KEYNOTE SPEAKERS AND PANELS, Wildflower Pavilion

FRIDAY, Sept. 28

LOCAL LIVING ECONOMIES: GREEN, FAIR, AND FUN, by Judy Wicks, White Dog Café and BALLE. Both an entrepreneur and activist, Judy tells her story beginning from her early experience living with indigenous people, to starting the White Dog Cafe on the first floor of her house 25 years ago, to co-founding the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies in 2001. A critical turning point came when Judy realized that she must move beyond responsible business practices within her own company to work cooperatively with other entrepreneurs and community leaders to build entire local economies based on fair practices, love of nature and vibrant community life. Judy Wicks, owner of Philadelphia’s 25-year-old White Dog Cafe, is the co-founder of the national Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE), and founder of the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia. She is also founder/president of White Dog Community Enterprises, a non-profit dedicated to building a local living economy in the Philadelphia region. (12:15 – 1:00 p.m.)

GOING GREEN: GOOD FOR BUSINESS, by Dan King, Ambassador of Cool, Boulder Boutlook Hotel & Suites. (1:00 – 1:30 p.m.)

THE FUTURE OF INDEPENDENT LOCALLY-OWNED BUSINESS IN BOULDER COUNTY, with the founders of Boulder County Independent Business Alliance (BIBA): David Bolduc (Boulder Bookstore), David Hight (McGuckin Hardware), Stewart Sallo (Boulder Weekly), Jeff Milchen (American Independent Business Alliance). Moderated by Jennifer Johnson, Executive Director of BIBA. (1:30 – 2:30 p.m.)

A MOVEMENT BORN IN BOULDER: How BIBA sparked dozens of local Alliances that are helping entrepreneurs beat corporate chains and revitalize communities across the country, by Jeff Milchen, American Independent Business Alliance. This presentation highlights why independent business ownership is crucial to local economic prosperity, community vitality and democracy and goes on to show how communities and independent business owners are taking on corproate chains and winning. Visual examples of innovative materials and campaigns employed by Independent Business Alliances around the country accompany the story of this inspiring and rapidly growing movement. Jeff Milchen is a national leader in helping communities build vital local economies based on independent businesses and preventing corporate chains from displacing local entrepreneurs. After co-founding and directing the pioneering Boulder Independent Business Alliance for its first three years, Milchen went on to co-found the American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA)—the national hub for community based organizing to support independent, locally-owned business. AMIBA has helped 40 communities across the country form local IBAs to strengthen and sustain community-based businesses while promoting citizen empowerment over community development. Milchen also is a prominent advocate for democracy and independent business as a writer and speaker. His commentaries and how-to articles have appeared in a wide range of publications including The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, The Ecologist, Adbusters and Inc. Magazine. (3:00 – 3:40 p.m.)

THE TRUTH ABOUT EVERYTHING, by Richard Brenne, filmmaker, speaker, author of The Truth About Everything. Richard pulls back, looks at the truly big picture and takes a holistic view of climate change, peak oil and related energy issues, population growth and social justice, finding solutions in the biggest change of consciousness our species has ever attempted. Richard Brenne is an award-winning screenwriter whose recently completed book has the humble, modest title "The Truth About Everything." His book, blog, podcast, documentary, feature film, talks and town meetings all share the same message that we need to build sustainable lives, communities and a global civilization ASAP, or else. (3:40 – 4:10 p.m.)

PEAK OIL: WHEN AND THEN WHAT? by Steve Andrews, ASPO-USA. This presentation seeks to establish the backdrop for our emerging peak oil and peak gas predicaments. There are uncertainties about the "when" question and peak oil; this talk will delve into the drivers pushing us towards a peak, while acknowledging those factors that could push back (or even disguise) a peak. There are major problems with our current Plan B—the search for demand reduction and alternative fuels. Both of these Plan B elements will be discussed with a national context, to help frame the local responses. Steve Andrews co-foundered ASPO-USA (the Association for the Study of Peak Oil & Gas) in 2005, after two decades of following the peak oil story. Prior to 2005, he consulted and wrote about demand-side issues for a range of clients: home builders, utilities, universities, public TV, non-profits, trade magazines and newspapers. (4:10 – 4:40 p.m.)

