The green movement is spreading through America like a forest fire. Even in the celebrity world, green seems to be the new pink.
When Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee called up his buddy Johnny Colt and told him he's doing this new reality show about "going green," Colt nearly fell out of his chair laughing.
"I told him, 'If you're going green on camera, of course I'm in,'" Colt said. "I want to have the best seat in the house."
Colt, former bassist for The Black Crowes and current bassist for Train, jumped on the green bandwagon as a member of the Discovery Company's reality show "Battleground Earth: Ludacris vs. Tommy Lee," which airs on Planet Green at 10 p.m. on Sunday.
Tune in to the "Wet and Wild" episode to watch Tommy and Ludacris spread the word about water conservation in the searing Las Vegas desert. The music moguls team up and bring the message to a global audience by breaking a Guinness World Record for world's largest group shower.
But now tear your eyes away from celebrity activites, and flip the channel to Community 12 Television.
Not only has the eco-friendly color leaked its way onto the red carpet, but it's also infiltrated Gainesville, too.
From a local public-access studio near you, Mark Hostetler, associate professor of wildlife ecology and conservation, hikes up his jeans and crouches before a stick and block of wood, rubbing them furiously to show how to obtain energy without fossil fuels.
Aw, shucks - he's just kidding. Hostetler doesn't expect you to go back to the Stone Age. He just wants to help you learn to consume energy more responsibly on UF's IFAS Communication Services TV series, "Living Green," which airs on local channel 12 at 6:01 p.m. on Sunday.
Stylistically, the two shows are worlds apart. "Battleground Earth" aims to inform while entertaining, each episode crammed with cameos from the likes of Cedric the Entertainer, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Magic Johnson and, of course, Pamela Anderson.
What "Living Green" lacks in star power and record-breaking stunts, Hostetler makes up for with his Bill Nye-esque charm and the allure of actual scientific fact.
Both shows have their heart in the right place. Sometimes people need a push to get involved.
"I can see how it can raise awareness if someone sees their favorite celebrity advertising their beliefs for a particular cause," said UF senior Chris Garces. "If someone you respect believes in something, it might make you think it's worth believing in too."
Celebrities have their place in the process of environmental awareness, but it's beside a long list of others, Hostetler said.
"Changing human behavior comes from a variety of sources - school, policy and popular media are all important," he said. "You still have to have research, policies, engagement from the builder of homes, and the public has to demand it."
Famous faces are trendsetters and can certainly be productive toward a cause, said Chris Cano, the publicity coordinator for Gators for a Sustainable Campus.
"People see celebrities driving Priuses and now everyone wants a Prius," Cano said. "It goes for clothes and for cars and hopefully for going green."
Colt believes you can pick and choose where you want to have an impact. As a creative person, he could never get on board with a dinky-looking hybrid car. Instead of trading in his Toyota FJ Cruiser SUV, he tries to leave it home as much as possible and get around Atlanta on his Surly cyclocross bike.
"I don't think of it as a green choice but a creative choice to ride a bicycle and stay green."
While competing as a member of Tommy's "Ecorage" team, Colt represented the world of rock along with "Pimp My Ride" co-host Dave "Diggity Dave" Aragon and musician Nina Bergman.
"We have superior skills on all levels," Colt said of "Ecorage." "Rock versus rap? In the end, rock always wins. We all know that."
Colt did concede that Ludacris "is incredible." Besides being fiercely competitive, Ludacris is all about entertaining, which really brings home the show's mission. "Battleground Earth" is about delivering facts and tools people can bring into their own lives to go green in a way that isn't preachy.
"There is nothing more DIY punk rock than getting solar panels and getting off the grid - not being controlled by an electric company," Colt said. "Rock and roll is not having people tell you what to do. What people might see as hippy, I see as pirate, punk-rock renegade."
