A look back at Agriculture for Life, last year's conference, is available here.

Finding Iowa's Way: Economic Solutions for a Healthier Environment

The Iowa Environmental Council's annual conference has now concluded. Below, you can review the agenda as prepared for the day. A detailed summary of conference events will be posted here as soon as it is available.

On the agenda

MORNING SESSIONS: A healthy ENVIRONMENT is good business

In Iowa and across the nation, businesses and individuals are using resources more efficiently and pursuing renewable energy as ways to be economically and environmentally successful at the same time.

9:00 a.m.: "The way out: Kick-starting capitalism to save our economic ass"

Hunter Lovins

In her keynote address, Hunter Lovins will argue that it's possible to improve our economy and take on climate change at the same time with what she calls "climate capitalism"—embracing strategies for doing business that maximize efficiency and limit negative environmental impacts.

Morning break

Time to mingle and visit our exhibitors. Hunter Lovins will be available to sign copies of her new book.

10:40 a.m.: What the business case for sustainability means for all of us (panel discussion)

Following Lovins, a panel of Iowans working for leading sustainable businesses will share their experiences and advice for how efficient use of resources and renewable energy can build stronger bottom lines and better environmental performance.

Scheduled to appear:

	Jim Martin-Schramm joined the religion faculty of Luther College in 1993 and has since become deeply involved with Luther’s efforts to incorporate sustainability into every students’ learning experience and ultimately become a carbon-neutral campus.
	Kevin Nordmeyer is an associate principal in the Des Moines office the architectural firm BNIM, based in Kansas City. Before joining the firm last year, Kevin was director of the Iowa Energy Center, a research center at Iowa State University dedicated to education, research, and demonstration of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies.
	Mark Weldon is a resource conservation engineer at Quaker Oats’ manufacturing facility in Cedar Rapids. He is responsible for meeting or exceeding the ambitious sustainability goals established by Quaker’s parent company, PepsiCo, which include a 20% reduction in electricity use and a 25% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2015.
	Karmen Wilhelm is director of energy services and solutions at Van Meter Industrial, Inc., where she leads the company’s clean energy initiative encompassing energy efficiency, renewable energy, and smart grid technologies. Previously, she managed energy efficiency, conservation and customer service programs in Iowa and Minnesota for Alliant Energy.

Noon: Lunch

Your meal is included in the cost of registration and will be served on-site.

AFTERNOON SESSIONS: Iowa's choices for a healthier landscape

After lunch, the conference will focus on strategies for protecting and enhancing “ecosystem services” Iowa's environment provides every day--like wildlife habitat and water filtration--while also protecting the economic and social vitality of our state.

1:15 p.m.: "Tweak, adapt, transform: How to build a resilient future for agriculture in the U.S. Corn Belt"

Lisa Schulte-Moore

Featured Speaker Lisa Schulte-Moore is an associate professor of natural resource ecology and management at Iowa State University. Her talk will describe how keeping the environment healthy is essential to other goals Iowans have, like maintaining food and energy production and keeping rural communities strong. Based on her research, she will suggest ways in which incorporating more perennial plants into the landscape can present a "win-win" with benefits for the environment and the rural economy.

Afternoon break

Networking is a critical part of attending the Council's conference, so we provide one more opportunity to visit with other attendees and exhibitors during the afternoon.

2:45 p.m.: Managing Iowa's landscape for multiple benefits (panel discussion)

Across the state, Iowans are seeking new and improved ways to utilize the ecosystem services while keeping the natural systems that provide them healthy and strong. The conference will highlight a selection of those efforts in the second half of the day.

Scheduled to appear:

	Mark Rasmussen became director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture on June 1, 2012. He previously served as a research microbiologist at the National Animal Disease Center in Ames, Iowa, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Veterinary Medicine in Laurel, Maryland.
	J. Kelly Tobin is a southwest Iowa farmer and member of the Iowa State Soil Conservation Committee, which oversees the Division of Soil Conservation at the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. Tobin has successfully utilized conservation strategies like conservation tillage and cover crops on his farm to reduce soil erosion and keep area waters clean.
	Jerry Hatfield is director of the National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment, a U.S. Department of Agriculture research center located in Ames, Iowa.

4:00 p.m.: Members' meeting (upstairs)

All conference attendees are welcome to join the Council's new executive director Ralph Rosenberg, other staff and board members upstairs at the Scottish Rite Consistory immediately following events in the main hall for a members meeting to discuss the Council's 2013 policy priorities. (Non-members of the Iowa Environmental Council receive a one-year introductory membership in the Council as part of conference registration.)

Thank you to our sponsors

Benefactors


The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation	Metro Waste Authority	Scottish Rite Consistory

Partners

BNIM

Cultivating Compassion - The Richard Deming Foundation

Wells Fargo

Friends

The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture