Avatar Director Installs Net-Zero Studio, Oracle Founder Transforms Hawaiian Island

Cameron Lights Up Massive Solar Array

From Manhattan Beach Studios in California comes news that James Cameron, whose creations Titanic and Avatar are the highest-grossing movies ever, has installed a massive solar array to power his Lightstorm Entertainment production company.

The installation by Stellar Energy includes three solar PV rooftop arrays with 3,692 panels and three inverters – enough to power the sound stages and offices on the site.

The array is part of Cameron’s personal investment of more than $5 million to deliver on his commitment to make the filming of the Avatar sequels net-zero.

“The AVATAR sequels are a great opportunity to show how we, as a production company, can make clean green solar energy as we go. Going into AVATAR 2 and 3, we are going to be able produce enough solar energy to handle the entire electrical demand for our computers and performance capture systems here at MBS Media Campus,” says Cameron. “We have to do this for the future, for our children, and as a moral responsibility to the planet.”

Cameron also plans to use profits from the Avatar trilogy to support environmental organizations. Here’s more about the installation from Cameron and his producing partner, Jon Landau:

Oracle Founder Transforms Hawaiian Island

Ever since Oracle’s founder Larry Ellison bought most of Lanai -the 141-square-mile Hawaiian island – in June, residents have worried about his development plans.

This week, he started talking about his plans to turn Lanai into a model for sustainable enterprise – one that makes extensive use of solar electric and thermal energy, leverages desalination technology to conserve and provide water for agriculture, and embraces organic farming as an export that will help the island diversify from its dependence on tourism.

Ellison’s holdings on the island include two resorts and a golf course, a variety of commercial and residential buildings and vast acres of former pineapple fields that are undeveloped.

Because he owns 98% of the island, including the water utility, he can do much of what he wants – and the billionnaire has the money to fund it.

He plans to help people start these kind of businesses, making the island a lab for small green businesses.

"It’s a long-term strategy but it’s exciting. Because of the size of Lanai, with just 3,000 people, this is really an opportunity to test sustainability for islands around the world," Jennifer Chirico, executive director of the Sustainable Living Institute of Maui, told Reuters.

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