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A View from the Summit
Wrap-Up of the Second Green California Summit & Exposition


by Racquel Palmese

In the year since the first Green California Summit was held in March 2007, the world has changed dramatically. From doubling gas prices to dwindling water supplies, to almost 1,000 U.S. cities committing to take significant measures to reduce their environmental footprints, the development of green technology has made a remarkable shift from important future development to immediate necessity.  During the past year, the greening of California government has spun out into hundreds, if not thousands of local, municipal and statewide green-building, greenhouse gas reduction, recycling, transportation and other environmental initiatives.

The second annual Green California Summit, which took place at the Sacramento Convention Center on April 7 – 9, embodied the staggering growth of the new green economy and the role of government in California in leading the charge. The event, chaired by Secretary of State and Consumer Services Rosario Marin and Secretary of Environmental Protection Linda Adams, is designed to support statewide efforts to build clean and sustainable communities.

Over 6,000 attendees, almost double the number of last year's event, filled the exhibit hall, workshops, general sessions, special events and breakout sessions. Sixty-eight percent of them were from government, education and the non-profit sectors. This year, the conference was open to the commercial sector, and real estate developers, architects, designers and others in the private sector represented the other 32 percent of attendees. Staff from 38 California counties, 94 cities and 30 states were present; the exhibit hall was filled with over 250 providers of green products and services.

The Summit was the vanguard for an explosive exchange of information on new ideas, projects, technologies and initiatives. At the general session on April 8, Sacramento Mayor Heather Fargo opened the event to a packed auditorium saying: "We are here to look at what is possible, to look at the future of California, the future of all of our cities and our culture. I think of this today as a big green thinking machine and encourage you to think outside the box, learn something, take it home and get it done."  

Mayor Fargo introduced Secretary Marin and Secretary Adams, who acknowledged the dedication of Governor Schwarzenegger and his Green Action Team to ensuring that California continues its leadership in sustainability. "Individually, we cannot do very much," said Secretary Marin. "Collectively we are doing amazing things. When we had our first summit last year, we were astonished at the great response. Today we see the fruition of what we hoped for then. It is really happening."

As the demand for energy efficiency grows, the role of the California Public Utilities Commission in providing incentives and education expands. About $1 billion a year collected from a surcharge on utility bills has enabled California utilities to administer the world's largest energy efficiency program. It has, according to CPUC Commissioner Dian Greuneich, who also spoke during the general session, delivered massive energy savings. She encouraged the audience to "retain the lessons that you learn here today and tomorrow and spread them everywhere you can. We are showing that when you put your heart, your soul, your resources, your leadership, your expertise into energy efficiency, you can deliver the type of savings that we all need."
 



"I ask you to think now what additional steps you can take. This is a very important continuing event. Come back next year with somebody who wouldn't otherwise have been here. Or come back next year with an example of where you were able to reach out and change something that you didn't think you could have changed."

CPUC Commissioner Dian Greuneich

 



Rick Fedrizzi, founding chairman of the U.S. Green Building Council, gave the opening keynote on April 8, recounting the explosive growth of green building practices and the essential role that better buildings can play in preventing the worst effects of climate change.

Green California Leadership Awards

Created at the request of the Summit advisory board to acknowledge outstanding accomplishments by state and local governments in the field of environmental sustainability, the 2008 Green California Awards ceremony took place during a special evening cocktail reception.  Awards were given in eight categories. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power won in the category of Climate Change for its Low Income Refrigerator Exchange Program. The Energy Innovation Award went to the City of Irvine for its Brighter Future for Irvine project. 

The Department of General Services took the Green Building Award for its East End Complex, California Department of Health Services; and the Green Culture award was given to the Department of Pesticide Regulation's California School Integrated Pest Management Program.  In the Purchasing Category, the City of San Jose won for its Environmentally Preferable Procurement Program; the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) won the Transportation category with its Statewide Stormwater Management Program and the Waste Management category with its Project Recycle. The final award was handed to the City of Long Beach in the category of Water Management for its Extraordinary Water Conservation program.

California Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi and legendary author and activist Hunter Lovins were the featured speaker and keynote during the second general session on April 9.  "I suppose you don't need coffee to get excited here," said Garamendi. "We are taking off on this venture to change everything we know about the generation of power and the use of it here in the State of California." 

Before introducing Hunter Lovins, keynote sponsor Coca Cola's Ben Sheidler told an astonished audience that the company plans to return to nature the amount of water equivalent to what they use in all their beverages and in all production in the U.S.
 



"I would argue that what we need more than any technology, more than any particular regulation, is leadership." 

Hunter Lovins, Founder and President of Natural Capitalism, Inc.
 



