Our energy

By Marco Grassi

Amelie Cox works as an Internal Communication Manager for an important European energy company. Chosen by her colleagues as green ambassador at the UN Conference on energy and climate in New York, she is given by her Board a particular mission: solving a legal dispute with Chermen Ridge, a small town few miles far from New York. In fact, the local branch of the company asked for some help to unlock the works related to a connection cable to be fixed between the wind plants and the town. The one who hinders the connection is the local major, Quentin Perez, and just because of a choice of his own. A heated confrontation with him will emerge. Perez’ strong ego will try in every way to get Amelie’s virtuous “We” in trouble. Nevertheless, Amelie is determined more than ever to fully promote green energy as means to connect people to the environment. Amelie will end her overseas experience with her speech at the United Nations. In front of her, women and men from all over the world, ready to listen to each other and to commit to leave to the younger generations a planet better than they found it.

Marco Grassi was born in 1977, lives in Cermenate, Italy. Electrical engineer active in the field of clean energy and sustainable development. Our energy follows the publication of two other novels, Miglia da percorrere prima di dormire (Emersioni, 2018) and A porte aperte (Castelvecchi, 2021)

• Language: English
• Publisher: Re[a]daction
• Release date: Jan 12, 2023
• ISBN: 9791222049984

Book preview

Preface

The first emotion I felt when my colleague Marco asked me to write the preface of his new book Our energy was a strong sense of pride. It is certainly not common to write the first few words of a book. And it is certainly not common to have in our company colleagues like Marco, a complete pro and perfect representative of variety and creativity, an engineer-writer, who perfectly combines his two, apparently so distant, but essentially so close, passions.

Furthermore, what Marco made me proud of is that he chose energy, our business, as the main topic of his story. Providing clean energy and creating a greener future is our mission, our purpose. And it is not just a theme that belongs to us as a company, it is a challenge for all of humanity. Having such a special story in my hands that deals with such an important topic in a positive and forward-looking sense fills me even more with pride.

From the very first pages, I felt deeply connected to this book. In a current scenario of great energy crisis, the question we continue to ask ourselves day by day is how to create a more sustainable energy future for everyone. Our energy offers us a positive image of how the future could be shaped and it does so thanks to Amelie, a courageous woman, who feels her mission to lead the energy transition, and does it with all her energy. Amelie is a normal person, someone like me, like you, like Marco. But she is someone who never gives up, who passionately pursues her goal for a visibly better future.

I like Amelie because she teaches us an important lesson: we can all make a difference. The WE can make a difference compared to the I.

However, Amelie doesn’t stop there. She also discusses with the reader her feelings, happiness and how a purposeful life is the key to being happy, alone but even more with others.

An inspiring and forward-looking novel, which reminds us how we can all do our part to build a better, greener and happier future. It is possible and it is nice to remind us.

Enjoy the reading!

Frank Meyer

CEO E.ON Italia

Prologue

6:00 o’clock at the station on a Friday morning in December. People coming and going. Nose up on the luminous scoreboard, trying to guess which platform to take. And then, stopping to drink a coffee. Checking the ticket thousand times, boarding the train carriage; eventually, the screech of the rails of the departing convoys, like the first track of the playlist of this new journey.

Heaven only knows how many trains I took in my life! Travelling by train forces you to observe what is streaming outside the window, arouses your curiosity, your desire to know and makes you ready to experience all new things of life, as I was going to do: an invitation to an external meeting of the Board.

I could already see myself there, having a heated argument with all the members of the Board of Directors gathered at the Pink Glacier, a fantastic location. Maybe the most iconic place of Europe, symbol of our common engagement to save our planet over the last ten years.

During the meeting, I was supposed to report about the United Nations’ dossier I had just received. On my tablet, the draft of the speech I was expected to take at the UN Conference on energy and climate. I did wore out that text by dint of reading it to be sure that every word could sound as a new world disclosing in the most important Pecha Kucha of my life.

How funny. And yet, my colleagues made me think for such a long time that Pecha Kucha was the name of a traditional Japanese dish. Not to mention John, my boss, and the words he repeated a million times at least: «Amelie, here, in Communication, we must use simple words as the ingredients of Pecha Kucha». And then, at a cooking class, finding out purely by accident that it had nothing to do with gastronomy: it was just a, still Japanese, way of saying chatting about this and that.

My colleagues’ jokes were everyday on the agenda and I didn’t mind, as I was dealing with a joking and funny family rather than a working team.

Nevertheless, I couldn’t figure out why I had been invited to represent my company as green ambassador at the UN. Yes, I had been chosen by the vast majority of my colleagues during an open vote, and this could only please me; but in my company there were dozens of more qualified people. Anyway, the idea of going to New York, in less than a week, was beginning to sound pretty good to me. At Christmas, the Big Apple is charming like few other cities in the world. I had to stay there – no ifs and buts.

I closed the tablet and I put it back in the inaccessible part of my rucksack, it was time to take a break from working thoughts. The journey deserved it. The train was passing by the countryside just outside Verona, with its hills and vineyards in the distance. And I was struck by an intense wave of tranquillity, grown by the reflection of a golden light, which filtered through the window.

Suddenly, the great blue mirror of the Garda lake caught my attention and the other passengers’ one. It was something like a small piece of sea, a precious sapphire embedded in the ring of mountains.

At Verona Porta Nuova stop, passengers leaved my carriage, with all their packages, bags, luggage, strollers. I was alone. But just for a while. A man appeared at the entrance of the carriage. He was getting closer to me, at a slow but determined pace.

He sat in front of me. The man showed me his ticket: it was his place. Bad luck! Farewell, convenience to stretch my legs!

I barely restrained a grimace of disappointment, but I couldn’t suppress a smile. That man looked like Santa Claus: it was really him, with a white beard, small round glasses on his nose and a strange red rucksack.

«Good morning» I promptly greeted him.

«Good morning, my name is Claus». Needless to say, I burst out laughing: Santa Claus was in front of me!

I tried to pull myself together: «Nice to meet you, I’m Amelie», I said, holding out my hand.

«Amelie, what a beautiful name! I would like to ask you, If I can…».

«Please, go ahead».

«How many stops to the North Pole?».

This time my face darkened, he did not miss the reason of my hilarity and he struck back. I looked down.

«Ah, ah, ah… I was joking. I wanted to know how many stops there are to Trento», he drew my attention again.

I was relieved. «Five. Anyway, I’ll get off at the one before it, I’ll tell you».

«Thanks, that’s very kind of you. Are you a mountaineer?» Claus asked looking at the ice axe fixed on my rucksack.

«Oh, no, I don’t even know why I took it. It’s just a business travel».

«Well, where are you going?».

«To the Pink Glacier».

«Fantastic. It’s the first time?».

«Yes, it is». I didn’t hesitate to satisfy his curiosity.

«Once you have it in front of you, don’t forget to make a wish. Mind you. That’s an order, indeed».

«Yes, sir. I’ll do it» I answered nearly springing at attention, even if I was sitting.

«I made my wish almost forty years ago and it was fulfilled».

«Can I