Nelson Philippe is 23 years old, but he is wise beyond his years. Like just about every other race car driver, he’s young and fit. He exudes charisma and is driven to succeed. He’s almost an auto racing stereotype. But the stereotype ends when you ask him about the environment or concepts like green initiatives. The man is almost as green as Al Gore.
Despite the fact Phillippe makes a decent living behind the wheel of an Indy Racing League car, he is deeply and passionately concerned about the environment and believes auto racing can, and must, lead the auto industry to a more eco-friendly future. It explains why he’s pushing his new venture, I Drive Green, which could be called Hypermiling 101.
“I’m an environmentalist at heart,” he said with a ready grin and disarming honesty in the back of his racing team’s transporter before the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma.
He started racing karts in 1998. But environmentalism is in his blood as much as racing. Raised by eco-conscious, vegetarian parents, having concern for this planet is completely second nature to him. It’s not something he learned, it’s something he grew up with. But why the seemingly contradictory paths of being a race car driver and an environmentalist? Philippe’s answer is, as always, direct and to the point.
“It’s human to evolve and to move, and if we stop moving, we stop being human. Movement is in us. That’s why we drive cars,” he said. After a brief pause, he added, “People aren’t going to stop driving, so we better be green.”
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