Back to Spring 2010 Newsletter
In June, young emerging leaders and professionals in water and the environment will have a chance to learn from each other and together build a foundation of leadership for the future. The WRRC is gearing up for its 2010 Annual Conference, titled Creating New Leadership for Arizona’s Water and Environment in a Time of Change. The conference will be held at the University of Arizona Student Union Memorial Center on June 9-10. Its goal is to provide a forum for emerging leaders, young professionals and established professionals to interact and develop strategies for fostering leadership to face Arizona’s future challenges in water and the environment.
The conference will open with inspirational stories from people who are making a difference in the environmental field. Lattie Coor, president and founder of the Center for the Future of Arizona, will set the stage with a keynote address that will define Arizona’s environmental legacy and offer a vision for leadership in this state. Kristin Mayes and Jihan Gearon will speak in the first session about the importance and impact of leadership, offering insights from their own experience. Kristin Mayes is Chairman of the Arizona Corporation Commission and Co Chair of the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Panel for Water Sustainability. Jihan Gearon is the Native Energy Organizer for the Indigenous Environment Network, where she works to help communities affected by energy development and climate change.
Speakers in two more panel sessions will provide perspectives on leadership from multiple sectors of society, including politics, education, business, water resources, journalism and the arts. A mid-day showcase will provide time for individuals and organizations to display information about their work, programs or special projects and interact informally with conference speakers and other participants. In the afternoon roundtable sessions, participants will engage in small group discussions about specific environmental issues.
Day one will wind up with a dinner and evening program that will interconnect water, environment and art. Optional workshops on the second day will provide opportunities for participants to lay out strategic action plans. Four concurrent workshops will cover the topics of statewide water planning, communication, education, and the creation of an environmental leadership institute.
The conference agenda and online registration is available on the WRRC website at http://ag.arizona.edu/azwater/programs/conf2010.
You can support the WRRC’s efforts to involve young people in the conference by making a tax deductible donation at http://www.uafoundation.org/give/fund/wrrc2010, which will help provide free registration to students.