November, 2009
Jean Lasee, MAOM
In the past month, I experienced several great learning opportunities by attending
two "green" conferences-- Solar Power International in Anaheim, CA and GreenBuild
in Phoenix, AZ. Even though I spend considerable time reviewing green blogs,
newsletters and magazines to keep up with trends, I find face-to-face discussions
with other people to be most valuable in learning about what is going on in the
industry.
"Buzz" Conferences
Both conference were enormous with over 20,000 people visiting from all over
the country and the world. Each had large exhibit floors and vendors trying
to convince me how their product saves the planet. I admit I find this kind of
networking to be physically and emotionally gruelling. My feet and back protested
from carrying mounds of literature.I used the interaction time with the vendors to
expalin the value that I create helping organizations become more sustainable.
At the end of it all, I discovered some gems of information and some people that
I will follow up on in the near future.
Each conference had considerable "buzz" in the air-- the energy of innovative
thinking was everywhere. When I think back on some of my past corporate
roles where making improvements or thinking outside of the box was discouraged,
I found this new mindset refreshing and motivating.
World Class Speakers
GreenBuild is the first national conference that I ever attended in Phoenix and
it was a world-class event. The evening of Wednesday, November 11th, CEO
and Founding Chairman of the U.S. Green Building Council Rick Fedrizzi, as
well as former Vice President Al Gore spoke about green building issues. Both
men are outstanding speakers and have considerable passion around their beliefs.
Instead of hearing doom and gloom over our economic downturn, I listened to
stories about an industry that is creating jobs, while making a positive difference
in our society and communities.
Finally, an international touch to the evening included short presentations from
representatives of several nations outside of the U.S. They described green
building efforts in their countries. Often their needs and solutions are very
different from what the United States hopes to accomplish through its green
building efforts.
Well, I must get back to processing all my brochures, business cards, and
new ideas. Fortunately, I love to learn!
Talk to you later.
Jean
© 2009
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