The Green California Exposition

On the exhibit hall floor TV crews were filming, Segways parsed through the crowd. At one point the Governor showed up unexpectedly, visiting with exhibitors, even lowering himself into a few alternative fuel vehicles in the Auto Mall section of the Expo. Among the many dignitaries and officials who spent time asking questions of exhibitors was Lt. Governor John Garamendi and Rear Admiral Len Hering. An hour before closing on the last day the exhibit hall was still crowded.

Comments from Exhibitors

The quality of the folks that came through the booth was superb. There was a number of very good contacts, in addition to the Governor and Lt. Governor, who was very interested in our geothermal technology and interested in seeing it rolled out.  Having the presence we did and having him in the booth led to good conversations that are still ongoing and that wouldn't have occurred if we weren't there. The world that GT plays in is a conduit right to the people I want to have interactions with. It was pretty much a no-brainer on my part as soon as I understood what GT does. 

Phil Henry
Territory manager, western region

WaterFurnace International, Platinum Sponsor


The scope of the expo and the general "energy" on the show floor were exceptional…The quality of the show, the responsiveness of GCS staff, the turnout, and the enthusiasm shown by both the exhibitors and visitors all came together to make this a very positive experience for the CaSFCC.  We have already committed to sponsoring the keynote again in 2009. 

Kathy Haq, Chair, Outreach Committee, California Stationary Fuel Cell Collaborative
Director, Outreach and Communications, Advanced Power & Energy Program,
National Fuel Cell Research Center

It's been fantastic...Good response…great customer interest. 
David Robinson, Sales Representative, Moresco Distributing Company

(The show is) excellent, very good. Better than I anticipated. I was open minded, knowing that obviously people are going to be here caring about the environment, but it's not just people caring, it's people that want to take (green construction) to the next level. It's great. Really, really good. 
Debbie Strom, Business Development and Client Relations, Roebbelen Construction Company

The Information Center

A special Information Center was added to the exhibit hall floor to help attendees discover effective programs that government organizations, and their private sector partners, have created to ensure a sustainable future. Booths included one hosted by Green Technology Magazine. One exhibitor was West Coast Green, a residential green building event at which Green Technology provides a green government track. John Dunnihoo, West Coast Green general manager, said, "…
it was a really good experience. Our booth was well-attended. There was a constant stream of heavy hitters in the government world, people with clout. They were all very interested in the green building part of it, there were a lot of very good, well informed questions coming from attendees. I had people emailing me after the event, telling me they learned a lot and asking for more information."

The Green Auto Mall

From Miles all-electric vehicles, to l Dodge biodiesel heavy duty trucks, six manufacturers of the newest concepts in alternative fuel and zero emission vehicles exhibited in the Green Auto Mall on the Expo floor. It was one of the first places the Governor headed when he paid a surprise visit to the Green California Summit. The Miles zero emissions vehicles featured advanced alternating current motors and controllers.  "The
Green California Summit brought together thoughtful leaders in sustainability and gave them a forum to exchange ideas and build new partnerships," said Miles' Marketing Manager Kara Saltness.  "For Miles Electric Vehicles, the Summit was very successful and connected us with decision makers and purchasing officers from all over California.  The location was ideal and the caliber of attendees understood the urgency to make a sustainable change and were willing to move in that direction immediately."

Rising fuel costs are making low-speed vehicles, or LSV's, increasingly attractive to fleet managers for short trip applications like security, grounds patrol, parking and light duty transport, said Chris Strong, national fleet manager for Zenn Motor Company.  Of his experience at the Summit, he said, "We had a positive experience, a high contingent of attendees from the surrounding municipalities, state government, electric utilities. One of the highlights was the Governor dropping by and getting into the car. The traffic through our booth was exceptional, two or three people at all times, constant, with the questions and interest." 

Hank Helepoloki, commercial sales for Frahm Dodge, echoed his statements: "
We had a very good turnout, got to speak with the Governor and others. As a matter of fact, I'm working on a couple of projects for the Department of Corrections, in the bidding stages, already got approval of drawings.  I'm still working with several individuals for their personal vehicles. I'm looking forward to next year, and so is Dodge."

Education Program

The Summit's education program began on April 7 with a series of pre-conference training sessions. Over 400 people arrived a day early for the Summit to attend these sessions, which covered a range of topics from managing a LEED project to specifying and buying green products. During the rest of the Summit, dozens of half-day classes and concurrent seminars were presented by state and local officials and national experts. Sessions such as The Future of Transportation Infrastructure in California, the Green Gold Rush: California's New energy Economy and the Risks and Opportunities of Building Green drew standing-room-only crowds. 


 

 

 

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