National Drive Electric Week

National Drive Electric Week
Storytelling to Boost EV Adoption: Expert Panel
Santa Monica, CA
Sep 30, 2023

Note: This is an online only event with no physical location.
Day: Saturday, September 30, 2023 NOTE: this event has already happened, find current-year events on the Attend page.
Time: 10:00 - 11:30 am PDT
Audience: Santa Monica, CA, Local Area
Host: ZDS Communications
Topics: Driving Experience
Environmental Benefits
Equity
Other
Contact the event organizers, which took place in 2023.

Event Report

Our event presented invaluable insights from leading communications experts: Rachel Konrad, Tesla's first communications czar/chief brand officer of The Production Board; Cody Peluso, who has helped Population Media Center move people to positive action around the globe; and Staci Roberts-Steele, co-producer of "Don't Look Up," the hit film from Adam McKay, whose nonprofit production company, Yellow Dot Studios, made their first EV video ever for its premiere at our webinar--with McKay himself joining Roberts-Steele as producer. 


photo by: Zan Dubin-Scott
Actor Ari Frenkel, about to toss his gasoline receipt in the trash, on the set of Yellow Dot Studio/Adam McKay's first EV video, premiered at our NDEW webinar.

Event Description

 

See the 1st-ever EV video by Yellow Dot, Adam McKay's Production Co. here

Read more about the video and its message here

McKay, writer/director/producer of the hit Netflix climate satire, "Don't Look Up," produced the 60-second spot through his Yellow Dot Studios for Plug In America co-founders Paul Scott & Zan Dubin-Scott.

 The video highlighted an expert panel about motivating change--like getting more EVs on the road--with words and images.

 Our panelists, including "Don't Look Up's" co-producer, have moved people to action around the globe.

PANELISTS:

Staci Roberts-Steele 


Staci is managing director at Yellow Dot Studios, the non-profit production studio founded by Adam McKay, Academy Award-winning writer/director/producer known for such acclaimed films as "Don’t Look Up," which Staci co-produced. Yellow Dot fights against climate disinformation and inaction by creating entertaining, memorable and scientifically accurate videos and other media to challenge decades of disinformation pushed by oil companies and amplified by large swaths of elected leaders and the media. By shining a light on the urgency, responsible parties and scientifically proven solutions, Yellow Dot aims to empower more people to be part of the conversation and the solution. 

An alumni of Vassar College as well as Second City and IO Chicago, Staci has acted in shows including "Parks and Recreation" and "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D," and in McKay's film "Vice," while producing numerous political and comedy videos at Funny or Die, the comedy-video website and film/television production company founded by Will Farrell and McKay. Prior to Yellow Dot, Staci was a co-producer at Hyperobject Industries with McKay where she produced a 2022 spoof Chevron ad that went viral, racking up over 4.5 million views in just 24 hours.

Rachel Konrad


Rachel is Chief Brand Officer at The Production Board (TPB), a tech incubator and investor established to solve our planet's most fundamental problems, such as global warming, biodiversity collapse and our public health crisis. Rachel leans into all aspects of communication, marketing and creative initiatives for TPB and its portfolio investments. These include Supergut, an innovative nutrition company promoting gut health; Pattern Ag, dedicated to farm productivity and productivity; and the Every Company, a food-tech company which aims to transform the food system by creating animal-free protein.

Before TPB, Rachel served in the C-suite of three of the world's leading corporations, reporting directly to Elon Musk at Tesla (2008-2011), Carlos Ghosn at Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi (2011-2016), and Pat Brown at Impossible Foods (2016-2021). Prior to working in tech PR, Rachel spent more than a decade as a journalist, covering tech for the Associated Press.

Cody Peluso


Cody is Digital Advocacy & Mobilization Manager at Population Media Center (PMC), a nonprofit organization that creates serialized radio and TV dramas in which characters evolve into role models on such issues as sustainable farming and family planning. PMC, which understands that most decisions are based on emotion, has used entertaining stories to help people live healthier lives in more than 50 countries. 

Cody specializes in a participatory approach. He involves PMC team members in content creation with a goal to share more voices across PMC’s public media channels. Cody publishes blogs, news articles and social media posts to engage PMC’s donors, supporters and advocates. He is also responsible for global advertising and assists with program support in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the U.S. Prior to PMC, whose advisors include environmentalist and leading EV advocates Alexandra Paul, a Plug In America co-founder, and Leilani Münter, the former race car driver, Cody worked in marketing roles across governments, non-profits, trade and union groups.

Moderator: Zan Dubin-Scott


Zan is co-founder with Jeff U'Ren of National Drive Electric Week and served as founding communications director for Plug In America, which she helped to elevate as the nation’s leading consumer voice for EVs. Zan founded ZDS Communications, a social impact agency providing strategic PR and marketing for change makers, after a decade as a Los Angeles Times staff writer. She charges her EV with solar and already attended an #NDEW2023 in So Cal's Moreno Valley with her sisters in Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. Enjoy the video.

Registered Attendees

There are currently 77 attendees registered.

Owners of These Vehicles Have Registered To Attend

Vehicle Registered
Chevrolet Bolt 6
Tesla Model 3 5
Tesla Model Y 5
Other Plug-In Vehicle 3
Toyota RAV4 EV (1997-2003) 2
BMW X5 xDrive45e 1
BMW i3 1
BMW i3 REx 1
Chevrolet Bolt EUV 1
Chevrolet Volt 1
Chrysler Pacifica Plug-in Hybrid 1
Kia Optima Plug In 1
Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive 1
Nissan Leaf (2011-2017) 1
Rivian R1S 1
Tesla Model X 1
VinFast VF 8 1
17 Models 33

Registered attendees report 2,107,694 electric miles driven.

In the News…

Presented By

Plugin America logo
Electric Vehicle Association logo
Sierra Club logo
EVHybridNoire logo
Drive Electric USA logo

All NDEW 2024 sponsors support Plug In America's coordination of National Drive Electric Week.

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