Goshen College Environmental Science
Engaging academia with local and global issues of sustainability
We seek to make ourselves aware of our connections to global issues of peace, justice, and environmental stewardship while seeking local solutions in which we can actively be agents of change.
GROUP DETAILS
Created: Jan 08, 2009
Updated: Nov 05, 2009
Membership: Open
Semi-Private
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The Durango Green Business Roundtable (GBR)
Background
The Green Business Roundtable helps INSPIRE, EDUCATE, IMPROVE and NETWORK the business community on environmental issues through a monthly lunch networking event. Through gentle peer pressure, we aim to improve our individual and company contributions to sustaining the environment.
Our speakers typically have a PowerPoint presentation. We prefer presentations that are oriented towards, or have relevance to a business owner. Our attendees include Main Avenue businesses, home office entrepreneurs, city employees, and environmentally oriented businesses. We prefer positive messages, so we minimize the gloomy problem statement. We operate on a strict schedule, starting the meal at noon, with the speaker starting at 12:25 and ending at 12:55 for a question or two. About 25 powerpoint slides might be a guideline to fit the time. We end promptly at 1:00. We almost always have more than 50 attendees, we average 65-70, and our record attendance was 110 people.
To elaborate, the idea is to mimic the systems used by Rotary and other service clubs to influence the community. The idea is simple:
•We gather to enjoy lunch and network with other conservation minded business leaders. One can talk about anything of course, but if you can, bring the topic around to environmental issues. Perhaps projects or companies you have heard of or admire for their sustainability efforts.
•We want to improve our own and our companies contributions to sustaining the environment. So hopefully we can exert some good peer pressure on each other to take back to work.
•We want to improve our voice in the community. The environmentally willing, eager, and concerned business people of our community are not networked as well as could be, and as a result our voice is often marginalized compared to the groups that are well networked. Help us by inviting business owners and managers to the lunches, which average 60 attendees.
The San Juan Citizens Alliance launched GBR as a outreach program, and is already seeing spin off benefits loosely attributable to the roundtable such as renewable energy workshops, formation of a Sustainability Alliance, formation of a SW Regional Group of CRES which now has a member on La Plata Electric Association Board, Chamber of Commerce awards to “Green Leaders,” Good Dirt Radio (now syndicated), and sales of energy efficiency devices. Local media typically covers the roundtable speaker and their message. We typically attract several elected officials, and city/county staff who may not otherwise be engaged in environmental issues.
The rules are simple:
* Any business leader who is committed to being more environmentally involved is welcome;
* Any attendee does not necessarily endorse the views of any other;
* One-hour monthly luncheons will run on a strict timetable, this includes approximately a 25-minute presentation;
* We are a non-partisan group and the group will make no policy statements.
Organizational
The GBR started by generating a mailing list of known sympathetic businesses in town - literally by mentally going down Main Avenue and brainstorming. A small group of volunteers gathers each summer to line up the following season. Otherwise, time commitments are reasonable, and would be easy for any group with staff or a few dedicated volunteers. Reservations for the meal have been the biggest hassle, constrained by our group size only fitting in one independently owned restaurant. At first, we did not use a reservation system, but eventually, were required to do reservations. We sell block reservations for the entire season of lunches. This considerably simplifies the entire process.
SJCA staff, Tracy Daniels, does two mailing per season, one for the fall schedule and one for the winter schedule. Tracy also emails monthly invites twice a month along with media PSA’s. Monthly reservations, block reservations, and sponsorships are managed through the SJCA office. Lunch reservations are called into the Strater Hotel to Emily Spencer on the Monday morning before the Wednesday luncheon. Extra lunches are no longer ordered. No-shows and block holders who cannot attend, supply enough lunches that can be sold to non-reservation attendees. No-shows are invoiced for lunches that cannot be sold to non-reservation attendees. Tracy, along with another SJCA staff member and/or a volunteer, check-in and collect payment from attendees at each monthly luncheon. SJCA pays the lunch bill including gratuity and processes all attendee payments through the SJCA Morgan Stanley account. Typically, GBR uses the PowerPoint projector from SJCA for the speaker presentations.
Kent Ford has been the coordinator for GBR since its inceptions. For more info contact him at 970-259-1361, kentford@gobrainstorm.net.
Tracy Daniels is the main SJCA staff person who handles GBR. Here is her contact information:
San Juan Citizens Alliance
P.O. Box 2461
1022 ½ Main Ave
Durango, CO 81302
Ph: 970-259-3583
Fax: 970-259-8303
http://www.sanjuancitizens.org/GBR.shtml
Sample Mail Invitation
Green Business Roundtable Season Finale April 11th
Don’t miss these thought-provoking networking opportunities,
for every business interested in how to be more sustainable.
April sponsor: Bank of the San Juans
WHEN: Wednesday, April 11, 2007 – 12:00 Noon (for one hour) COST: $12 (See “Reservations...” below)
WHERE: Diamond Circle at the Strater Hotel, 699 Main Avenue, Durango
RSVP please by 9:00 AM Monday April 9th, call Tracy Daniels at 259-3583 or email GBR@sanjuancitizens.org. Let us know the number of attendees and choice of meat or vegetarian meal. Consider signing up for a block reservation for the season.
Special Guest: Scot Case of Responsible Sourcing of Pennsylvania
FEATURED TOPIC: What exactly does it mean to “buy green,” and can it really make a difference? Are governments and Fortune 500 companies serious about cleaning up their acts? Hear an insider’s view from internationally recognized expert Scot Case, who will discuss his involvement with the green purchasing movement and how individuals and institutions can redirect their purchasing in ways that can help, not harm, the planet.
Scot has more than a dozen years of professional experience in the area of responsible sourcing. Now a private consultant, he conducts full-day responsible purchasing training sessions and also consults directly with organizations seeking to create additional value by improving their environmental and social performance. Recent clients have included the World Bank, the U.S. EPA, the University of Miami, the cities of Portland and Seattle, the government of the Philippines, and scores of private sector companies including Wal-Mart, Microsoft, Starbucks, and Hewlett Packard.
In addition, Scot helped launch the Responsible Purchasing Network, a group of influential purchasers using their purchasing power to buy better goods and services. He is also a founding board member of the International Green Purchasing Network and writes a regular feature in Government Procurement magazine called “The Green Purchaser.”
The Roundtable’s goals are simple –NETWORK, INSPIRE, EDUCATE, IMPROVE: Enjoy lunch and network with advocates of sustainability; Improve our voice in the community; Improve our individual and company contributions to sustaining the environment. GBR is non-partisan. For more information, please call Tracy Daniels at 259-3583.
Reservations Preferred – As easy as 1-2-3:
1) Buy the Block Reservation. Highly Recommended! This is the best way to support the Roundtable. Pay 4 x 12$ to be a Roundtable member from January to April (4 meetings, $12 per meal). Saves you time as no RSVP will be required each month. No refunds for missing a meeting. If you can’t attend, please consider sending a colleague in your place. Your reservation will be given up at 12:10 if no one attends in your place.
2) RSVP. Place a reservation by phone to 259-3583 or by email to GBR@sanjuancitizens.org by 9:00 AM the Monday preceding the Roundtable. Payment commitment is implied with your reservation. Your reservation will be given up at 12:10 if no one attends to take your reservation, but we will contact you regarding payment.
3) Take Your Chances. We will plan on five guests and others without reservations for immediate seating at noon. At 12:10 we will release reserved seats not yet claimed by reservations.
Block Reservation Form
Name(s) ____________________________________________________________________________
Business Name _______________________________________________________________________
Mailing Address ______________________________________________________________________
Email Address (optional) _______________________________________________________________
City, State, Zip ____________________________________ Vegetarian Meal Meat Meal
Please make check out to “San Juan Citizens Alliance” and mail to PO Box 2461, Durango, CO 81302. Purchasing your block reservation prior to the September luncheon is preferable (to reduce time waiting in line), but there will be a chance to buy at September’s luncheon – please come 10 minutes early to do so. Block reservations may be purchased throughout the season for remaining meetings.
