-time award. Other honorees include Jane Goodall, Rachel Carson and Hillary Clinton.

Carolyn spent many years as an educator authoring and implementing environmental curriculum in schools in Northern California. She won the prestigious 2003 Roy W. Dean Writer’s Grant which began her career in documentary film making. Carolyn directed and produced TEXAS GOLD, which profiles a fourth generation fisher woman. The film has screened at more than 40+ film festivals worldwide and won numerous awards including BEST DOCUMENTARY at the New York City Short Film Festival, an official selection for BEST OF FEST at the prestigious Palm Spring International Short Film Festival and has been an official selection for more than 40 film festivals worldwide. TEXAS GOLD was acquired by Sundance Channel for Robert Redford's THE GREEN AND PBS Emmy winning Series Natural Heroes and Link TV.

Carolyn is a founding partner at Cool Planet Labs, whose mission is mass mobilization around climate solutions. CPL team is comprised of Emmy Award winning IT pioneers who are well recognized as thought leaders in interactive media. Their creative solutions and technology achievements are backed by proven track records in implementation.

Carolyn lives and works at her mountaintop retreat with her husband in a solar house he built. They are founding members of the biofuels research cooperative and run their cars on 100% carbon neutral organic vegetable oil. Carolyn serves on the advisory boards of Patchwork Farm, Todd Pratum Literary Services and the National Women's History Project.

Bill Sumerlin, Director of Operations :

Bill is responsible for the day-to-day operations of Reel Community Action. He is also responsible for the development, planning and execution of all internal and external projects.

Bill has 30+ years of experience working in the IT world, and has written over a million lines of code for GE (distributed processing and high-speed networks), NASA (Pioneer Venus instrument data processing with world-wide distribution), Sun Microsystems (programming tools), Apple (programming tools), Adobe (font rendering), Microsoft (programming tools), Amblit Technologies (web navigation, semi-intelligent agent technology, avatars) and a number of other national and international companies. Bill has also developed a number of methodologies for Call Centers and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems while working with Aspect, Cisco, IBM, I3, Siemens, Shortel and others, and founded or co-founded 6 companies. Bill received his BS and MS degree in engineering from Stanford University.

Last year, Bill authored 3 patents on next generation distributed, multi-user game networking, rapid-development prototyping and multi-user information management while CTO and co-founder of Go Play Network. He was also the first to demonstrate that it was possible to play high-resolution videos on cell phones. He has held senior executive positions (COO, CTO, EVP) in a number of high technology, consulting and software development firms. In recent years, he has been working primarily with start-ups, helping them develop their business plans, create their initial, leading edge product prototypes, and to secure seed and series A financing.

Colleen Schell, Eco-Marketing Consultant:

Colleen Schell is an entrepreneur with over a decade of marketing and advertising experience. In her most recent role of VP of Marketing for ecoAmerica, Ms. Schell utilized her consumer marketing experience to create campaigns aimed at changing the behaviors of the environmentally agnostic Americans. While at ecoAmerica, Ms. Schell partnered with large NGO’s and for-profit companies, including Stanford Research Institute, Sierra Club, Environmental Defense, Trust for Public Land, Monster.com, Aramark, and the Clinton Climate Initiative, in order to support success for the company and the programs. Prior to her role at ecoAmerica, she was the Director of Business Development for Carat Interactive and Carat Brand Experience, where she created and drove marketing and business strategies for Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft, Gateway, Kodak, and Intel. She started her career with Ziff Davis and TechTV, where she was the International Business Manager for the 24-hour cable channel and managed all international marketing, events, and productions. Currently, she is starting a business that will revolutionize the way independent film reaches the masses.

Nicola Lockey PR Strategist Consultant:

Nicola Lockey is a master brand ambassador, guiding non-profit and commercial brands on the global stage. Currently, as founder of A Pomegranate, she leads market research and brand strategy projects for a wide range of clients in the US and Europe. Born to a radical British Civil Rights activist, Nicola grew up watching her mother fight for equal rights and developed a strong sense of social consciousness. Her Native American heritage gave her a deep connection with nature and sensitivity to the need for stewardship of the planet’s resources. Nicola's diverse career has incorporated cooking for The Rolling Stones, journalism and film production. She founded Foresight Communications in London, with a visionary focus on developing brands with a strategy for corporate social responsibility. Nicola has always been committed to giving back, and has volunteered and advised non-profits all over the world. She divides her time between A Pomegranate, sustainability projects, community service and parenting her two adopted children.Reel Community Action recognizes the power of local community action, and gives lead organizers the tools to create local events that drive specific campaigns addressing environmental issues.

The power of film to communicate a complex idea in an inspiring way—to be both an educational medium as well as a call to action—is remarkable. (Just consider how one film, AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, inspired individuals, communities, and even governments to shift the conversation and drive change for climate protection.) Reel Community Action uses films as the catalyst to inspire individuals to move from audience to active participant.

Films are just the key to opening the door of awareness. So, to keep the momentum going, we also recommend the best and most successful Sustainability Models ranging from municipal financing programs for solar energy to community organic gardening projects. These are proven, long-term strategies for driving measurable and dramatic change.

Reel Community Action focuses on making the most powerful changes in the least amount of time—to improve local conditions and then replicate those proven solutions elsewhere.