Urban Conversion

Rodman is consumed by work and obligations in a fast paced technology filled lifestyle. A therapy session with Reuvain Bacal leads him to the realization he is suffering from Nature Deficit Disorder. Following doctor's orders, he finds himself hiking Colorado's rocky mountains, horseback riding in the wilderness and taking part in a fire ritual.

In the U.S. alone, 133 billion pounds of food are wasted each year. It's no surprise that gleaning, foraging and freegan ideology are becoming a popular trend in the face of that number. Rodman and Gina join Freegan vlogger and co-creator of Fallen Fruit, Ethan Welte for a hands on demonstration of the good that can be done through gleaning local farmers markets for food banks.

Rodman and Gina expand their artistic horizons at PalletFest, a festival dedicated to putting upcycled art and fashion on display. In the process, Rodman works with an upcycled fashion designer who makes clothing out of discarded bike tubes, squares off with Gina in a team based competition to turn shipping pallets into large sculptures and visits with eclectic artists turning trash to treasure.

Gina begins working at the office with Rodman and is troubled by the lack of a green policy, recycling and composting. She asks her friend, corporate green consultant Stacey Lambright to come by and audit the office, much to Rodman's surprise. He is put on the spot as Stacey shows him where he can improve and gives him his green grade. To turn the tables he asks Stacey a favor.

Rodman and Gina are looking towards the future and what their next home may look like. Their liaison to alternative- environmentally friendly building practices, Brian Fuentes, sets them up on a tour of three examples of living simply and small. Rodman and Gina weigh in on a tiny home, a (literally) handmade cordwood home, container home and even get a laugh out of a tree house.

Rodman, a global warming skeptic, puts his views to the test as he visits with climate change expert Casper Ammann. Casper lays out the stakes, leading Rodman to get his knowledge of clean alternative energy solutions up to snuff. First, he visits NREL where he learns the basics of wind energy from expert Fort Felker.

In this episode of Urban Conversion, Rodman learns the basics of clean energy.