National Drive Electric Week (NDEW) is a week-long national event filled with celebrations across different cities in the U.S. that are used to increase awareness and educate people on electric transportation options. This year Atlanta’s event titled “Drive the Future Atlanta” was the largest event in the southeast, largest event outside of California, and the second largest electric vehicle (EV) event in the country.
I volunteered to display my Tesla Model S and talk about my EV experiences/ownership with attendees, but this was my first time participating in (or even attending) this event so I had no idea what to expect. To my surprise there were various electric transportation options on display, like EVs, e-bikes, e-scooters, and e-motorcycles.
Not only were there cool EVs and technology on display, there were even EV influencers in attendance.
LikeTeslaKim is a well-known YouTuber in the EV space that shares EV information, her family, life, and experiences as a (x2) Tesla owner.
HeyAshleyRenee is a YouTuber and fellow blogger that discusses sustainable travel (like the Tesla she owns) and sustainable living.
One of the presenters of this event was EVHybridNoire, which is an organization that works to increase EV exposure and adoption to diverse communities, so it was no surprise that Drive the Future Atlanta was the most diverse NDEW event in the country!
I got to learn a lot and see all types of electric transportation, but even better I got the chance to interact with so many people. I met a family that travelled to this event from Iowa! There were attendees from all different backgrounds and walks of life. Some people knew nothing about Tesla or EVs in general, some had their own EVs and experiences, and some people had only “heard” different things about Tesla and EVs, which gave me the opportunity to engage in a lot of different, interesting conversations. I was also able to debunk some myths, which was very satisfying😎.
Knowledge is power. Minority groups, particularly the black community, are disproportionately affected by the negative impacts of carbon emissions and climate change. But they also account for the smallest number of EV owners, so dispersing information and sharing my EV experiences is very important to me.
Have you attended an EV event like this? Did you make it to your local NDEW event? If so, did you find value in the experience?
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