Cascadia's Government Confluence

The 'unConference' for implementing change in your jurisdiction.

Cascadia is excited to announce the 2012 Government Confluence, a day-long summit designed to inspire peer-to-peer conversation for those serving in the government sector.  Scheduled for May 2nd, 2012, prior to the opening night of Living Future 2012, this is a unique opportunity for exercising collaboration and creativity about creating sustainable communities with your nearby and not-so-nearby regional neighbors. It's also your one-stop shop to learn about the most cutting-edge topics, replicable case studies, and sustainability planning tools.

Come to learn, be inspired, and make lasting connections!

All Confluence participants are invited to attend the Living Future 2012 unConference at a reduced rate.

The Government Confluence has been approved by GBCI for 12 CE hours.

CONFLUENCE DETAILS

Date/Time: Wednesday, May 2nd 8:30 am - 5:30 pm

Location: Oregon Zoo, Washington Park

Confluence Agenda:

Keynote Address

Robert Liberty, Executive Director, Sustainable Cities Initiative, University of Oregon

Robert Liberty is Executive Director of the Sustainable Cities Initiative at the University of Oregon. The Sustainable Cities Initiative was described by The New York Times as "perhaps the most comprehensive effort by a U.S. university to infuse sustainability into its curricula and community outreach." Liberty previously served as an elected member of the Metro Councilor, (the regional government for the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area), as Senior Counsel to Congressman Earl Blumenauer and Executive Director of 1000 Friends of Oregon. He is a graduate of the University of Oregon, Oxford University and Harvard Law School.

Lunchtime Plenary

King County Sustainable Cities: A Story of Municipal Collaboration

King County’s Sustainable Cities Program has found success through the unique approach of encouraging collaboration across jurisdictions. Green Building and the link to Climate change isn’t constrained by jurisdictional boundaries, so why should the many great ideas, experiences and strategies to combat these critical issues stay boxed within these boundaries instead of shared? Especially in our current economic climate, it is essential that cities collaborate and share resources that streamline efforts to launch and deliver green building programs and bring sustainability and climate change initiatives to the forefront of budgetary and policy decisions. There are many federal initiatives with lofty climate change goals, such as the U.S. Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, but moving beyond rhetoric to implementation can be overwhelming for cities working solo. This panel discussion will profile how cities and counties working in tandem and together can craft tangible, locally relevant actions through an ongoing practice of peer to peer collaboration.

Education Session Overviews:

Show Me the Money! Funding Sustainability in Public Projects

In today’s challenging fiscal climate, the private and public sectors need each other more than ever when it comes to funding sustainability in public projects. In response, visionary leaders in these sectors are forging meaningful partnerships that bridge the worlds of finance, government policy, community engagement and sustainable design. This session will highlight where funding sources are, demonstrate how sustainable design offers advantages in a difficult fundraising environment and showcase creative funding solutions that help communities realize their visions.

Emerge: Leadership for a More Sustainable Society, An Introduction

A society in which a sustainably built environment is the norm would represent a dramatic change in thinking and practice. This workshop is for community leaders called to create this change and is based on a two-day workshop of the same name. It will introduce the concept of emergent leadership, a form of leadership uniquely suitable to sustainable thinking and practice and which can work for you, regardless of title or position. In addition to presentations describing the elements of emergent leadership, workshop attendees will have the opportunity to participate in reflection, dialogue and structured small group exercises in order to internalize key learnings.

Nature in Neighborhoods: Managing Public Spaces to Create Greater Community Value

Places like parks, open space, streets and right-of-ways comprise over forty percent of most cities. In a time of shrinking budgets, how can we create smart civic policies that enable us to design and manage these spaces to provide greater value to our communities? Rethinking the use of public spaces is critical to creating the sustainable cities of the future. This session will show how public spaces offer opportunities to reconnect to natural systems, increase tree canopy and biodiversity, site renewable energy systems, provide regional stormwater storage and enable diverse modes of movement.

Integrating Equity Measures to Achieve the Social Bottom Line in Sustainable Communities

As the adage goes, we manage what we measure. This session will focus on measuring the social bottom line: equity. We will review what using an equity lens looks like in practice and examine a number of tools that the public sector can use to integrate equitable development while helping deliver on the promise of social sustainability. Panelists will share assessment tools spanning from the project level to district and policy levels, and participants will explore the application of the tools to their work. Join us to learn how using this lens builds value and supports collaboration in achieving restorative communities.

Energy Retrofits for Existing Buildings: Community Scale Implementation

With existing building stock far outweighing new construction, energy retrofits to existing infrastructure offer significant bang for the buck. This session explores challenges and opportunities related to improving the energy efficiency of existing buildings and infrastructure. Elements addressed will include life cycle assessment of building reuse versus new construction, and strategies for neighborhood outreach and program deployment. This session also examines tools for building a community wide retrofit movement, resident and contractor engagements, funding ideas and engaging local and state officials.

Catalyst for community vitality: Enhancing intermodel transportation access and development opportunities with a holistic approach

Historic rehabilitation projects present opportunities for enhanced sustainability, mobility and community vitality. Seattle’s King Street Station stands as a great example of how such a project can be a catalyst for eco-district vitality. It enhances transportation connections and intermodal options, supports sustainable development and improves community well being. This session will provide a brief history of project planning efforts, setting the framework for interactive charrettes. Participants will examine issues and propose solutions to project challenges during a break-out period, looking specifically at health impact assessments, multimodal transportation connections, development potential and use of the air rights over the station’s tracks.

New Sustainability Efforts at the Oregon Zoo

With a 1.5 million-per-year audience, the Oregon Zoo is Metro's largest and the state's number one paid tourist attraction. An innovative Master Plan implemented at the Oregon Zoo will be used as a touch point for the discussion on topics of master planning, financing, district-scale sustainability and community-scale audience engagement. Included in this session is a brief tour of the facility that includes the recently completed LEED Veterinary Animal Hospital.

Public transit serves the Oregon Zoo directly via the Washington Park MAX light rail station - the deepest rail station in the Western Hemisphere! Either the Red or Blue Lines (westbound) will take you to the station. If you must drive, we strongly encourage carpooling.

Special thanks to these advocate sponsors:

City of Milwaukie   |   Clackamas County   |   Clean Water Services   |   Salmon Safe