PEAK EVERYTHING: WAKING UP TO THE CENTURY OF DECLINES, by Richard Heinberg, Post Carbon Institute. The world faces a peak not only in oil production, but in natural gas, coal, and uranium, as well as declines in the availability of fresh water, topsoil, fish, grain, and many essential minerals and metals. Global population will also peak and decline this century. At the same time, the climate will become much less stable. How can societies adjust during the next decades? What are the most likely scenarios, and what are our best options for preserving as much of nature as possible while minimizing human suffering? Richard Heinberg is the author of eight books including The Party’s Over, Powerdown, The Oil Depletion Protocol, and Peak Everything. He is a Core Faculty member of New College, and a Fellow of the Post Carbon Institute. He is widely regarded as one of the world’s foremost Peak Oil educators. (5:00 – 6:00 p.m.)

LOCAL RENAISSANCE: CREATING A THRIVING ECONOMY, HEALTHY CLIMATE, AND ENERGY SECURITY THROUGH RELOCALIZATION, by Julian Darley, Post Carbon Institute. The twentieth century saw an extraordinary change in the way that society obtained its vital goods. Products became ever more complex, supply chains ever longer, finance ever more concentrated. As more and more production has left America, money has increasingly been used for speculation rather than for supplying human needs. We call this system Globalization. It is built on a foundation of endless oil, gas and coal, and endless places to put our wastes. We now see that this system is not sustainable and that climate and energy uncertainty will mean that the 21st century looks increasingly different from the 20th. To meet this new challenge, Julian calls for a local renaissance. Darley will discuss specific opportunities for sustainable enterprises leading to a thriving post carbon regional economy built on local production, local energy and environmental recovery. Julian Darley, the founder of Post Carbon Institute, is the author of High Noon for Natural Gas: the New Energy Crisis (2004) and coauthor of the forthcoming Relocalize Now! Getting Ready for Climate Change and the End of Cheap Oil. Julian has an MSc in Environment and Social Research from University of Surrey in the UK, an MA in Journalism and Communications from the University of Texas at Austin, and a BA in Music & Russian. Julian currently lives in Sebastopol, California, USA. (6:00 – 6:45 p.m.)

POST CARBON CITIES—PLANNING FOR ENERGY AND CLIMATE UNCERTAINTY, by Daniel Lerch, Post Carbon Institute. Peak oil and global warming threaten changes at the global, regional and local levels that we cannot easily predict. For local governments --responsible for managing local public services, planning for future land use and transportation, and protecting the community’s economic and social health-- this uncertainty creates a wide variety of risks and vulnerabilities. Post Carbon Institute program manager Daniel Lerch --author of "Post Carbon Cities," the first major municipal guidebook on these issues-- describes what peak oil and global warming really mean for cities of any size, and what local decision-makers can do in response. Daniel Lerch is the author of Post Carbon Cities, the first major municipal guidebook on peak oil and global warming. Daniel is a program manager with Post Carbon Institute, and has worked on urban planning issues for over ten years in the public, private and non-profit sectors. (6:45 – 7:30 p.m.)

THE POWER OF COMMUNITY: HOW CUBA SURVIVED PEAK OIL, documentary film by Faith Morgan, The Community Solution. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990, Cuba's economy went into a tailspin. With imports of oil cut by more than half—and food by 80 percent—people were desperate. This film tells of the hardships and struggles as well as the community and creativity of the Cuban people during this difficult time. Cubans share how they transitioned from a highly mechanized, industrial agricultural system to one using organic methods of farming and local, urban gardens. It is an unusual look into the Cuban culture during this economic crisis, which they call "The Special Period." The film opens with a short history of Peak Oil, a term for the time in our history when world oil production will reach its all-time peak and begin to decline forever. Cuba, the only country that has faced such a crisis – the massive reduction of fossil fuels – is an example of options and hope. The Power of Community is a project of The Community Solution, a non-profit organization that designs and teaches low-energy solutions to the current unsustainable, fossil fuel based, industrialized, and centralized way of living. Visit www.communitysolution.org for more information. (7:30 p.m.)

