The Tulsa Forum by TulsaNow

Annual Oklahoma Sustainability Network Conference
March 28-29

Red Dirt, Green Culture: Growing Healthy Communities

A sustainable agriculture pioneer and an analyst for a socially responsible investing mutual fund will deliver keynote addresses at the 7th annual Oklahoma Sustainability Network Conference on March 28-29.

Downtown Norman will host more than 30 speakers and workshops on subjects including transportation, biofuels, community building and conflict resolution, alternative energy, religion and environmental ethics.

“This event is important because it attracts people from all backgrounds and professions to access sustainability from perspectives on science, business, faith, advocacy and community-building,” said OSN President Kim Cooper-Hart. “Very few events offer this breadth of diversity in speakers, topics, and attendees. Everyone and their families are welcome – this year for the first time we have special sessions for kids. Please join us, you’ll love it!”

The Saturday kids’ sessions will feature storytelling and other programs designed for parents and children to learn together what they can do to protect the environment. On Friday night, The Tall Cotton String Band will play at a Hootenanny open to all attendees.

Friday’s keynote speaker, Julie Frieder, is an environmental analyst for the Calvert Group, a large mutual fund company that specializes in socially responsible investing. Frieder has worked for sustainability in the public and private sectors for 15 years, including positions at the Environmental Protection Agency and on the President’s Council on Sustainable Development.

On Saturday the keynote speaker will be Joel Salatin, a nationally known sustainable agriculture pioneer. Salatin is the owner of Polyface Farms, which he describes as “a family owned, multi-generational, pasture-based, beyond organic, local-market farm and informational outreach in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.” He is the author of several books, including Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal: War Stories From The Local Food Front.

A special reception and book signing with Salatin and authors Diane Leafe Christian and Duane Elgin will be held Saturday from 6 - 7:30 pm in the Santa Fe Train Depot, with proceeds benefitting the Norman OSN chapter.

Additional presenters include:

    * #159; David Fleischaker, Oklahoma Secretary of Energy, discussing the “Ten Rules for a Rational Energy Policy.”
    * #159; Diana Leafe Christian, author of Creating a Life Together: Practical Tools to Grow Ecovillages and Intentional Communities.
    * #159; Todd Stephens, sales and marketing director for Tulsa Biofuels LLC and co-chair of the American Institute of Architects Committee On The Environment.
    * #159; Duane Elgin, author of Voluntary Simplicity: Toward A Way Of Life That Is Outwardly Simple, Inwardly Rich and Promise Ahead: A Vision Of Hope & Action For Humanity’s Future.
    * #159; Dr. Linda Wallace, University of Oklahoma botany professor, speaking on the ecological ramifications of biofuels.
    * #159; Fenton Rood, director of the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, on the DEQ Green Team and how other organizations can reduce their environmental impact.
    * #159; Harlan Hentges, attorney with the firm Mulinix Ogden Hall Andrews & Ludlam, on sustainability in government and the law.

Events will be located throughout downtown Norman, at venues such as the Norman Public Library, Mainsite Art Gallery, Norman Chamber of Commerce, Dreamer Concepts Studio and Foundation, Andrews Park and Republic Bank. Transportation between sites will be assisted by bike taxis and walking guides.

“We are so excited to hold the conference in downtown Norman,” said conference organizer Kara McKee. “Sustainability is about how we live our lives, and this year’s conference will take place inside Norman’s active community centers, from the city council chambers to the Mainsite Art Gallery and everywhere in between. Downtown Norman will transform into a walkable sustainability festival!”

Exhibits will be displayed at the Norman Santa Fe Train Depot, and participants will also have options to tour a local community garden and Norman’s first strawbale house construction site.

“This year we’re taking a look at what it takes to become a truly sustainable society,” McKee said. “We need every person bringing their skills and creativity to the table, and our speakers and workshops reflect that desire to engage all of Oklahoma.”

For more information and to register for the conference, go to http://www.normansustainability.org/ or contact Gene Perry at (405) 640-9119 or info@normansustainability.org

For information about OSN, go to http://www.oksustainability.org/