Kotzebue Clean Energy Coalition Newsletter

The latest from just above the Arctic Circle.

Massively Transformative Purpose

Life is a remarkable adventure, one that is often marked by twists, insights, and moments of profound clarity. Recently, I was on a Zoom call and was asked what lead me to the renewable energy space. My answer surprised me, I said “I read this book Abundance by Peter Diamandis and Steven Kotler”, which was true but not the whole story.

Here, in the immortal words of Paul Harvey, is “The Rest of the Story”:

I read "Abundance: The Future is Better Than You Think" by Peter Diamandis and Steven Kotler, but what happen next was important. I enjoyed the book, I have always been interested in technology and the future. The authors framed the evolution of technology in a positive light, which fit my long-term view, and pointed out technologies on an exponential growth curve that will change education, healthcare and energy. When I finished the book I found Diamandis's website https://www.diamandis.com/mtp and signed up for his email newsletter. This led to me figuring out my Massively Transformative Purpose or MTP:

“To create a robust renewable energy economy in Rural Alaska, transforming the future to one of abundance.”

At the time I did not have a job in energy. I was the Park and Rec Director for the City of Kotzebue. I was already a Youtube technology fanatic, but started to think more precisely about technologies that could change rural Alaska, get us off fossil fuels and change the economics in a positive way. What kind of energy company I could build in my spare time? If nothing else, I could tinker around in my garage, some great inventions came out of garages, Hewlitt-Packard and Apple Computer come to mind.

One day, about a month after crafting my MTP, at the post office, I happened to see a job posting for Energy Project Manager. I was instantly intrigued, but I wasn’t looking for a job. I went about my day, but could not get it out of my mind. The next day I visited Siikauraq, the Executive Director at the Native Village of Kotzebue. I told myself that I was just satisfying my curiosity, but I knew deep down that I was about to embark upon a new journey.

One Year of Purposeful Impact:

Reflecting on this past year, I finally see projects that were once just ideas, gain traction. The grants, the initiatives, the collaborations aligned with the purpose of creating a robust renewable energy economy in Rural Alaska. This is only the beginning of a long journey. When I spoke to Siikauraq back in August of 2022, I said that I could see myself doing this job for the next ten years and I still do. There are so many challenges to overcome, problems to solve and opportunities to be uncovered, it may take me even longer to get it all done. I remind myself to enjoy the journey, even on the days when my calendar is overscheduled and I get stressed out, I think about my MTP, the future I am working towards and it puts a smile on my face.

Conclusion:

My journey to this point shows the power of identifying and embracing a purpose. This is an invitation to you to delve into your purpose, to seek out what energizes you, and to realize that when purpose and action intertwine, the possibilities are boundless. It does not have to be a 10 year commitment, try two years, try six months, who knows it might be fun.

Quote

"Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction."
― John F. Kennedy​
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email: chad.nordlum@qira.org​

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Take care,
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Chad

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