SATURDAY, Sept. 29

BOULDER MEETS CLIMATE AND ENERGY CHALLENGES, with Mark Ruzzin, Mayor;Yael Gichon, Climate Action Plan Team; Chris Hagelin, GO Boulder. Mark Ruzzin was first elected to the Boulder City Council in November 2001, and re-elected in November 2003. He was appointed mayor by the city council in September 2004, and reappointed in November 2005. Ruzzin currently serves as the city council’s representative to the U.S. 36 Mayors and Commissioners Coalition, the Metro Mayors Caucus, and the Boulder County Consortium of Cities. He also serves on the city council’s evaluation committee. Yael Gichon joined the CAP team in March, 2006. Yael coordinates energy sustainability programs in the residential sector. Yael has a background in renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable agriculture, and ecology. Chris Hagelin is a Senior Transportation Planner for the city of Boulder and GO Boulder, the city's alternative transportation planning department. His focus is on transportation demand management and reducing the use of single-occupant vehicle travel. Prior to joining the city in April 2007, he was a Senior Research Associate for the Center for Urban Transportation Research in Tampa, Florida. (9:30 – 10:10 a.m.)

A SUSTAINABLE BOULDER COUNTY, with Ann Livingston, Sustainability Coordinator, Boulder County; and Will Toor, Boulder County Commissioner. Boulder County is committed to creating a sustainable community. The County has completed a greenhouse gas inventory and mitigation report that identify the sources of greenhouse gases in the county and projected GHG emissions based on historical data and trends as well as strategies for reducing GHG emissions. Boulder County has also adopted a Sustainability Initiative, including resolutions to reduce GHG emissions and achieve zero waste. The County has initiated a number of diverse projects and programs in support of these resolutions. Ann Livingston is the Sustainablity Coordinator for Boulder County. She is responsible for coordinating the County’s efforts to become more sustainable as a community and as an organization. Ann’s background is in environmental law and policy; she has worked to create sustainable communities through positions in the non-profit, academic, private, and government sectors. Will Toor was elected to the Board of County Commissioners in 2004. He currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Board. He is a founding member of the US 36 Mayors' and Commissioners' Coalition, and is actively involved in efforts to get funding for the locally preferred alternative for US 36, which includes commuter rail, bus rapid transit, a bikeway, and road improvements. He represents Boulder County on the Denver Regional Council of Governments (which he chaired in 2005). Will currently chairs the Boulder County Regional Transit Committee. Will spearheads the County's environmental sustainability initiative. Under his leadership, the County adopted two resolutions on sustainability and zero waste, and is now developing programs and policies designed to reduce energy waste and transition to renewable energy sources. (10:10 – 10:50 a.m.)

USING LOCAL RESOURCES FOR LOCAL BENEFIT IN RENEWABLE ENERGY AND ENERGY EFFIENCY, by Ravi Malhotra, iCAST (International Center for Appropriate and Sustainable Technology). Ravi will cover the iCAST model for community development. The iCAST model brings academia, government and industry experts together with community members to address problems. Using iCAST projects as case studies, Ravi will explore the barriers and opportunities behind local economic development. As Executive Director of iCAST, Ravi Malhotra and his staff partner with communities to apply their business-building experience and knowledge of technology to projects that promote local sustainability. In the past 20 years, Ravi has accumulated experience helping small entrepreneurial firms. His vision can be seen in the Western Governor’s Association Solar & BioEnergy Task Force roadmap for 30,000MW of clean energy in the western states, which he helped create. (10:50 – 11:20 a.m.)

