Filed under: Cars and Transportation, Celebrities, Activism

Sure, everyone is complicated, in one way or another, but few people live a paradox as dramatic as Leilani Munter, race car driver (zomg, so energy-consuming-evil!) and eco-warrior (sound of tires squealing; what?!)

The 34-year-old Munter has been racing cars professionally since 2001, when she started with stock cars. She then became just the fourth woman to race in the Indy Pro Series. She's making a career in a traditionally male industry, and carving a nice niche for herself.

There must be something in her nature that draws her to activism and challenging the stated order of things, because she is also a vocal advocate for all things green, a vegetarian, and has a degree in biology. She also adopts an acre of rainforest for every race she runs. Pretty cool way to put your actions -- and money -- where your mouth is!

Even though she hasn't updated her blog, Carbon Free Girl, in a while, green topics actually make frequent appearances on her racing site, LeilaniMunter.com. She has sponsors like Eco Academy, a green job training academy that helps people learn to do "green collar" jobs. All of the ads on her site are for green products or services.

She's also an ambassador for the National Wildlife Federation and is politically active in both climate change and clean energy legislation. It's entirely possible you've read her green posts on the Huffington Post.

Oh, and her sister is married to Bob Weir, yes, that one, from the Grateful Dead, and she was a photo double for Catherine Zeta-Jones.

Yeah, she's cool. I still have some issues with the idea of a "sport" dedicated to burning fossil fuel, but if she's the future, then we have a reason to consider cars in general, and racing in particular, in a more nuanced light.

Leilani Munter, Delightfully Green Paradox and Eco-Hero originally appeared on Green Daily on Wed, 03 Mar 2010 12:06:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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