Most of us were introduced to the idea of a “story arc” at some point in school.
This classic narrative structure is the foundation of most tales told in films or books.
For those who missed it, it goes like this.
You have your set-up, inciting incident, rising action, and climax. After this point, you see if the character’s goal was a success or failure and eventually (hopefully) the story reaches a resolution.
Cue the credits.
Well, life imitates art, as they say, and the Shannon family from Airdrie has been on a heck of a story arc over the past year.
Through a twist of fate, they were set on a movie-worthy journey.
It All Started….
In the case of the Shannons, the instigating incident happened when their 1980s furnace gasped its last breaths of hot air.
Oof.
But the Shannon’s had a “backstory” as well.
In 2021, Samantha Shannon began filming an independent documentary following a woman applying ‘demolition-free solutions’ to make her home carbon-neutral.
Essentially, the film was a case study on retrofitting established homes.
So Shannon was already informed and inspired by the idea of creating a “net-zero” home.
Next, Shannon stumbled across the Canadian Geographic “Live Net-Zero Challenge.” All this happened when her young son began asking questions about what they were doing to save the polar bears… you can see where this is headed
That busted furnace was the last straw. Cue the rising action.
Rising to the Challenge
The family signed up for the Canadian Geographic contest.
They weren’t sure what they were in for at that point, but they threw their absolute all into it.
“We cut the natural gas line entirely, ditched the original 1980s furnace, dug five boreholes that go down 250 feet in our front yard, and we used ground source heat pumps to heat our house — four times more efficient,” she told the Calgary Herald.
For those wondering how the Shannons managed to afford all this – it wasn’t easy.
“We’re borrowing against our mortgage because we’re not Rockefellers,” she told CBC News.
However, the bold financial move immediately saved the family money, starting with their last-ever gas bill.
“It’s exhilarating…“We’ve calculated our interest payments into all of our calculations,” she said.
“We’ll pay less for our geothermal unit, than if we were to hook up to a natural gas contract today.”
Solar panels on the roof were the next step for the family, and the old hot water tank went the way of the furnace – replaced with an air-source hybrid heat pump.
These are just some of the adjustments the family made to their home.
“We did the big things, but we had spent years doing the little things, and I think that’s the part of the competition that I loved,” said Samatha.
Throw Some Competition Into The Mix!
It’s one thing to overcome the many challenges of turning their home net zero; it’s another to turn their efforts into a competition!
They were one of eight families from across Canada who participated in the Canadian Geographic challenge—all of them with homes in different conditions and each family taking different approaches to reaching net zero!
“It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach. Some of the houses were from the 1920s, and you couldn’t do this; some had asbestos, and you couldn’t do that, but we can all work from the same toolbox,” said Shannon.
While all eight families did a fantastic job, only one was awarded the $50,000 prize at the end of the competition.
Maybe you can guess who won.
Although, at first, Samantha sure couldn’t!
The Happy Ending
“[The Judge] had a very sombre and composed expression as he was thanking us for our participation and how tough the judging was.”
“In my mind, I was thinking, ‘It’s okay. Just tell us we lost. I have to finish folding the laundry.’ Samantha joked.
Then he just gets this big grin and says, ‘You won,'” she told the Western Wheel.
The judging panel at Canadian Geographic was impressed by the work ethic, level of overhaul, and work to inspire others that the family did throughout the competition.
The Shannons hit the ultimate goal, winning the hefty cash bucket, which will help pay off their initial investments!
The cheque was a nice bonus, but their real success comes from the independence and resilience they gained through their efforts.
“It’s been an honour to be the face of the hard-working tradespeople who do this work every day,” Samantha said.
The Theme Of The Story
As a self-proclaimed “typical middle-class family,” the Shannons hope their story helps inspire other Canadian middle-class families to become as independent and off-grid as possible.
However, the sequel to their efforts could come through an overall switch of where Alberta’s energy comes from.
Jason Wang, senior electricity analyst with the Pembina Institute, said decarbonizing Alberta’s energy grid by 2035 would save the average Alebrtan family $600 a year.
Pembina examined six scenarios that were more “doable” than others, but it found that investing in a renewable energy plan would significantly save Albertans money.
“I’d say that was quite shocking to us. We looked at this many times,” Wang told CBC News.
Alberta still has a long way to go to do its fair share. The province does not plan to have a net zero electricity grid until 2050 and has recently imposed new rules that will slow down renewable energy projects.
But, like the Shannon’s, many Alberta families are taking things into their own hands. Albertans are installing solar panels on their homes in record numbers.
Albertans are also reinsulting their homes, installing heat pumps, and moving to solar-powered water heaters.
Like any good story, the Shannons hope their resolution inspires others to create their own story arc on the journey to net zero.
Congratulations to an Alberta family that has truly shown how to “get ‘er done.”
Follow the Shannon family’s continuing net zero story @nodemonetzero
Read more of our renewables stories here.