COLORADO’S NEW ENERGY ECONOMY, by Tom Plant, Governor's Energy Office, State of Colorado. Tom Plant is the Director of the Governor’s Energy Office and was appointed by Governor Bill Ritter in 2007. Prior to GEO, Tom served as the executive director of the Center for ReSource Conservation. The non-profit implements a variety of programs focused on energy efficiency, renewable energy, water conservation, green building and construction waste reduction. Tom served as Colorado House District 13 Representative from 1998 through 2006 including two years as Chairman of the House Appropriations committee and one year as Chairman of the Joint Budget Committee. Among the key pieces of legislation he sponsored: Prescription Drug Fairness Act; the Colorado Renewable Energy Act, which later formed the basis for Amendment 37; and energy efficiency tax-incentive legislation. He was named Legislator of the Year by organizations such as the University of Colorado and the Sierra Club of Colorado, was the recipient of Colorado Conservation Voters’ “Green Sense Award for Environmental Leadership” and received the “Champion of the Family Farmer” award from the Rocky Mountain Farmers’ Union. Tom worked in the Climate Change department of the Union of Concerned Scientists in Washington, DC. At UCS, he explored the causes of global climate change and examined transportation and energy solutions to reduce the emissions contributing to climate change. Prior to UCS, and after graduating from Colorado State University, Tom worked as an exploration Geologist.Tom has traveled around the world and taught school in Central America. In 1994, Tom and his wife Dawn Dennison established The Acoustic Coffeehouse in Nederland which became known nationally as a community gathering place and for the many famous musicians who played in the small living room setting. Tom & Dawn ran the coffeehouse for seven years, selling the business in 2001. Tom lives in Nederland with his wife Dawn, dog Fergus, and a horse named Chester. (11:20 a.m. – noon)

RELOCALIZATION: MAKING FRIENDS WITH AN UNTHINKABLE FUTURE, by Michael Brownlee, Boulder Valley Relocalization. The goal of the Relocalization effort is to prepare our community for greater self-sufficiency in a carbon-constrained future. BVR provides perspective and information on the challenges and opportunities of The Long Emergency (converging global crises of climate change, peak oil, and economic instability), advocates significant reductions of fossil fuel consumption and waste outputs, and serves as a catalyst for achieving community self-sufficiency in food, energy, and economy. Michael Brownlee is co-founder of Boulder Valley Relocalization and Catalyst for Boulder County Going Local, a social venture conducting a county-wide campaign to rebuild community and strengthen the local economy, beginning a ten-year transition to an energy-constrained future. He also serves as Acting President of Boulder County Independent Business Alliance (BIBA). (12:30 – 1:15 p.m.)

ENVISIONING THE POST FOSSIL FUEL WORLD, by Leslie Glustrom, Clean Energy Action. Vaclev Havel, the famous Czech playwrite said that Consciousness Comes Before Being. This talk will help begin the process of envisioning the post fossil fuel world--and explain how we could significantly decarbonize the United States by 2025—if we put our minds and hearts to it and exercise leadership at all levels of our society. Leslie Glustrom is a founding member of Clean Energy Action and has played a leadership role in opposing the new 750 MW coal plant being built in Pueblo to serve the Denver-Boulder area. She has also given many talks about the bright future that awaits us once we break the stranglehold that fossil fuels have on our minds and economy. (1:15 – 2:00 p.m.)

THE TECHNICAL AND HUMAN DIMENSIONS OF GOING LOCAL, by Mark Sardella, Local Energy. Relocalizing the energy supply in your home community seem like a pretty daunting task. Where to begin…transportation? Heating? Electricity? In this hour, I’ll share my experiences from Local Energy’s three-year, $1.8 million effort to build community-based energy systems in Santa Fe. Beyond the technical details of building active heating and electrical distribution networks powered by local, independent energy businesses, and beyond recommending European-style feed-in tariffs and other policies to support those efforts, we’ll also talk about the human aspects, such as how to work with local decision makers and begin changing the story of globalization and monopoly to one of localization and self-reliance. Mark Sardella is a professional engineer and is the Chairman of Local Energy, an organization dedicated to helping communities develop their local energy resources. Under Mark’s direction, Local Energy has carried out more than $2 million in research and projects to better define the relationship between energy and the economy. (2:00 – 2:40 p.m.)

