Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION DEPARTMENT
2008 West Coast Green Conference
2008 West Coast Green Conference
On September 25-27, 2008 at the San Jose Convention Center the FIGR Environmental Protection Department(EPD) attended the 2008 West Coast Green Conference.

West Coast Green represents the largest milestone yet in the green innovation movement. The West Coast Green experience is a feast of innovations, ideas and opportunities designed to expand your business, widen your vision, and stimulate your thinking with the latest best practices and key players in building, business and design.

Each year the conference has grown to meet the needs of industry leaders, practitioners and homeowners; this year the conversation  deepened to include a focus on the interface of green building, innovation and technology.

We fortunate to be able to listen to former Vice President Al Gore's speak about issues and concerns with golbal warming. Vice-President Gore is co-winner, with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for "informing the world of the dangers posed by climate change." Mr. Gore is the author of An Inconvenient Truth, a best-selling book on the threat of and solutions to global warming, and the subject of the movie of the same title, which was awarded a 2007 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. Gore has been the leading advocate for confronting the threat of global warming since his election to the U.S. Congress 30 years ago. His pioneering efforts were outlined in his best-selling book Earth in the Balance: Ecology and the Human Spirit (1992).

One of the highlights was to hear Edmund G. Brown Jr., current State Attorney General, served as California's Governor between 1975 and 1983.  He is best known for his pioneering work in making California a leader in energy efficiency and renewable energy. Brown successfully sponsored a 55% solar tax credit and promoted the nation's first appliance and building efficiency standards.

The EPD with the coordination of staff at the EPA were able to contact other tribal representatives with the same interest in green building technology. Although there still is a long way to go to have tribal representation at this event, it is beginning to grow and improve each year.

For more information about West Coast Green, visit their website at http://www.westcoastgreen.org/
west coast green 2008
Photos - click on photo to enlarge