PORTLAND, Ore. — Though climate change is a global challenge, some of the most powerful responses are coming from local and regional leaders. Last month, the governors of five western states announced the formation of a Western Regional Climate Action Initiative. Then, just to the north, the B.C. premier quickly jumped onboard the “Pacific Coast bloc” of climate ambassadors.
Building on that energy, Ecotrust will bring together an eclectic group of policy, non-profit, business, and academic leaders on the evening April 10, 2007, for the panel discussion, “From Here to Where: What Does Climate Change mean for Salmon Nation and Beyond?”
Oregon Secretary of State Bill Bradbury will kick off the panel with a presentation based on his training with the Climate Project, a climate education program that draws from former Vice President Al Gore’s film An Inconvenient Truth.
“Bill Bradbury is an outstanding example of the millions of Americans who have been energized by the call to action on the climate crisis,” said Gore. “We are so pleased that he has made a serious commitment to this challenge.to become part of this unprecedented grassroots effort.”
Secretary Bradbury will be followed by Ecotrust Vice President Bettina von Hagen, a leading expert in the emerging carbon trading and ecosystem services markets. Von Hagen will describe the role Pacific Northwest forests can play in positioning this region as a leader in carbon sequestration.
The destruction of our forests has major climate consequences. But when managed at longer rotations, our region’s forests can more than double their carbon storage, says von Hagen. “Here in the Pacific Northwest, there are tremendous benefits to recognizing and valuing nature’s priceless services,” says von Hagen.
Other panelists are Eban Goodstein, Professor of Economics, Lewis & Clark College and Project Director, Focus the Nation; and Clark Brockman, Associate, SERA Architects, and board member, Cascadia Green Building Council. Goodstein will talk about the economics of climate change solutions. Brockman will discuss green building’s role in changing the built landscape to reflect climate consciousness. The evening will be hosted by Ecotrust President Spencer B. Beebe.
Please join us for this free event on April 10, 2007, from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. in the Billy Frank Jr. Conference Center, Ecotrust’s Jean Vollum Natural Capital Center, in Portland’s Pearl District.
Event Schedule
6 p.m.: Conference doors open for general seating
6:30 p.m.: Introduction — Ecotrust President Spencer B. Beebe
6:40 p.m.: Secretary Bill Bradbury
7:20 p.m.: Bettina von Hagen
7:35 p.m.: Eban Goodstein
7:50 p.m.: Clark Brockman
8:05 p.m.: Open discussion and questions
8:30 p.m.: Close
About the Speakers
Spencer B. Beebe
President, Ecotrust
Spencer Beebe is a forth generation Portlander who spent 14 years with the Nature Conservancy before helping found Conservation International in 1987. In 1991, he founded Ecotrust to focus his work on the rain forests of home. He serves on the boards of Shorebank Corporation, Ecotrust Canada, the Tamastlikt Cultural Institute and Walsh Construction Company. For more, visit: www.ecotrust.org.
Bill Bradbury
Oregon Secretary of State
Secretary Bill Bradbury is Oregon’s second-highest-ranking constitutional officer. He is the auditor of public accounts, the chief elections officer and the manager of the state’s official legislative and executive records. He sits on the State Land Board, and he was appointed by Governor Kulongoski to chair the Oregon Sustainability Board. Bill recently returned from Tennessee, where he was one of the first 50 participants in Vice President Al Gore’s Climate Change training sessions. For more, visit: www.sos.state.or.us.
Clark Brockman
Associate, SERA Architects
Clark Brockman has over 25 years of architectural experience working on multiphase projects for both public and private clients, with a professional focus on sustainability. His most recent projects include designing the Rose House net-energy solar demonstration project in partnership with the Oregon Office of Energy (OOE), combining sustainable building systems with energy efficient design and planning the Civic mixed-use development. He works to promote sustainability both in and out of the office, believing that the Northwest must continue to “raise the bar” in this area. For more, visit: www.serapdx.com/employee.php?employee_id=11.
Eban Goodstein
Professor of Economics, Lewis and Clark College and Program Director, Focus the Nation
Professor Eban Goodstein teaches economics at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon. He is the author the college textbook Economics and the Environment, now in its fifth edition; The Trade-off Myth: Fact and Fiction about Jobs and the Environment; and Fighting for Love in the Century of Extinction: How Passion and Politics Can Change the Future. Goodstein’s current research focuses on the economics of global climate change, a subject that he speaks and writes about regularly. For more, visit: http://www.focusthenation.org/whoweare.php.
Bettina von Hagen
Ecotrust Vice President, Forestry and Natural Capital Fund
Bettina von Hagen joined Ecotrust in 1993 to develop and manage Ecotrust’s $26 million Natural Capital Fund. In 2004 Bettina helped launch Ecotrust Forests LLC, a private equity forestland investment fund. In addition, Bettina manages Ecotrust’s forestry program and directs its ecosystem services initiatives. Bettina was previously a vice president and commercial lender at First Interstate Bank and Continental Bank. She holds an MBA from the University of Chicago. Bettina serves on the boards of the Climate Trust, Forest Trends, the U.S. Green Building Council, the FSC Global Fund, Ecotrust Forest Management and the Advisory Council of Kinship Conservation Fellows.
About Ecotrust
Ecotrust (www.ecotrust.org) is a conservation organization committed to strengthening communities and the environment from Alaska to California. Ecotrust works with native peoples and in the fisheries, forestry, and food sectors to build a regional economy based on social and ecological opportunities. With an operating budget of $6.5 million, Ecotrust has a staff of 45 and manages a $20 million endowment that makes investments in businesses and projects that enhance the capacity for appropriate development and conservation throughout the region.