LOCAL SUSTAINABILITY: ECONOMICS FROM THE INSIDE OUT, by Mark Wilding, Naropa University's Marpa Center for Business and Economics. We tend to think that economics is driven from the global to the local. While there are rules and regulations that local economies have to abide by, there are a great many options that we have to shape our own destiny in the Boulder Valley. Our first challenge is to question existing assumptions about what choices we have. Bernard Lietaer, a leading thinker on money and currencies, who lived in the area for several years, often said “in the same way that fish don’t talk about water – we don’t ask fundamental questions about our money or economic systems. Mark Wilding is Director of the Marpa Center for Business and Economics at Naropa University where he teaches graduate and undergraduate courses. Mark also serves as Vice President of CORE Colorado’s Education Fund for Corporate Social Responsibility. In 1985 he helped found a public computer software company and served in several roles until he left as President in 1993. (3:00 – 3:30 p.m.)

SUSTAINABLE ENERGY: GOING LOCAL AND REGIONAL TO POWER THE NEW ENERGY ECONOMY, by Aaron Perry, Rocky Mountain Sustainable Enterprises. As oil reaches its peak and becomes more and more limited, alternatives must be found. Replacing oil will require a modular approach of overlapping technology. Going modular, thinking about energy production on a local and regional level is the way to creatively use the inherent resources a region provides so that we can intelligently power our homes, cars and cities. Aaron Perry will present a practical look at Colorado’s opportunities for energy, with a focus on the very real potential of biodiesel in our communities as well as the growing carbon offset market for companies, individuals, and governments interested in carbon neutrality to offset our warming world. Aaron Perry is the CEO, CFO and co-founder of Rocky Mountain Sustainable Enterprises. RMSE is an oil recycling service active throughout the Front Range and is in the development phase of a Biodiesel production facility of its own. Aaron is RMSE’s voting member on the Colorado Governor's Biofuels Coalition Steering Committee. He also owns Bainbridge Consulting, a financial management and strategic planning service. (3:30 – 4:00 p.m.)

RESOURCES, RELIGION AND WAR—ETHICAL LIVING IN A WORLD IN DECLINE, by Marshall Vian Summers, The Society for the Greater Community Way of Knowledge. As a growing humanity begins to face the reality of living in a world of declining food, energy and water resources, climate change and environmental deterioration, religious radicalism will increase dramatically as national governments find themselves unable to provide for their increasingly needy populations. Competition over the remaining resources will generate contention, conflict and war between tribes, religions and nations. MV Summers will speak on the Great Waves of change that are coming and the intelligent spirituality that we possess, irrespective of our faith traditions, that can counteract religious strife and war and set a new direction for the human family. Marshall Vian Summers is an award-winning author of Greater Community Spirituality and Steps to Knowledge. For the past 25 years, he has been receiving a New Revelation about the deeper nature of human spirituality and the great change facing humanity as we stand at the threshold of space. (4:00 – 5:00 p.m.)

GREEN HEART COMMUNITY INITIATIVES: SHANAHAN TO LYONS, by Diane Dandeneau and Jennifer White, Green Heart Institute. Both individual and cooperative effort will be necessary to promote the broad lifestyle changes that create a future in which everyone can thrive. The Green Heart Institute’s (GHI) Community Initiatives are holistic, place-based educational programs where people work together to learn how to reduce their environmental impact and live a more satisfying and sustainable life. GHI’s programs help individuals develop their own internal motivations for personal change and also encourage groups to develop healthy, local networks of support. Learn about what’s happening now in Boulder County, and how to use these tools to sustain and measure your own community’s progress. Diane Dandeneau is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Boulder-based Green Heart Institute as well as the Director of Colorado Interfaith Power and Light. 25 years ago, Diane sold solar systems and designed, built and lived in a passive solar house. She is a sought-after speaker, and sustainability and energy conservation consultant, and has been trained by Al Gore to provide his Climate Project presentation from the movie "An Inconvenient Truth". Jennifer White is the Co-Founder and Director of Education for the Boulder-based Green Heart Institute and the Executive Director for a national nonprofit, The Simplicity Forum. She and her husband, Jimmy Sferes, also speak and tour nationally as the Eco-Tones, addressing many of these issues through their “Concerts with a Conscience.” (5:20 – 6:00 p.m.)