Become a Sponsor! Help our parent organization, the San Juan Citizens Alliance, offset the GBR costs of photocopying, postage, guaranteeing luncheon attendance, and staff time. Contact Carol Clark at 259-3583 or carolclark@frontier.net. Thank you!
Click here to RSVP for the Green Business Roundtable online:
http://www.sanjuancitizens.org/GBR.shtml
San Juan Citizens Alliance
PO Box 2461
Durango, CO 81302
ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED
BELOW IS A COMPLETE LIST OF GUEST SPEAKERS TO THE GBR:
2002 SEASON
January 16, 2002, Doing our part: What small business can do for the environment Cheryl Wiescamp Colorado Pollution Prevention Board and Executive Director Durango Nature Studies
February 13, 2002, Investing your values: Independent financial consultant Paul Lemon of Integrated Financial Planning. He will speak on investing with your values, explaining how to invest while upholding your social and environmental values.
March 13, 2002, Preserving the nighttime environment: An introduction to protecting our heritage of dark skies through quality outdoor lighting. Presentation provided by www.darksky.org presentation by Kent Ford
April 4, 2002, Dave Foreman on Wilderness Advocacy: Foreman has worked as a wilderness advocate since 1971. From 1973 to 1980, he worked for the Wilderness Society as Southwest Regional Representative in New Mexico and Director of Wilderness Affairs in Washington, D.C. From 1982 to 1988, he was editor of the Earth First! Journal. After splitting off from Earth First! in 1990, he became a co-founder, board member and chairman of The Wildlands Project and serves as publisher of the Project’s journal Wild Earth. He is also a member of the board of directors of the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance.
April 10, 2002, The Path to Sustainable Development: Sustainable Building Consultant Michelle Reott, owner of Earthly Ideas, will speak on "green" development strategies and their benefits for construction, renovation, and day-to-day operations. Come see how these strategies can help provide a healthy and safe workplace, while reducing resource consumption and operating costs. Earthly Ideas helps architects, home and building owners, engineers, and contractors find long term building solutions that meet design and budget requirements as well as social and environmental objectives.
May 15, 2002, The Smiley Building, A Local Case Study – by Charles Shaw: A slide show and talk on how the Shaw brothers have transformed the Smiley Building from one of Durango’s biggest energy hogs to one of the most efficient. The talk covers everything from simple water saving devices, compact florescent and occupancy sensor lighting, to solar hydronic heating and producing electricity with photovoltiacs. Best of all, the talk will include a handout that has a complete list of the best products and where to get them. You will leave with all the info you need to get started saving energy in your own business location.
June 6, 2002, The Environmental Agenda, What a Business Can Do to Make A Difference: Bill Meadows, President of the national organization The Wilderness Society, will speak on the political climate for advancing the environmental agenda, including what a business can do to make a difference. His talk will also explain some of the sustainability features built into the Society headquarters in Washington, DC, and articulate the role of the business community in protecting open space and wilderness. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the Society has eight regional offices across the country, including the Wilderness Support Center here in Durango.
2002-2003 SEASON
September 11th, 2002, The Colorado Business Energy Partnership, Building Improved Energy Management: Heidi VanGenderen, Senior Associate for the Wirth Chair, CU Denver will speak on how the Partnership helps for-profit, non-profit and public sector member develop money saving strategies to boost energy efficiency, and protect Colorado's and the nations climate. A few of the organizations involved in the Partnership include: Coors Brewery, Lockheed Martin, The Denver Post, the City and County of Denver, URS Corporation, Samsonite Corporation, Oakwood Homes, and the Colorado Energy Assistance Foundation.
Ms. VanGenderen has a twenty-year work history in environmental sustainability and energy issues. She has worked with a broad range of organizations ranging from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to the Business Council for Sustainable Development, as well as with universities and the NGO community.
October 9th, 2002, Energy Efficient Building Strategies as an Investment: This presentation will look at some considerations and strategies for improving the energy usage performance for residential or small commercial buildings, and the investment return you can expect. Guest speaker Mike Frisoni is an engineer and building science consultant focusing on energy efficiency and air quality control for residential and small commercial buildings. His company is Annadel Building Solutions, LLC.
November 13th, 2002, Transferable Development Rights: A primer on how TDRs allow local governments to preserve a community's rural character, and natural, historic and scenic resources. Hear how TDRs could protect property values and accommodate growth in a manner that enhances our tourist based economy. Guest speaker Tom Maynard is a member of the American Planning Association and its professional branch, the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP). As a Principal of Four Corners Planning and Design Group, he has prepared comprehensive plans and trails plans for many communities in western Colorado, including for the City of Fruita, which recently received an award from the Colorado Chapter of the American Planning Association. The Fruita plan included a TDR program which is now being implemented. He recently co-authored an article on a new approach to TDR that was published in a national planning periodical. Tom is now developing a TDR demonstration program for the City of Durango and La Plata County.
December 11th, 2002, A Local Case Study for Sustainable Building Techniques, Turning an Eyesore into a Gem: The Durango Discovery Museum is a new science and energy museum to be housed in Durango's historic Power House on Camino Del Rio. The project includes rehabilitating the old building and turn-of-the-century equipment and employing sustainable building techniques to showcase energy technologies past, present, and future. Project Manager Jeff Vierling will present plans for the new museum and discuss its relevance for every local business owner.
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Started Project: The 2002 Green Business Leadership Award 2002 winner the Smiley Building
Presented as part of DACRA annual awards - recognizing the business that demonstrates leadership, risk, and innovation in utilizing environmentally responsible, healthy, and profitable business practices.
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December 14th, 2002, Renewable Energy Workshop: LPEA History of Electricity in La Plata County, Net Metering, and an outlook for the future will be discussed. There will also be a talk on Renewable Energy Basics and a Solar Demonstration. We will discuss the importance and logistics of doing an energy audit for your home or business and talk about practical and simple changes that can be made to a business or home. There will be a hands on demonstration of a solar set up. The Solar set up is an initial investment kit for someone to get started with solar for the lowest initial investment. We will conclude with a panel discussion.
January 8th, 2003, Sustainable Features of the Fort Lewis College Student Life Center: This presentation will explain how the SLC joined the short list of large sustainability oriented buildings in the four corners area. Goals stated upfront included minimizing consumption of limited resources and minimizing pollution by utilizing energy as a resource, and not a pollutant. Our guest speakers include Jack Krider Director of SLC, and Michael Rendon of the Environmental Center, and Robert Lea, project manager for Colorado Jaynes Construction, Inc. Their presentation gives a behind the scenes look at the building's design process and construction. For more see http://envcenter.fortlewis.edu/SLC/
February 12th, 2003, Five for Five ... Green Business Leaders for five minutes each: Hear about each of the 5 nominees for the Chamber of Commerce Green Business Leadership Award. Each nominee will give a three minute overview of the greener aspects of their business, then answer questions from the audience. Through PowerPoint, we will learn about each of the nominees and their contributions to the community. Come network, learn, and congratulate all of them! The nominees were:
The Abbey Theater – Host for environmental films, fundraisers, and educational events.
Phoenix Recycling – La Plata County’s top notch recycler.
Sunnyside Meats, Inc. – Local livestock harvesting plant and how it helps the local community.
Smiley Building – The building’s transformation from energy hog to model efficiency.
Fort Lewis College Student Life Center – How FLC approached sustainability.
Additionally, local environmental artist Shan Wells will speak about his development of the Green Business Leadership Award traveling trophy.
March 12th, 2003, Xeriscaping: Water efficient landscaping using more drought tolerant plants, less bluegrass, drip irrigation and other water saving techniques will be discussed. Guest speaker Sherry Fuller is the author of the Green Thumbs and Dirty Fingernails column in the Durango Herald and is co-owner of Cliffrose, a garden center in Cortez.
April 9th, 2003, The Multiplier Effect: The benefit of keeping money local. The presentation will address the money multiplier effect in a community and the effects of money leaking out of the community and what causes leakage. Guest speaker Clyde Church is a management consultant and field engineer with MAMTC (Mid-America Manufacturing Technology Center) branch office at the Small Business Development Center at Fort Lewis College.
