Wendy Cole
Interactive Marketing Manager, Hewlett-Packard

In the movie Unforeseen, director Laura Dunn paints a thorough and compelling story about the ongoing tension between real estate developers and environmentalists. The movie takes place in Austin, Texas but certainly could transcend to just about anywhere in the United States, particularly with the real estate boom of recent years. The story establishes Barton Creek as the protagonist --  a beautiful, memory-filled gathering place for the community that is fed by a pristine, local aquifer -- and presents Texas real estate developer Gary Bradley as the antagonist, who appears much more interested in rapid development, highly leveraged capital and short term gain. The movie shows an inspirational fight by the community to preserve Barton Creek and the aquifer, which is in jeopardy with Bradley's Circle C Ranch development and some concerning rising up of conservatives with the pretense it is more important to preserve property rights than it is to preserve the environment.

There is some great footage of the late Ann Richards -- a remarkably feisty, eloquent voice for this cause as well as Robert Redford, who commented he learned to swim at Barton Creek as a boy. Laura Dunn captured some great symbolic imagery of lobbyist Dick Brown, who did not want his face on camera, but who did allow Laura to film him assembling and painting models of war planes.

Does the American dream need to be "more" -- bathrooms, square footage -- or rather should it be more on partnering with the natural environment not only for our broader quality of life but for our future generations as well? I would not consider myself a staunch environmentalist, but I can relate to and appreciate what environmental protection can offer a community. I was fortunate to live in Carmel-by-the Sea off and on for 7 years and experienced how you can embrace and honor the environment and give up few inconveniences, like low-flow showers/toilets, limited water rights and tree worshiping (which I actually don't consider an inconvenience!).  There is a great movie, Don't Pave Main Street (narrated by Clint Eastwood), that chronicles the community of Carmel at the turn of the century that mirrors much of the sentiment of Unforeseen. Largely a "bohemian" artist community, these “Carmelites” were ahead of their time, exercising strong ecological passions, and were largely responsible for making Carmel what it is today. The community continues to view the natural beauty as a critical part of its soul.

When you consider that the average American house size has grown from 983 square feet in 1950 to 2,349 square feet (Source: NPR), we do need to consider at what price we all pay for this "American Dream" and if this dream needs to be revisited.

Wendy Cole Interactive Marketing Manager, Hewlett-Packard

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