EARTH, ECONOMY, EQUITY: INTEGRATING GREEN PRINCIPLES IN SMALL BUSINESS, by Mike Johnson, Redirect Guide. As we move into this age of conscientious consumerism, the question is not whether businesses will integrate sustainability into their practices, but rather when it will happen. This presentation will focus on integrating environmentally friendly and socially responsible business practices into local business, as well as marketing and branding considerations to increase the economic benefit of making greener choices. Learn how to leverage sustainability principles to reconnect business with the community. Mike Johnson is the Founder and Co-Publisher of the ReDirect Guide, a sustainable business directory and resource guide with current local editions in the front range of Colorado, Portland, OR and Salt Lake City, UT. A driven entrepreneur and environmental advocate, Mike uses his extensive business experience to develop new products and services, create green jobs, and help sustainability flourish. (6:00 – 6:20 p.m.)

WAKING UP TO HUMANITY’S GREATEST CHALLENGE, by John Feeney, Growth is Madness! This presentation is an unflinching look at the reality of our global ecological plight. Headlines distract us with peripheral issues, the significance of which pales in comparison to the environmental challenge ahead. The media typically ignore or avoid root causes including population growth, corporate economic growth, and our reliance on fossil energy. Why do they avoid these topics, and what can we do to reduce the social impacts sure to result from ecological decline and oil depletion? This talk takes a hard look at these questions. John Feeney, Ph.D., is a Boulder-based environmental writer and activist. Originally trained as a psychologist, his environmentalism began with fighting destructive residential development in a small town where he and his family lived for two years. Today he researches and writes about broader ecological issues. His website is www.growthmadness.org. (6:20 – 6:40 p.m.)

WHAT A WAY TO GO: LIFE AT THE END OF EMPIRE, Rocky Mountain documentary film premiere by Tim Bennett and Sally Erickson. A middle-class white guy comes to grips with Peak Oil, Climate Change, Mass Extinction, Population Overshoot, and the demise of the American lifestyle. A documentary for those who will look, featuring Daniel Quinn, Derrick Jensen, Jerry Mander, Chellis Glendenning, Richard Heinberg, Thomas Berry, Paul Roberts, Richard Manning, William Catton, and Ran Prieur. (7:00 – 9:00 p.m.)

SUNDAY, Sept. 30

A PERMACULTURE PERSPECTIVE: LIVING IN AUTHENTICITY DURING ENERGY DESCENT, by Bill Wilson, Midwest Permaculture. Will you be able to transform your lifestyle, attitudes, and preferences in order to meet your essential needs in the coming years? In a permaculture design, work is minimized, yields (food, energy, income) increase, waste is eliminated and the environment is restored. Will you work with your family, neighbors and community in a manner that will care for people and the planet? Do the problems we will be facing actually point to the solutions? Permaculture offers practical hope for any future that might embrace us. Bill shares his story of how he has transformed the way he looks at food, at work, at people, and at life, and shares the progress of others from the Midwest who have embraced these changes. Bill Wilson is co-owner of Midwest Permaculture with his wife Rebecca. He has explored and implemented many aspects of sustainability during his 29 years of living with intention in a small community. Bill is also a founding director of the non-profit organization, Center for Sustainable Community.(9:30 – 10:00 a.m.)

WHOLENESS SYSTEMS LISTENING—DEFIBRILLATING POSSIBILITY, by Brook LeVan, Sustainable Settings. After a decade in the trenches designing and building a sustainable human settlement, what some call a lifeboat, there is something missing. Something crucial must be revitalized if we are to find our way, if we are to build a durable future. Brook Le Van is Co-founder and Director of Sustainable Settings, a non-profit organization formed to create a shared vision of a sustainable and desirable society, one based on a whole systems approach that provides permanent prosperity within the biophysical constraints of the real world—that is equitable to all of humanity, present and future. (10:00 – 10:30 a.m.)