May 14th, 2003, The market for local food in La Plata County: The topic includes reasons to buy locally produced goods to help sustain local ag, the 2003 Durango Farmers Market, and the recently completed feasibility study for the shared use commercial kitchen incubator. Guest speaker Greg Vlaming is a Colorado State University Cooperative Extension Agent and Administrative Director of the Durango Farmers Market.
2003-2004 SEASON
September 10th, 2003, A Virtual Solar Tour: Preview homes and businesses on the Solar Tour here in La Plata County, our own part of the American Solar Energy Society National Solar Tour. The tour allows people to see for themselves how solar can be affordable, comfortable, and practical. With the Durango area enjoying over 300 days of sunshine a year, it is refreshing to see a sample of homes and businesses that take advantage of a southern sun to keep heating bills low. Guest speaker Paul Senecal helps coordinate the LaPlata County solar tour, and resides in a solar home in Rafter J.
October 8th, 2003: BP Production’s Move into Alternative Energy: Come hear Dan Larson speaking on why BP is investing heavily in alternative energy and how this will give them an advantage over other energy companies in the future. Guest speaker Dan Larson is Director of Public Affairs for BP America Production Company, Durango, CO.
October 29th, 2003, How to help people understand and change their energy consumption habits:
Guest speaker Randy Udall is director of the Community Office for Resource Efficiency (CORE), a nonprofit organization that promotes energy efficiency and renewable energy. CORE promotes renewable energy and energy efficiency in partnership with Holy Cross Energy, a rural electric utility serving 40,000 customers. Holy Cross leads the U.S. in the percentage of its customers who buy wind power. Holy Cross has more grid-connected photovoltaic systems than any of the 930 rural electric utilities in the nation. Holy Cross’ wind, solar, and hydropower programs will keep 500 million pounds of greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere over the next 20 years. In 2000, CORE started the nation’s first Renewable Energy Mitigation Fund, which has collected $1,000,000 in building permit fees to install renewable energy systems.
December 10th, 2003, Sustainable Building Strategies: Guest speaker Glen Harcourt is one of the inspiring (and humorous) visionaries behind Steeprock Joinery, a solar powered artisans guild located just outside of Telluride. Steeprock's projects include everything from custom solar powered homes, to business remodels, wetland wastewater systems, and custom furniture. Steeprock's mission is to develop and implement practical sustainable building strategies and to foster conscientious craftsmanship as a foundation for progressive steps to sustainable living.
January 14th, 2004, Sustainable Economic Development: In the past year, a local study circle developed guiding principles for Sustainable Economic Development in our area, with many discussions addressing green-environmental-sustainable issues relevant to the Roundtable. These include development of strategies & solutions including transportation, renewable energy sources, maximizing the multiplier effect, growing and selling food locally, and environmental issues. This study circle was convened by Operation Healthy Communities, and is seeking feedback on their definition and guiding principles, so as to be reflective of our broader community. Tami Graham, the facilitator of the study circle process, will present the groups findings and give an update of current activities.
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The 2003 Green Business Leadership Award 2003 winner Sunnyside Meats
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February 11th, 2004, Global Warming, Regional Impacts, and Possible Responses: Scientific consensus attributes the warming of the last 20 years substantially to human activities, primarily fossil fuel burning. Policy responses range from the Kyoto Protocol, to regional initiatives under the auspices of the international Cities for Climate Protection program. What can we do locally to address our contributions to this problem and to catalyze regional responses? Guest Speaker: Dick White, Prof. Emeritus of Astronomy, Smith College, member of Green House Network speakers bureau, and certified by Zero Emissions Research and Initiatives.
March 10th, 2004, The Triple Bottom Line Challenge: The “triple bottom line” of people-planet-profit encourages companies to put an environmental perspective into their planning. Come hear an overview of trends in corporate social responsibility and sustainable development and discuss implications for improving the triple bottom line for local businesses. Guest Speaker Katherine Holt established Peakinsight LLC to impact how business will operate profitably and evolve sustainably in the future. As a ZERI practitioner, she promotes the adoption of practices to eliminate waste and achieve triple bottom line results.
April 7th, 2004, Exploring Permaculture: The presentation will examine examples of Permaculture, and look at the meaning behind the Oakhaven motto: "Think, Grow, Eat & Buy Locally." Discover the ethics and principles at the core of permaculture, such as "Integrating rather than Segregating."Guest speaker: Tom Riesing, a former investment banker. Tom, alongwith his partner Christie Berven operate Oakhaven Permaculture Center (oakhavenpc.org) near Hesperus.
May 12th, 2004, Possibilities: GBR Season Finale Possibilities: People friendly urban planning from Buildings to Bike paths - A Compilation of Inspiring Examples. This rousing presentation is assembled by Roundtable regulars Kent Ford and Charles Shaw.
2004-2005 SEASON
September 8th, 2004, Recycling Opportunities and Challenges for Businesses: Presented by Mark Thompson and Alex Arribau of Phoenix Recycling and Jeff Baker of Steamworks. Learn about how your business can make a difference through implementing a recycling program and/or buying recycled products.
October 13th, 2004, Biodiesel in Durango: This presentation will explain Brennan Oil’s recent addition of Blue Sun Biodiesel to several local stations, focusing on their decision process, and the pros and cons of biodiesel blends. Come learn more about this clean burning alternative fuel, produced from domestic, renewable resources. Guest speaker Kyle McCracken is a 25-year veteran at Brennan Oil and has extensive personal experience with biodiesel. In addition, Roy Petersen, Manager of Facilities and Equipment for the City of Durango, will give an update on the city’s short history with biodiesel. Since early July all city vehicles that use diesel have switched to the biodiesel blend.
November 10th, 2004, Lighting Efficiency Opportunities for Businesses: This presentation will focus upon lighting efficiency opportunities commonly found in small commercial buildings. Discussion will include accepted lighting levels for a given task and appropriate energy consumption to achieve that design. Simple calculations will be illustrated that will help to determine the efficiency of your own lighting systems and the potential for a lighting retrofit. Lighting is typically 40% to 50% of total commercial building electrical consumption and as such, offers one of the largest opportunities for energy conservation. Guest speaker Jeremy Rivera, of Quest Energy Group, is a licensed engineer with over 15 years of experience in the field of energy efficient building design.
December 8th, 2004, Selling Local Products: Holly Zink, Sunnyside Farms Market
Multi-generation Durango native, Holly Zink, believes it is vitally important to support locally sustainable agriculture and the western ranching tradition. As the owner of Sunnyside Farms Market, Holly is practicing her belief by marketing locally raised agricultural products. Come listen to Holly’s inspirational talk!
January 12th, 2005, Hybrid Vehicles - The Basics of Hybrids: Hybrid cars combine two or more sources of power to become the most fuel efficient cars on the road. Guest speaker Mike Rockos, of Hanson Honda will explain how hybrids work, and how they help to reduce America's dependency on foreign oil and reduce emissions. Hear about current tax incentives for purchase and future technologies on the way.
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The 2004 Green Business Leadership Award 2004 winner Phoenix Recycling
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February 9th, 2005, City of Durango Environmental Initiatives: Linda Lewis, Management Assistant in the City Manager's Office, will present a broad overview of the City's green policies and actions. Attendees will see that although government tends to move slowly, many positive steps have been taken toward being more sustainable. From biodiesel to wind energy to recycled paper to a green building resolution, all City departments continue to learn more and act on reducing our impact on the environment.
March 9th, 2005, Local Foods, Growing, Buying, and Supplying: Alison Dance, owner & operator of Cyprus Café, & Katrina Blair, founder of Turtle Lake Refuge, discuss the realities of buying & supplying local foods to businesses in Durango. In addition, they will provide tips on how to integrate local foods into our daily habits.
April 7th, 2005, Ecological Design & Business Innovation: with special guest speaker – world renowned John Todd. A “visionary biologist” in the field of ecological design, Todd’s ideas have nearly always taken shape in alternative technology. Much of his work (in 6 countries and 10 states) has been devoted to food production or to wastewater processing. John Todd was featured as a Time Magazine Hero for the Planet in 2004. His books include Reinhabiting Cities & Towns: Designing for Sustainability (1981) and From Eco-cities to Living Machines (1994).
