Statewide – A quiet green revolution in the building world is evolving, and a first wave of innovative green design projects large and small have already hit the ground. NJN’s one-hour high definition special Green Builders profiles a cast of green building pioneers who have taken the leap into making their part of the “built environment” a more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly place. Green Builders premieres Monday, April 21, at 9 pm on NJN Public Television with a rebroadcast on Saturday, April 26 at 3 pm, and will be streamed at www.njn.net.

SPECIAL HIGH DEFINITION SCREENING AT NJN’S TRENTON STUDIO
The public is invited to enjoy a special screening of Green Builders in high definition at NJN’s Trenton Studio on Tuesday, April 15 at 4:30 pm. There is no charge for admittance, but registration is requested! Reserve your space online at www.njn.net or call (800) 882-6622.

TURNING GREEN BUILDING THEORY INTO GREEN REALITY
There is no single way to build green. Green Builders takes a wide-ranging look at a variety of approaches and levels of commitment, and at the individuals who have helped turn green building theory into reality. These individuals are not just builders and designers; they’re teachers and homeowners, corporate leaders and academic specialists, leaders of institutions and universities as well as renegade inventors. From The Willow School to PNC Bank to the first solar-hydrogen home called The Hopewell Project, people talk about why they made the move to go green, what the challenges were, and how their project has fared. In most cases, one finds that a green building project has more to do with smart planning and a mindset change about energy use than expensive technologies or consumer sacrifice. Innovation helps, and there are plenty of innovations included in Green Builders that are making green technology effective and affordable. Geothermal storage, wind farms and extensive solar array systems are examined in the program. As the stories in the documentary demonstrate, it is crucial for us to change our perspective on how we build, recognizing the wasteful impacts of the traditional mode of building and operating our structures, and realizing the environmental and economic benefits of building green. Only then will the green building movement be successful.

CHANGING YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT Collectively Building the Foundation for a Movement
The individuals in Green Builders have made the move to building green without suffering, sacrificing, or experimenting with a wispy might-happen. These are real projects on the ground, working businesses and college campuses that prove you can change your carbon footprint once you change your way of looking at how a structure operates. Collectively, the green builders are building the foundation for a more widespread movement toward making America’s built environment less harmful to the dwindling supply of healthy natural resources and even less expensive to operate. Their homes and offices are the proving grounds for green building, and their personal experiences reveal that building greener is less complicated and expensive than you probably thought, and more rewarding in the long run.

GREEN BUILDERS DVD & GREEN GLOBAL EXPO TICKETS
You can reserve a DVD copy of this program for only $24.95. And as a special bonus NJN has partnered with the Star Ledger to give you two free passes to attend the Global Green Expo 2008 at Liberty State Park from April 25 through 27. Place your order now: call 800-882-6622 or email your request to answers@njn.org. Green Builders also will be screened at the Global Green Expo 2008 at Liberty State Park. In addition, NJN, working with educators, will develop educational materials and a comprehensive web site to accompany the program.

NJN GREEN MEMBERSHIP
Go Green and take advantage of NJN’s Green Membership Offer in honor of Earth Day – for $65 become a member and receive a special DVD with three of NJN premiere documentaries – Race for Open Space, The Highlands Rediscovered and Turning the Tide – that explore some of the key environmental issues in the state: preservation of open space, protecting the water resource in the Highlands and the cleaning up of the Meadowlands and the Hamilton Marsh in Trenton. The DVD includes an introduction by Michael Catania, president, Conservation Resources, and Michele Byers, executive director, NJ Conservation Foundation. Support NJN. Call (800) 882-6622 or email your request to answers@njn.org.

Funding is provided by The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, with additional support from the Cape Branch Foundation. Green Builders is being produced by NJN’s writer-producer Bob Szuter, who also produced The Highlands Rediscovered and Turning the Tide. The executive producers are Elizabeth Christopherson and Janice Selinger. Camera crews: Mike Budd, Paul Horvath, Aubrey Kauffman, Scott Neall, Jeff Reisly and John Wynne. Original music is by Martin Trum.