THE FUTURE OF BOULDER COUNTY’S FOOD SYSTEMS, with Dave Georgis, Everybody Eats!; Dave Carlson, Boulder County Department of Food; Cindy Torres, Boulder County Food and Agricultural Policy Council, and Mark Menagh, Boulder County Farmers’ Markets. As Boulder County prepares itself for increased food self sufficiency over the next 10 years, we need to include people and organizations involved in all aspects of the food system. The Boulder County Food Summit Campaign is designed to bring together those people and organizations and to begin a long term food security planning process. Dave Georgis is the Director of Everybody Eats! and a long time food activist. He has worked on issues including genetic engineering and vegetarianism. Everybody Eats! is an all-volunteer non-profit in Boulder promoting local, sustainable agriculture.Cindy Torres, Boulder County Food and Agriculture Policy Council; manager-Longmont Farmers' Market; farm worker-Red Wagon Organic Farm; Boulder County Small Farm Committee; member Boulder County Strategies for Ending Oppression. For the past 25 years, Dave Carlson has been involved with creating kitchen gardens for low income communities, transplanting fruit trees, and promoting larger community gardens in the local community as an effort to address local food security concerns affecting those who need food most. Mark Menagh is Executive Director of the Boulder County Farmers’ Markets, a non-profit organization dedicated to serve the community by providing a direct market for locally-produced agricultural products. Market members sell directly to residents of the community only locally grown, fresh products. Working with over 100 farmers, food vendors, many community organizations, local commercial enterprises, volunteers and local governments Mark orchestrates these vibrant community events in Boulder and Longmont. Mark’s passion for fresh, local agriculture and his four years with BCFM provide him with an in-depth knowledge of our local sustainable farming community and the community they serve. Adrian Card works with Colorado State University Cooperative Extension in Boulder County as the Agriculture Extension Agent since 2004. Adrian began farming in Northern Colorado in 1993 at Happy Heart Farm CSA in Ft. Collins (first CSA in Colorado) and helped to build organic agriculture programs on and off campus at CSU from 1998-2002. His masters project at CSU dealt with farm to restaurant sales throughout Colorado, with a thesis on the Western Slope apple industry. Prior to his current position he managed the organic farm at the Center for Environmental Farming Systems for North Carolina State University. Adrian is collaborating with colleagues on both the Colorado and Boulder County Food and Agriculture Policy Councils, however both are still very much in the formative phase. He is excited about working with Boulder County farmers and the food system in Northern Colorado and is excited about networking with the food shed for this region. (10:30 – 11:15 a.m.)

BLENDING LOCAL ART WITH LOCAL AGRICULTURE, by Joanne Neft, Placer County Agricultural Marketing. Joanne Neft has been involved in Placer County agriculture for the past 20 years, first as opening manager of the Placer County Farmers’ Market, founder of the Mountain Mandarin Festival, coordinator of the Mountain Mandarin Tour, founder of the AGROart Festival (sculptures out of fruits and vegetables), served for 5 years as Director of the Placer County Agriculture Marketing Program, envisioned and coordinated Auburn 2005: Portraits of a Place. In addition she has served as Placer County’s Committee Chairperson of the Placer Legacy Outreach – Placer County’s effort to preserve farmland and working open space, and was named 2005 Placer County Conservator of the Year. (11:15 a.m. – noon)

THE NEXUS OF FOOD, ENERGY AND WATER, by Michael Bowman, 25 x ’25. As a headwaters state, Colorado is grappling with its environment, its water needs and the development of its natural resources. The local food movement is at the nexus of this debate and provides a unique opportunity to build a sustainable food system in Colorado. Michael Bowman is a fifth-generation Colorado native, born and raised on the family farm in eastern Colorado. He serves on the National Steering Committee for “25x’25” (www.25x25.org), served as Chair of Colorado’s New Energy Future in 2006 and was co-chair of Governor-elect Bill Ritter’s transition team for energy policy. He was a member of the 2005 Trans-Atlantic Dialogue on Climate Change and was active in Colorado’s “Amendment 37” campaign, the nation’s first citizen-initiated renewable portfolio standard. He is a steering committee member of the Colorado Apollo Alliance and Colorado’s Climate Action Plan where his efforts are focused on creating public policy encouraging low carbon biofuels and sustainable methods of agricultural production. Michael is a founding board member of the Sustainable Biodiesel Alliance (www.fuelresponsibly.org) and chairs the Colorado Farm-to-Cafeteria Coalition. Additionally, he is a steering committee member of Mayor John Hickenloopers “Greening the 2008 DNC” taskforce. Throughout his adult life he has been active in the rural development initiatives both domestically and internationally, serving on the National Council of Advisors for the Heartland Center for Leadership Development in Lincoln, NE and Holistic Management International in Albuquerque where he has participated in a grasslands sustainability project near Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. Michael is a graduate of the Colorado Agriculture and Rural Leadership program and a Next Generation Fellow in Columbia University’s American Assembly. (12:20 – 1:10 p.m.)