May 10th, 2005, LPEA Environmental Initiatives: Speakers David Waller and Dan Harms, LPEA will speak about Net Metering: Connect your renewable energy generation source to LPEA's electric grid and spin your meter backwards. They will discuss the status report on Colorado's Amendment 37 compromise legislation (SB05-143) and how it will affect LPEA's Green Power Program. USDA agricultural and rural small business renewable energy grants/loans will also be covered.
2005-2006 SEASON
September 13th, 2005, The Energy Audit: a case study: Presentation of results of a case study energy audit performed on a local business, with economic and practical consideration of the results. Appropriate for any business interested in auditing its own energy consumption. Audit consultation conducted by: Mark Stetz 385-4932 of Nexant and Walt Venable of Alternative Engineering.
October 12th, 2005, Dick White by the Alliance for Sustainability of Southwest Colorado
Sustainability; How It Applies to La Plata County and the Four Corners Region: Practical examples of building community by keeping money in the local economy: supporting local businesses, connecting local agricultural producers with local markets, reducing energy costs with renewables and conservation, and more. Projects of the Alliance for Sustainability update. The economic benefits of using local products and of energy conservation. Specifically, rather than farm-to-school, we are looking at specifics of local food production and how that can contribute to the vitality of the local economy. In addition, we plan to mention two other topics more briefly, probably use of local lumber and on energy efficiency in buildings.
November 9th, 2005, Electronics Disposal: Many common products fit the Hazardous Material category with one or more of these characteristics: Toxicity, Corrosively, Reactivity. Learn the impacts of improper disposal, and where to dispose properly. The presentation cover state laws on recycling of eWaste. Annie Pollett and Nancy Andrews of the City of Durango Resource Conservation office.
December 14th, 2005, Panel Discussion “Greening the Doctors Office”: A case study by Durango’s leading Doctors implementing new and old ideas and technologies. This presentation includes ideas applicable to ANY business office. With Panelists: Dr Art Zemach, Pediatric Partners of the Southwest, Dr Pakhi Chaudhuri,Pediatric Associates of DurangoDr Bill Palko-Schraa, Spiral Health Clinic.
January 11th, 2006, Simple Steps for your office, store, or home; Putting Theory into Practice: Guest speaker Michael Rendon has served as director of the Environmental Center at Fort Lewis for five years. This is his last Durango appearance before leaving to travel around the world by ship, train, and other eco-friendly transportation.
February 15th, 2006, Sustainable Community Development efforts in the West and Beyond: This will include the myriad policies, programs, and entrepreneurial endeavors in communities around the west that affect multiple resource use and systems– energy, land, transportation, materials. The special guest speaker is Heidi VanGenderen, Wirth Chair in Environmental and Community Development Policy at the University of Colorado at Denver.
Ms. VanGenderen has a twenty-year work history in environmental sustainability and energy issues, focusing on how for-profit, non-profit and public sectors develop money saving strategies to boost more efficient use of natural resources. She has focused significantly on the issues of energy and climate change during her tenure at the University of Colorado. Prior to that she worked with a broad range of organizations ranging from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to the Colorado Environmental Coalition, as well as with universities and the NGO community.
March 8th, 2006, Put Your Money Where Your House Is!: Why locally owned independent businesses are important to communities. Peter Schertz of Maria’s Bookshop and Mike Hurst of Carver Brewing.
April 12th, 2006, Wind Powering the Southwest: Special Guest Lawrence Flowers, National Technical Director of Wind Powering America (USDOE) and the Team Leader for the Wind Technology Center (NREL). His talk will address: What’s needed for small wind, large wind regional viability, data collection for microclimates, how to get involved and support large-scale projects. Larry Flowers, director of Wind Powering America at the National Renewable Energy Lab. His talk will address: Small wind, what’s needed, Large wind, may not be viable
May 10th, 2006, Greening our getting around: Public transit systems are becoming an increasingly important factor in the development of sustainable communities throughout the United States. Hope Bleecker (City of Durango Transit Manager) will discuss the Durango Transit System, its recent ridership increases, use of alternative fuel, and future strategies for helping build and promote a successful alternative transit system in Durango.
2006-2007 SEASON
September 13th, 2006, Smart Growth and Sustainable Development: A master planned community defines a comprehensive sustainable program incorporating community-wide best management practices, Built Green Colorado and LEED building strategies to improve energy efficiency and water conservation efforts. Guest speaker is Keith Walzak: Planning and Design Director for Three Springs Neighborhood.
October 11th, 2006, Greener Hospitality and Events, Kirk Komick, Rochester Hotel: A charter member for the Green Hotels Association since 1994, the Leland House and Rochester Hotel, has been a leader in helping the hospitality industry with greener lodging alternatives. Their talk shares the proven benefits of moving towards sustainability as an everyday commitment, including the practice of resource-conservation and the utilization of non-toxic cleaning products. Guest Speakers: Karin Martin, Dana Burkholder, Art Bradley, Talia Ernest, Christina Ferrarese, and Kirk Komick (owner)
November 8th, 2006, Energy efficiency as a resource: Across the U.S., electric and natural gas utilities are now investing more then $2 billion per year in energy efficiency programs to reduce their customers’ energy consumption. This topic explains why utilities pay their customers to use less energy, and offers some leading examples of innovative energy efficiency programs around the country. It concludes with a look at opportunities within our own community to save money and prevent pollution through energy efficiency programs. Our guest speaker is Chris Calwell, who is the Director of Policy and Research at Ecos Consulting’s Durango office.
December 13th, 2006, The Economics of Sustainability: An introduction to how economists analyze individual behavior with respect to the environment and natural resources. The presentation will use the proposed Desert Rock power plant to illustrate how individual, and social, behavior, positively and negatively, impacts private and social welfare. We will also talk about how policy can make things worse and/or better.
Guest speaker is Dr. Robert (Tino) Sonora, with the School of Business Administration at Fort Lewis College.
January 10th, 2007, Peak Oil Update: Come hear the most current available information about the evolving peak oil and natural gas challenges and “intelligent responses” to the challenge. Topics include: geological and political constraints to our understanding of oil and gas resource depletion, the economic challenges in an environment of decreasing energy supplies, local realities, and net energy (also known as energy return on energy invested).
Special Guest: Steve Andrews, co-founder Association for the Study of Peak Oil
February 14th, 2007, Farm to School and the Local food system: The Southwest Colorado Farm to School program strives to connect schools with local farms with the objectives of serving healthy meals in school cafeterias, improving student nutrition, and supporting local small farmers. Also for discussion is the action plan for strengthening the local food system in La Plata County, including the process of connecting local businesses with local suppliers and processors. Guest speaker is Jim Dyer, longtime local foods and agriculture promoter.
March 14th, 2007, Solar Opportunities Get energy from the sun for your business!: Hear an overview of the more viable forms of renewable energy in the Four Corners. The focus will be the usage of photovoltaics, getting electricity from the sun, along with the various benefits and things that must be looked at when installing photovoltaic systems. The presentation will include a case study outlining local and state incentives and federal tax credits. Guest Speaker Tom Munson is the Renewable Energy Program Coordinator at San Juan College in Farmington. Before coming to San Juan College he worked as an engineer designing and selling photovoltaic systems in California. He is a licensed engineer and has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from New Mexico State University.
April 11th, 2007, Special Guest: Scott Case, The Responsible-Green Purchaser: What exactly does it mean to “buy green,” and can it really make a difference? Are governments and Fortune 500 companies serious about cleaning up their acts? Hear an insider’s view from internationally recognized expert Scot Case, who will discuss his involvement with the green purchasing movement and how individuals and institutions can redirect their purchasing in ways that can help, not harm, the planet.
Scot has more than a dozen years of professional experience in the area of responsible sourcing. Now a private consultant, he conducts full-day responsible purchasing training sessions and also consults directly with organizations seeking to create additional value by improving their environmental and social performance. Recent clients have included the World Bank, the U.S. EPA, the University of Miami, the cities of Portland and Seattle, the government of the Philippines, and scores of private sector companies including Wal-Mart, Microsoft, Starbucks, and Hewlett Packard.
