RICHMOND, Va. – It’s time for the summer #CBS6Takeover on Instagram. This year the theme is “RVA Makers.”
What are makers, you ask? They are the artisans, fabricators, designers, tinkerers, and influencers whose work helps shape metro-Richmond.
Each week a new guest will take over the account to show you their world. It’s a chance for you to engage and ask them questions, and perhaps discover something new and meaningful.
At the end of the summer, you come back to WTVR.com and vote for the #CBS6Takeover that you enjoyed the most and CBS 6 gives $200 to the winner’s chosen nonprofit. Last year,Henrico firefighter Patrick Hannan won, with the Veil Brewing close behind.
On Tuesday, Bert Green of SolarMill will take over the CBS 6 Instagram account. SolarMill is a sustainable manufacturing company that makes its own line of housewares and home decor using solar powered machinery.
Bert is a Virginia Tech graduate who studied industrial design and who has always had an appreciation for building things. Growing up, the Dinwiddie native developed an appreciation for clean technology. So he built a business out of making things using solar power technology.
The SolarKart!
“It was all my interests and passions converging together,” Bert said when asked what made him launch SolarMill, in 2011. He has a SolarKart that operates through direct interaction with solar power.
Though he is based in Richmond, Bert contracts work from all over the United States. He’s harnessed the sun to manufacture a diverse array of items: jewelry, cutting boards, wine charms, and food — including roasting chocolates for a local chocolatier.
Earlier this year one of his jewelry designs won the “Cradle to Cradle” design competition, for sustainable design. It’s made using a solar cast, lead-free alloy that is melted using a giant magnifying glass and poured into a mold.
He plans to stay in Richmond for a while, because he loves the River City.
“There are so many things about it; people, food, music,” he said. “It’s a nice mix of having good environmental values and being pro-business.“
Make sure to follow the CBS 6 Instagram account today, as Bert shows you what the world of SolarMill is all about.
