Contact: Ann Hatch
214-378-1819;
ahatch@dcccd.edu
For immediate release — June 2, 2014
(DALLAS) — Raising a family may take an entire village. Protecting Earth’s environment may take a global effort. But following a responsible path where people can find clean jobs, clean resources, and a clean environment can start holistically with individuals and families who are interested in a cleaner quality of life.
Using “head, heart and hands (H3)” to achieve that sustainable approach is the focus of a free one-day program at Cedar Valley College titled “H3: A Responsible Pathway.” Participants can explore those cleaner, greener paths to a better life for everyone on Friday, June 13, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Building G (the gymnasium). Free parking will be available in lots W-1 and W-2. Cedar Valley College is located at 3030 N. Dallas Ave. in Lancaster. A free and healthy light lunch will be served, as well as snacks.
For registration and general information about the free conference, visit
www.CedarValleyCollege.edu/SustainableCommunities.
Registration begins at 8 a.m., followed by general introductions at 8:30 a.m. and the keynote address at 9 a.m. The keynote speaker will be George Bandy Jr., vice president of sustainability for Interface Inc., where he concentrates on global relationships. Bandy also is chairman of the U.S. Green Building Council’s board of directors. The lunch speaker will be Michael Cain, executive director of Earth Day Texas (formerly Earth Day Dallas), which was founded in September 2010 to produce the first large-scale Earth Day event in the city. The 2011 inaugural event’s eco-friendly initiatives helped offset nearly 300 metric tons of CO2 and diverted 70 percent of the event’s waste from landfills.
Participants can pick sessions from among three tracks. “Saving the People: Body and Soul” will include presentations on nutrition, neuroscience, fitness and spiritual development. “Saving and Obtaining Money: Energy, Water, Waste and Grants” will focus on sessions about energy efficiency, water conservation, waste reduction and grant opportunities. “Saving the Planet: Natural and Urban Environment” will feature presentations about parks and open spaces, organic urban farming, aquaponics and smart cities. Career information will be provided in areas such as health care, HVAC, automotive technology, veterinary technology, biology, chemistry, business, real estate and more.
Participating organizations include the city of Dallas, Best Southwest Cities, the North Central Texas Council of Governments, Texas A&M University, Methodist Charlton Medical Center, the North Texas Renewable Energy Group, Fossil Rim, Groundwork, EarthPeople, Urban Acres, the John Bunker Sands Wetland Center, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Savvy Boheme, the Crescent Hospital System and the Burrell Group.
“Knowledge is power, and Texans are choosing to use resources in ways that benefit their families, support nature and increase their ability to accumulate wealth,” said Dr. Maria Boccalandro, director of sustainability for Cedar Valley College. “This conference will teach participants how to observe patterns; create, by mimicking nature; work smarter rather than harder; rethink garbage by reusing, recycling and making revenue from waste; and use many other approaches to create a better a quality of life.”
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