Background
The Green Business Roundtable helps INSPIRE, EDUCATE, IMPROVE and NETWORK the business community on environmental issues through a monthly lunch networking event. Through gentle peer pressure, we aim to improve our individual and company contributions to sustaining the environment.
Our speakers typically have a PowerPoint presentation. We prefer presentations that are oriented towards, or have relevance to a business owner. Our attendees include Main Avenue businesses, home office entrepreneurs, city employees, and environmentally oriented businesses. We prefer positive messages, so we minimize the gloomy problem statement. We operate on a strict schedule, starting the meal at noon, with the speaker starting at 12:25 and ending at 12:55 for a question or two. About 25 powerpoint slides might be a guideline to fit the time. We end promptly at 1:00. We almost always have more than 50 attendees, we average 65-70, and our record attendance was 110 people.
To elaborate, the idea is to mimic the systems used by Rotary and other service clubs to influence the community. The idea is simple:
•We gather to enjoy lunch and network with other conservation minded business leaders. One can talk about anything of course, but if you can, bring the topic around to environmental issues. Perhaps projects or companies you have heard of or admire for their sustainability efforts.
•We want to improve our own and our companies contributions to sustaining the environment. So hopefully we can exert some good peer pressure on each other to take back to work.
•We want to improve our voice in the community. The environmentally willing, eager, and concerned business people of our community are not networked as well as could be, and as a result our voice is often marginalized compared to the groups that are well networked. Help us by inviting business owners and managers to the lunches, which average 60 attendees.
The San Juan Citizens Alliance launched GBR as a outreach program, and is already seeing spin off benefits loosely attributable to the roundtable such as renewable energy workshops, formation of a Sustainability Alliance, formation of a SW Regional Group of CRES which now has a member on La Plata Electric Association Board, Chamber of Commerce awards to “Green Leaders,” Good Dirt Radio (now syndicated), and sales of energy efficiency devices. Local media typically covers the roundtable speaker and their message. We typically attract several elected officials, and city/county staff who may not otherwise be engaged in environmental issues.
The rules are simple:
* Any business leader who is committed to being more environmentally involved is welcome;
* Any attendee does not necessarily endorse the views of any other;
* One-hour monthly luncheons will run on a strict timetable, this includes approximately a 25-minute presentation;
* We are a non-partisan group and the group will make no policy statements.
Organizational
The GBR started by generating a mailing list of known sympathetic businesses in town - literally by mentally going down Main Avenue and brainstorming. A small group of volunteers gathers each summer to line up the following season. Otherwise, time commitments are reasonable, and would be easy for any group with staff or a few dedicated volunteers. Reservations for the meal have been the biggest hassle, constrained by our group size only fitting in one independently owned restaurant. At first, we did not use a reservation system, but eventually, were required to do reservations. We sell block reservations for the entire season of lunches. This considerably simplifies the entire process.
SJCA staff, Tracy Daniels, does two mailing per season, one for the fall schedule and one for the winter schedule. Tracy also emails monthly invites twice a month along with media PSA’s. Monthly reservations, block reservations, and sponsorships are managed through the SJCA office. Lunch reservations are called into the Strater Hotel to Emily Spencer on the Monday morning before the Wednesday luncheon. Extra lunches are no longer ordered. No-shows and block holders who cannot attend, supply enough lunches that can be sold to non-reservation attendees. No-shows are invoiced for lunches that cannot be sold to non-reservation attendees. Tracy, along with another SJCA staff member and/or a volunteer, check-in and collect payment from attendees at each monthly luncheon. SJCA pays the lunch bill including gratuity and processes all attendee payments through the SJCA Morgan Stanley account. Typically, GBR uses the PowerPoint projector from SJCA for the speaker presentations.
Kent Ford has been the coordinator for GBR since its inceptions. For more info contact him at 970-259-1361, kentford@gobrainstorm.net.
Tracy Daniels is the main SJCA staff person who handles GBR. Here is her contact information:
San Juan Citizens Alliance
P.O. Box 2461
1022 ½ Main Ave
Durango, CO 81302
Ph: 970-259-3583
Fax: 970-259-8303
http://www.sanjuancitizens.org/GBR.shtml
Sample Mail Invitation
Green Business Roundtable Season Finale April 11th
Don’t miss these thought-provoking networking opportunities,
for every business interested in how to be more sustainable.
April sponsor: Bank of the San Juans
WHEN: Wednesday, April 11, 2007 – 12:00 Noon (for one hour) COST: $12 (See “Reservations...” below)
WHERE: Diamond Circle at the Strater Hotel, 699 Main Avenue, Durango
RSVP please by 9:00 AM Monday April 9th, call Tracy Daniels at 259-3583 or email GBR@sanjuancitizens.org. Let us know the number of attendees and choice of meat or vegetarian meal. Consider signing up for a block reservation for the season.
Special Guest: Scot Case of Responsible Sourcing of Pennsylvania
FEATURED TOPIC: What exactly does it mean to “buy green,” and can it really make a difference? Are governments and Fortune 500 companies serious about cleaning up their acts? Hear an insider’s view from internationally recognized expert Scot Case, who will discuss his involvement with the green purchasing movement and how individuals and institutions can redirect their purchasing in ways that can help, not harm, the planet.
Scot has more than a dozen years of professional experience in the area of responsible sourcing. Now a private consultant, he conducts full-day responsible purchasing training sessions and also consults directly with organizations seeking to create additional value by improving their environmental and social performance. Recent clients have included the World Bank, the U.S. EPA, the University of Miami, the cities of Portland and Seattle, the government of the Philippines, and scores of private sector companies including Wal-Mart, Microsoft, Starbucks, and Hewlett Packard.
In addition, Scot helped launch the Responsible Purchasing Network, a group of influential purchasers using their purchasing power to buy better goods and services. He is also a founding board member of the International Green Purchasing Network and writes a regular feature in Government Procurement magazine called “The Green Purchaser.”
The Roundtable’s goals are simple –NETWORK, INSPIRE, EDUCATE, IMPROVE: Enjoy lunch and network with advocates of sustainability; Improve our voice in the community; Improve our individual and company contributions to sustaining the environment. GBR is non-partisan. For more information, please call Tracy Daniels at 259-3583.
Reservations Preferred – As easy as 1-2-3:
1) Buy the Block Reservation. Highly Recommended! This is the best way to support the Roundtable. Pay 4 x 12$ to be a Roundtable member from January to April (4 meetings, $12 per meal). Saves you time as no RSVP will be required each month. No refunds for missing a meeting. If you can’t attend, please consider sending a colleague in your place. Your reservation will be given up at 12:10 if no one attends in your place.
2) RSVP. Place a reservation by phone to 259-3583 or by email to GBR@sanjuancitizens.org by 9:00 AM the Monday preceding the Roundtable. Payment commitment is implied with your reservation. Your reservation will be given up at 12:10 if no one attends to take your reservation, but we will contact you regarding payment.
3) Take Your Chances. We will plan on five guests and others without reservations for immediate seating at noon. At 12:10 we will release reserved seats not yet claimed by reservations.
Block Reservation Form
Name(s) ____________________________________________________________________________
Business Name _______________________________________________________________________
Mailing Address ______________________________________________________________________
Email Address (optional) _______________________________________________________________
City, State, Zip ____________________________________ Vegetarian Meal Meat Meal
Please make check out to “San Juan Citizens Alliance” and mail to PO Box 2461, Durango, CO 81302. Purchasing your block reservation prior to the September luncheon is preferable (to reduce time waiting in line), but there will be a chance to buy at September’s luncheon – please come 10 minutes early to do so. Block reservations may be purchased throughout the season for remaining meetings.
Become a Sponsor! Help our parent organization, the San Juan Citizens Alliance, offset the GBR costs of photocopying, postage, guaranteeing luncheon attendance, and staff time. Contact Carol Clark at 259-3583 or carolclark@frontier.net. Thank you!
