2006 Conference Highlights

A record number of people attended the 4th annual Green America Business Conference. Attendees raved about the networking opportunities, welcoming atmosphere, and inspiring speakers.

The conference kicked off with Ian Kim from The Ella Baker Center discussing a “third wave” of environmentalism inspired by The Apollo Alliance. This broad-based coalition is creating “green collar” jobs in the San Francisco area Read more »

Medea Benjamin of Code Pink and Global Exchange reviewed the election day results, affirming that the green values we hold dear are shared by many across the nation. Read more »

Green America's Green Business Network™ Director Denise Hamler gave an inspiring update on the many positive green trends she saw in 2006. Read more »

Frank Lampe reviewed The State of the Green Economy and presented an exclusive preview of 2006 LOHAS Industry and Consumer market research produced by the Natural Marketing Institute. Read more »

Paul Ray and Dixon de Leña of Integral Partnerships, in Strategies for the Future of Green Business, stressed the importance of green businesses speaking authentically to customers about the values and visions that drive their work. Read more »
Paul Ray and Dixon de Leña's Presentation (PDF, 340 KB) »

Jill Bamburg, author of Getting to Scale: Growing Your Business Without Selling Out, described her research on 30 values-driven companies that have grown to scale. Read more »

Jill Bamburg’s presentation (PDF, 1.1 MB) »

Sharif Abdullah of the Commonway Institute so inspired attendees with his stories from his recent book, Creating a World that Works for All, that attendees lined up for three hours to talk with him Read more »

Alisa Gravitz, Green America Executive Director, an expert on climate change and economic solutions to social and environmental problems, gave specific examples of how green businesses are part of the climate solution. Read more »

Chip Conley of Joie deVivre Hospitality and co-author of Marketing that Matters—10 practices to profit your business and change the world, described his challenges as he built the largest boutique hotel company in California by consistently focusing on customer values—even those they may not be aware of. Read more »

Peter Barnes, founder of Working Assets and author of Capitalism 3.0, challenged attendees to help create a new operating system for the U.S. in which the “commons” such as air, water, and carbon capacity are protected on behalf of everyone. Read more »

Four women entrepreneurs shared their experiences with attendees in a powerful session. Reem Rahim, co-founder of Numi Tea, described their struggles to finance the company’s incredible growth without losing control of the company to investors. Denise Conley, of the Conley Consulting Group, Described the satisfaction she achieved from doing the community work that is her business. Bu Nygren, co-owner of Veritable Vegetable, a $30 million produce distribution cooperative, described how her organization struggled with its consistently strong growth while honoring the company’s motto, “food for people not for profit.” Feysan Jefferson Lodde, co-founder of MV Transportation, a medical transportation company with 9,000 employees in 27 states, wrought emotion from the audience as she described her the company’s response to the Katrina crisis. Read more »

Mark Davis from The Organic Center reviewed the current organics research and their work to generate credible, peer reviewed scientific information and communicate the benefits of organic farming and products in this ever growing sector. Read more »
Mark Davis’s presentation (PDF, 2.8 MB) »

Betsy Rosenberg of AirAmerica’s EcoTalk interviewed Gerald Prolman, founder and CEO of Organic Bouquet, about his company’s growth, development and current eco-labeling initiatives.
Read more »

Arran Stephens, CEO of Nature’s Path Foods, shared the a heart-touching story of taking his company from a small family farm in Canada to North America’s largest manufacturer of certified organic cereals. Read more »

David Korten, author of The Great Turning and When Corporations Rule the World challenged green businesses to remember that on a finite planet, sustainability and equity are inextricably linked. Read more »