A VIDEO BUFFET OF LOCAL!, by Janaia Donaldson, Peak Moment Television (Yuba Gals Independent Media). Janaia and Robin, producers of Peak Moment Television, have visited 21 communities between Santa Barbara and Vancouver, B.C. in the last year, finding and documenting folks "going local" at each stop. Watch excerpts from “Peak Moment Conversations: Community Responses for a Changing Energy Future,” exploring local food, renewable energy, transportation, sustainable building and many other topics. With richly diverse approaches, these everyday hero/ines who care deeply for their local places, the planet and future generations, are quietly shaping a new story. Programs are online and on 22 community-access TV stations nationwide. Janaia Donaldson and Robin Mallgren of Yuba Gals Independent Media are the creators of Peak Moment Television. Janaia is producer and host, Robin director and videographer. They live and work near the South Yuba River in an off-grid home on 160 forested acres in the Sierra Nevada foothills, which they protected with conservation easements. They are inspired to meet people shaping the transition to a localized, lower-energy future, and help spread the word through their video programs. (1:10 – 2:00 p.m.)

THE LOCAL AS TRANSFORMATIVE TOOL, by Bob Banner, HopeDance. Thinking and Being in the LOCAL requires Staying Put. Staying put implies dealing with all sorts of issues that come up rather than fleeing. The challenge of LOCAL communication: emails, newsletters, magazines, radio, public access. The success of various LOCALization efforts: BALLE, City Repair, neighborhood potlucks. Will speak about being a LOCAL publisher of HopeDance (Radical Solutions Inspiring Hope): the media DIET, the new developments of “fusing”/integrating conflicting camps, i.e., Sacred Activism, and the exciting development of screening vitally important films (with discussion immediately afterwards) in various cities in our tri-county area. Bob Banner is publisher of HopeDance. Includes: publishing, 11 years; screening films / film festivals: 7 years; website: 9 years; creating forums, presentations, speaker engagements (10 years), etc.; moderating listservs (9 of them) for 10 years; orchestrating volunteers and paid writers and ad reps. Rents a funky house with cats, chickens, a garden. Writes, plays tennis, dances wildly, rides his bike to town and enjoys silent retreats. (2:00 – 2:45 p.m.)

SLOW FOOD AND ITS RELEVANCE TO YOU AND THE COMMUNITY, by Elizabeth Perreault, Slow Food Boulder. Slow Food is a non-profit, eco-gastronomic member-supported organization that was founded in 1989 to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how our food choices affect the rest of the world. There are 80,000 members across the world. In the US, it's often perceived as a group of "well-heeled foodies". Come and find out why this isn't exactly true, how local convivia are impacting their community, learn more about the national projects and decide if Slow Food Boulder is an organization that is worthy of your support. Elizabeth Perreault has been involved with Slow Food for 6 years and is the current convivium leader for Slow Food Boulder. She has been in the food industry for nearly 20 years and grew up on a blueberry farm in NH. The taste of seasonal and local foods are deeply etched into her memory and are the touchstone of her culinary experiences. (2:45 – 3:30 p.m.)

FROM SEED TO TABLE—AN INTIMATE PORTRAIT OF LOCAL FOOD, by Megan Newton, Megan Newton Photography. Megan Newton is a Boulder photojournalist who takes a specific interest in documentary photography and has a passion for relocalization. (3:30 – 4:00 p.m.)