Click here to RSVP for the Green Business Roundtable online:
http://www.sanjuancitizens.org/GBR.shtml
San Juan Citizens Alliance
PO Box 2461
Durango, CO 81302
ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED
BELOW IS A COMPLETE LIST OF GUEST SPEAKERS TO THE GBR:
2002 SEASON
January 16, 2002, Doing our part: What small business can do for the environment Cheryl Wiescamp Colorado Pollution Prevention Board and Executive Director Durango Nature Studies
February 13, 2002, Investing your values: Independent financial consultant Paul Lemon of Integrated Financial Planning. He will speak on investing with your values, explaining how to invest while upholding your social and environmental values.
March 13, 2002, Preserving the nighttime environment: An introduction to protecting our heritage of dark skies through quality outdoor lighting. Presentation provided by www.darksky.org presentation by Kent Ford
April 4, 2002, Dave Foreman on Wilderness Advocacy: Foreman has worked as a wilderness advocate since 1971. From 1973 to 1980, he worked for the Wilderness Society as Southwest Regional Representative in New Mexico and Director of Wilderness Affairs in Washington, D.C. From 1982 to 1988, he was editor of the Earth First! Journal. After splitting off from Earth First! in 1990, he became a co-founder, board member and chairman of The Wildlands Project and serves as publisher of the Project’s journal Wild Earth. He is also a member of the board of directors of the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance.
April 10, 2002, The Path to Sustainable Development: Sustainable Building Consultant Michelle Reott, owner of Earthly Ideas, will speak on "green" development strategies and their benefits for construction, renovation, and day-to-day operations. Come see how these strategies can help provide a healthy and safe workplace, while reducing resource consumption and operating costs. Earthly Ideas helps architects, home and building owners, engineers, and contractors find long term building solutions that meet design and budget requirements as well as social and environmental objectives.
May 15, 2002, The Smiley Building, A Local Case Study – by Charles Shaw: A slide show and talk on how the Shaw brothers have transformed the Smiley Building from one of Durango’s biggest energy hogs to one of the most efficient. The talk covers everything from simple water saving devices, compact florescent and occupancy sensor lighting, to solar hydronic heating and producing electricity with photovoltiacs. Best of all, the talk will include a handout that has a complete list of the best products and where to get them. You will leave with all the info you need to get started saving energy in your own business location.
June 6, 2002, The Environmental Agenda, What a Business Can Do to Make A Difference: Bill Meadows, President of the national organization The Wilderness Society, will speak on the political climate for advancing the environmental agenda, including what a business can do to make a difference. His talk will also explain some of the sustainability features built into the Society headquarters in Washington, DC, and articulate the role of the business community in protecting open space and wilderness. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the Society has eight regional offices across the country, including the Wilderness Support Center here in Durango.
2002-2003 SEASON
September 11th, 2002, The Colorado Business Energy Partnership, Building Improved Energy Management: Heidi VanGenderen, Senior Associate for the Wirth Chair, CU Denver will speak on how the Partnership helps for-profit, non-profit and public sector member develop money saving strategies to boost energy efficiency, and protect Colorado's and the nations climate. A few of the organizations involved in the Partnership include: Coors Brewery, Lockheed Martin, The Denver Post, the City and County of Denver, URS Corporation, Samsonite Corporation, Oakwood Homes, and the Colorado Energy Assistance Foundation.
Ms. VanGenderen has a twenty-year work history in environmental sustainability and energy issues. She has worked with a broad range of organizations ranging from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to the Business Council for Sustainable Development, as well as with universities and the NGO community.
October 9th, 2002, Energy Efficient Building Strategies as an Investment: This presentation will look at some considerations and strategies for improving the energy usage performance for residential or small commercial buildings, and the investment return you can expect. Guest speaker Mike Frisoni is an engineer and building science consultant focusing on energy efficiency and air quality control for residential and small commercial buildings. His company is Annadel Building Solutions, LLC.
November 13th, 2002, Transferable Development Rights: A primer on how TDRs allow local governments to preserve a community's rural character, and natural, historic and scenic resources. Hear how TDRs could protect property values and accommodate growth in a manner that enhances our tourist based economy. Guest speaker Tom Maynard is a member of the American Planning Association and its professional branch, the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP). As a Principal of Four Corners Planning and Design Group, he has prepared comprehensive plans and trails plans for many communities in western Colorado, including for the City of Fruita, which recently received an award from the Colorado Chapter of the American Planning Association. The Fruita plan included a TDR program which is now being implemented. He recently co-authored an article on a new approach to TDR that was published in a national planning periodical. Tom is now developing a TDR demonstration program for the City of Durango and La Plata County.
December 11th, 2002, A Local Case Study for Sustainable Building Techniques, Turning an Eyesore into a Gem: The Durango Discovery Museum is a new science and energy museum to be housed in Durango's historic Power House on Camino Del Rio. The project includes rehabilitating the old building and turn-of-the-century equipment and employing sustainable building techniques to showcase energy technologies past, present, and future. Project Manager Jeff Vierling will present plans for the new museum and discuss its relevance for every local business owner.
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Started Project: The 2002 Green Business Leadership Award 2002 winner the Smiley Building
Presented as part of DACRA annual awards - recognizing the business that demonstrates leadership, risk, and innovation in utilizing environmentally responsible, healthy, and profitable business practices.
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December 14th, 2002, Renewable Energy Workshop: LPEA History of Electricity in La Plata County, Net Metering, and an outlook for the future will be discussed. There will also be a talk on Renewable Energy Basics and a Solar Demonstration. We will discuss the importance and logistics of doing an energy audit for your home or business and talk about practical and simple changes that can be made to a business or home. There will be a hands on demonstration of a solar set up. The Solar set up is an initial investment kit for someone to get started with solar for the lowest initial investment. We will conclude with a panel discussion.
January 8th, 2003, Sustainable Features of the Fort Lewis College Student Life Center: This presentation will explain how the SLC joined the short list of large sustainability oriented buildings in the four corners area. Goals stated upfront included minimizing consumption of limited resources and minimizing pollution by utilizing energy as a resource, and not a pollutant. Our guest speakers include Jack Krider Director of SLC, and Michael Rendon of the Environmental Center, and Robert Lea, project manager for Colorado Jaynes Construction, Inc. Their presentation gives a behind the scenes look at the building's design process and construction. For more see http://envcenter.fortlewis.edu/SLC/
February 12th, 2003, Five for Five ... Green Business Leaders for five minutes each: Hear about each of the 5 nominees for the Chamber of Commerce Green Business Leadership Award. Each nominee will give a three minute overview of the greener aspects of their business, then answer questions from the audience. Through PowerPoint, we will learn about each of the nominees and their contributions to the community. Come network, learn, and congratulate all of them! The nominees were:
The Abbey Theater – Host for environmental films, fundraisers, and educational events.
Phoenix Recycling – La Plata County’s top notch recycler.
Sunnyside Meats, Inc. – Local livestock harvesting plant and how it helps the local community.
Smiley Building – The building’s transformation from energy hog to model efficiency.
Fort Lewis College Student Life Center – How FLC approached sustainability.
Additionally, local environmental artist Shan Wells will speak about his development of the Green Business Leadership Award traveling trophy.
March 12th, 2003, Xeriscaping: Water efficient landscaping using more drought tolerant plants, less bluegrass, drip irrigation and other water saving techniques will be discussed. Guest speaker Sherry Fuller is the author of the Green Thumbs and Dirty Fingernails column in the Durango Herald and is co-owner of Cliffrose, a garden center in Cortez.
April 9th, 2003, The Multiplier Effect: The benefit of keeping money local. The presentation will address the money multiplier effect in a community and the effects of money leaking out of the community and what causes leakage. Guest speaker Clyde Church is a management consultant and field engineer with MAMTC (Mid-America Manufacturing Technology Center) branch office at the Small Business Development Center at Fort Lewis College.
May 14th, 2003, The market for local food in La Plata County: The topic includes reasons to buy locally produced goods to help sustain local ag, the 2003 Durango Farmers Market, and the recently completed feasibility study for the shared use commercial kitchen incubator. Guest speaker Greg Vlaming is a Colorado State University Cooperative Extension Agent and Administrative Director of the Durango Farmers Market.
2003-2004 SEASON
September 10th, 2003, A Virtual Solar Tour: Preview homes and businesses on the Solar Tour here in La Plata County, our own part of the American Solar Energy Society National Solar Tour. The tour allows people to see for themselves how solar can be affordable, comfortable, and practical. With the Durango area enjoying over 300 days of sunshine a year, it is refreshing to see a sample of homes and businesses that take advantage of a southern sun to keep heating bills low. Guest speaker Paul Senecal helps coordinate the LaPlata County solar tour, and resides in a solar home in Rafter J.
October 8th, 2003: BP Production’s Move into Alternative Energy: Come hear Dan Larson speaking on why BP is investing heavily in alternative energy and how this will give them an advantage over other energy companies in the future. Guest speaker Dan Larson is Director of Public Affairs for BP America Production Company, Durango, CO.
October 29th, 2003, How to help people understand and change their energy consumption habits:
Guest speaker Randy Udall is director of the Community Office for Resource Efficiency (CORE), a nonprofit organization that promotes energy efficiency and renewable energy. CORE promotes renewable energy and energy efficiency in partnership with Holy Cross Energy, a rural electric utility serving 40,000 customers. Holy Cross leads the U.S. in the percentage of its customers who buy wind power. Holy Cross has more grid-connected photovoltaic systems than any of the 930 rural electric utilities in the nation. Holy Cross’ wind, solar, and hydropower programs will keep 500 million pounds of greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere over the next 20 years. In 2000, CORE started the nation’s first Renewable Energy Mitigation Fund, which has collected $1,000,000 in building permit fees to install renewable energy systems.
December 10th, 2003, Sustainable Building Strategies: Guest speaker Glen Harcourt is one of the inspiring (and humorous) visionaries behind Steeprock Joinery, a solar powered artisans guild located just outside of Telluride. Steeprock's projects include everything from custom solar powered homes, to business remodels, wetland wastewater systems, and custom furniture. Steeprock's mission is to develop and implement practical sustainable building strategies and to foster conscientious craftsmanship as a foundation for progressive steps to sustainable living.
January 14th, 2004, Sustainable Economic Development: In the past year, a local study circle developed guiding principles for Sustainable Economic Development in our area, with many discussions addressing green-environmental-sustainable issues relevant to the Roundtable. These include development of strategies & solutions including transportation, renewable energy sources, maximizing the multiplier effect, growing and selling food locally, and environmental issues. This study circle was convened by Operation Healthy Communities, and is seeking feedback on their definition and guiding principles, so as to be reflective of our broader community. Tami Graham, the facilitator of the study circle process, will present the groups findings and give an update of current activities.
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The 2003 Green Business Leadership Award 2003 winner Sunnyside Meats
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February 11th, 2004, Global Warming, Regional Impacts, and Possible Responses: Scientific consensus attributes the warming of the last 20 years substantially to human activities, primarily fossil fuel burning. Policy responses range from the Kyoto Protocol, to regional initiatives under the auspices of the international Cities for Climate Protection program. What can we do locally to address our contributions to this problem and to catalyze regional responses? Guest Speaker: Dick White, Prof. Emeritus of Astronomy, Smith College, member of Green House Network speakers bureau, and certified by Zero Emissions Research and Initiatives.
March 10th, 2004, The Triple Bottom Line Challenge: The “triple bottom line” of people-planet-profit encourages companies to put an environmental perspective into their planning. Come hear an overview of trends in corporate social responsibility and sustainable development and discuss implications for improving the triple bottom line for local businesses. Guest Speaker Katherine Holt established Peakinsight LLC to impact how business will operate profitably and evolve sustainably in the future. As a ZERI practitioner, she promotes the adoption of practices to eliminate waste and achieve triple bottom line results.
April 7th, 2004, Exploring Permaculture: The presentation will examine examples of Permaculture, and look at the meaning behind the Oakhaven motto: "Think, Grow, Eat & Buy Locally." Discover the ethics and principles at the core of permaculture, such as "Integrating rather than Segregating."Guest speaker: Tom Riesing, a former investment banker. Tom, alongwith his partner Christie Berven operate Oakhaven Permaculture Center (oakhavenpc.org) near Hesperus.
May 12th, 2004, Possibilities: GBR Season Finale Possibilities: People friendly urban planning from Buildings to Bike paths - A Compilation of Inspiring Examples. This rousing presentation is assembled by Roundtable regulars Kent Ford and Charles Shaw.
2004-2005 SEASON
September 8th, 2004, Recycling Opportunities and Challenges for Businesses: Presented by Mark Thompson and Alex Arribau of Phoenix Recycling and Jeff Baker of Steamworks. Learn about how your business can make a difference through implementing a recycling program and/or buying recycled products.
October 13th, 2004, Biodiesel in Durango: This presentation will explain Brennan Oil’s recent addition of Blue Sun Biodiesel to several local stations, focusing on their decision process, and the pros and cons of biodiesel blends. Come learn more about this clean burning alternative fuel, produced from domestic, renewable resources. Guest speaker Kyle McCracken is a 25-year veteran at Brennan Oil and has extensive personal experience with biodiesel. In addition, Roy Petersen, Manager of Facilities and Equipment for the City of Durango, will give an update on the city’s short history with biodiesel. Since early July all city vehicles that use diesel have switched to the biodiesel blend.
November 10th, 2004, Lighting Efficiency Opportunities for Businesses: This presentation will focus upon lighting efficiency opportunities commonly found in small commercial buildings. Discussion will include accepted lighting levels for a given task and appropriate energy consumption to achieve that design. Simple calculations will be illustrated that will help to determine the efficiency of your own lighting systems and the potential for a lighting retrofit. Lighting is typically 40% to 50% of total commercial building electrical consumption and as such, offers one of the largest opportunities for energy conservation. Guest speaker Jeremy Rivera, of Quest Energy Group, is a licensed engineer with over 15 years of experience in the field of energy efficient building design.
December 8th, 2004, Selling Local Products: Holly Zink, Sunnyside Farms Market
Multi-generation Durango native, Holly Zink, believes it is vitally important to support locally sustainable agriculture and the western ranching tradition. As the owner of Sunnyside Farms Market, Holly is practicing her belief by marketing locally raised agricultural products. Come listen to Holly’s inspirational talk!
January 12th, 2005, Hybrid Vehicles - The Basics of Hybrids: Hybrid cars combine two or more sources of power to become the most fuel efficient cars on the road. Guest speaker Mike Rockos, of Hanson Honda will explain how hybrids work, and how they help to reduce America's dependency on foreign oil and reduce emissions. Hear about current tax incentives for purchase and future technologies on the way.
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The 2004 Green Business Leadership Award 2004 winner Phoenix Recycling
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February 9th, 2005, City of Durango Environmental Initiatives: Linda Lewis, Management Assistant in the City Manager's Office, will present a broad overview of the City's green policies and actions. Attendees will see that although government tends to move slowly, many positive steps have been taken toward being more sustainable. From biodiesel to wind energy to recycled paper to a green building resolution, all City departments continue to learn more and act on reducing our impact on the environment.
March 9th, 2005, Local Foods, Growing, Buying, and Supplying: Alison Dance, owner & operator of Cyprus Café, & Katrina Blair, founder of Turtle Lake Refuge, discuss the realities of buying & supplying local foods to businesses in Durango. In addition, they will provide tips on how to integrate local foods into our daily habits.
April 7th, 2005, Ecological Design & Business Innovation: with special guest speaker – world renowned John Todd. A “visionary biologist” in the field of ecological design, Todd’s ideas have nearly always taken shape in alternative technology. Much of his work (in 6 countries and 10 states) has been devoted to food production or to wastewater processing. John Todd was featured as a Time Magazine Hero for the Planet in 2004. His books include Reinhabiting Cities & Towns: Designing for Sustainability (1981) and From Eco-cities to Living Machines (1994).
May 10th, 2005, LPEA Environmental Initiatives: Speakers David Waller and Dan Harms, LPEA will speak about Net Metering: Connect your renewable energy generation source to LPEA's electric grid and spin your meter backwards. They will discuss the status report on Colorado's Amendment 37 compromise legislation (SB05-143) and how it will affect LPEA's Green Power Program. USDA agricultural and rural small business renewable energy grants/loans will also be covered.
2005-2006 SEASON
September 13th, 2005, The Energy Audit: a case study: Presentation of results of a case study energy audit performed on a local business, with economic and practical consideration of the results. Appropriate for any business interested in auditing its own energy consumption. Audit consultation conducted by: Mark Stetz 385-4932 of Nexant and Walt Venable of Alternative Engineering.
October 12th, 2005, Dick White by the Alliance for Sustainability of Southwest Colorado
Sustainability; How It Applies to La Plata County and the Four Corners Region: Practical examples of building community by keeping money in the local economy: supporting local businesses, connecting local agricultural producers with local markets, reducing energy costs with renewables and conservation, and more. Projects of the Alliance for Sustainability update. The economic benefits of using local products and of energy conservation. Specifically, rather than farm-to-school, we are looking at specifics of local food production and how that can contribute to the vitality of the local economy. In addition, we plan to mention two other topics more briefly, probably use of local lumber and on energy efficiency in buildings.
November 9th, 2005, Electronics Disposal: Many common products fit the Hazardous Material category with one or more of these characteristics: Toxicity, Corrosively, Reactivity. Learn the impacts of improper disposal, and where to dispose properly. The presentation cover state laws on recycling of eWaste. Annie Pollett and Nancy Andrews of the City of Durango Resource Conservation office.
December 14th, 2005, Panel Discussion “Greening the Doctors Office”: A case study by Durango’s leading Doctors implementing new and old ideas and technologies. This presentation includes ideas applicable to ANY business office. With Panelists: Dr Art Zemach, Pediatric Partners of the Southwest, Dr Pakhi Chaudhuri,Pediatric Associates of DurangoDr Bill Palko-Schraa, Spiral Health Clinic.
January 11th, 2006, Simple Steps for your office, store, or home; Putting Theory into Practice: Guest speaker Michael Rendon has served as director of the Environmental Center at Fort Lewis for five years. This is his last Durango appearance before leaving to travel around the world by ship, train, and other eco-friendly transportation.
February 15th, 2006, Sustainable Community Development efforts in the West and Beyond: This will include the myriad policies, programs, and entrepreneurial endeavors in communities around the west that affect multiple resource use and systems– energy, land, transportation, materials. The special guest speaker is Heidi VanGenderen, Wirth Chair in Environmental and Community Development Policy at the University of Colorado at Denver.
Ms. VanGenderen has a twenty-year work history in environmental sustainability and energy issues, focusing on how for-profit, non-profit and public sectors develop money saving strategies to boost more efficient use of natural resources. She has focused significantly on the issues of energy and climate change during her tenure at the University of Colorado. Prior to that she worked with a broad range of organizations ranging from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to the Colorado Environmental Coalition, as well as with universities and the NGO community.
March 8th, 2006, Put Your Money Where Your House Is!: Why locally owned independent businesses are important to communities. Peter Schertz of Maria’s Bookshop and Mike Hurst of Carver Brewing.
April 12th, 2006, Wind Powering the Southwest: Special Guest Lawrence Flowers, National Technical Director of Wind Powering America (USDOE) and the Team Leader for the Wind Technology Center (NREL). His talk will address: What’s needed for small wind, large wind regional viability, data collection for microclimates, how to get involved and support large-scale projects. Larry Flowers, director of Wind Powering America at the National Renewable Energy Lab. His talk will address: Small wind, what’s needed, Large wind, may not be viable
May 10th, 2006, Greening our getting around: Public transit systems are becoming an increasingly important factor in the development of sustainable communities throughout the United States. Hope Bleecker (City of Durango Transit Manager) will discuss the Durango Transit System, its recent ridership increases, use of alternative fuel, and future strategies for helping build and promote a successful alternative transit system in Durango.
2006-2007 SEASON
September 13th, 2006, Smart Growth and Sustainable Development: A master planned community defines a comprehensive sustainable program incorporating community-wide best management practices, Built Green Colorado and LEED building strategies to improve energy efficiency and water conservation efforts. Guest speaker is Keith Walzak: Planning and Design Director for Three Springs Neighborhood.
October 11th, 2006, Greener Hospitality and Events, Kirk Komick, Rochester Hotel: A charter member for the Green Hotels Association since 1994, the Leland House and Rochester Hotel, has been a leader in helping the hospitality industry with greener lodging alternatives. Their talk shares the proven benefits of moving towards sustainability as an everyday commitment, including the practice of resource-conservation and the utilization of non-toxic cleaning products. Guest Speakers: Karin Martin, Dana Burkholder, Art Bradley, Talia Ernest, Christina Ferrarese, and Kirk Komick (owner)
November 8th, 2006, Energy efficiency as a resource: Across the U.S., electric and natural gas utilities are now investing more then $2 billion per year in energy efficiency programs to reduce their customers’ energy consumption. This topic explains why utilities pay their customers to use less energy, and offers some leading examples of innovative energy efficiency programs around the country. It concludes with a look at opportunities within our own community to save money and prevent pollution through energy efficiency programs. Our guest speaker is Chris Calwell, who is the Director of Policy and Research at Ecos Consulting’s Durango office.
December 13th, 2006, The Economics of Sustainability: An introduction to how economists analyze individual behavior with respect to the environment and natural resources. The presentation will use the proposed Desert Rock power plant to illustrate how individual, and social, behavior, positively and negatively, impacts private and social welfare. We will also talk about how policy can make things worse and/or better.
Guest speaker is Dr. Robert (Tino) Sonora, with the School of Business Administration at Fort Lewis College.
January 10th, 2007, Peak Oil Update: Come hear the most current available information about the evolving peak oil and natural gas challenges and “intelligent responses” to the challenge. Topics include: geological and political constraints to our understanding of oil and gas resource depletion, the economic challenges in an environment of decreasing energy supplies, local realities, and net energy (also known as energy return on energy invested).
Special Guest: Steve Andrews, co-founder Association for the Study of Peak Oil
February 14th, 2007, Farm to School and the Local food system: The Southwest Colorado Farm to School program strives to connect schools with local farms with the objectives of serving healthy meals in school cafeterias, improving student nutrition, and supporting local small farmers. Also for discussion is the action plan for strengthening the local food system in La Plata County, including the process of connecting local businesses with local suppliers and processors. Guest speaker is Jim Dyer, longtime local foods and agriculture promoter.
March 14th, 2007, Solar Opportunities Get energy from the sun for your business!: Hear an overview of the more viable forms of renewable energy in the Four Corners. The focus will be the usage of photovoltaics, getting electricity from the sun, along with the various benefits and things that must be looked at when installing photovoltaic systems. The presentation will include a case study outlining local and state incentives and federal tax credits. Guest Speaker Tom Munson is the Renewable Energy Program Coordinator at San Juan College in Farmington. Before coming to San Juan College he worked as an engineer designing and selling photovoltaic systems in California. He is a licensed engineer and has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from New Mexico State University.
April 11th, 2007, Special Guest: Scott Case, The Responsible-Green Purchaser: What exactly does it mean to “buy green,” and can it really make a difference? Are governments and Fortune 500 companies serious about cleaning up their acts? Hear an insider’s view from internationally recognized expert Scot Case, who will discuss his involvement with the green purchasing movement and how individuals and institutions can redirect their purchasing in ways that can help, not harm, the planet.
Scot has more than a dozen years of professional experience in the area of responsible sourcing. Now a private consultant, he conducts full-day responsible purchasing training sessions and also consults directly with organizations seeking to create additional value by improving their environmental and social performance. Recent clients have included the World Bank, the U.S. EPA, the University of Miami, the cities of Portland and Seattle, the government of the Philippines, and scores of private sector companies including Wal-Mart, Microsoft, Starbucks, and Hewlett Packard.
