Speakers

See The Entire 44 Talk Speaker Schedule Here

Saturday Keynote Speaker (1 pm Green Tent)

LaVerne A. Williams, AIA, LEED AP

Design for Healthy Passive Sustainability:

How to Create Your Sustainable Future by Starting at Home

An architect, bioneer and building ecologist, he is the founder and CEO of Environment Associates, Architects & Consultants, of Houston Texas, an award winning architectural firm established in 1975 and noted for its dedication to quality of life matters, its pioneering green and healthful home projects, and for its leadership in cultivating sustainable living concepts and practices for new and existing homes. A grandfather of modern-day green building, his innovative work in southern climate “Design for Passive Sustainability” enabled Environment Associates’ projects to receive the preeminent green building awards available nationally and locally, including USGBC’s “Platinum” LEED rating and two Austin Green Building Program “Five Star” ratings. Having helped found several green building and renewable energy related organizations, including TxSES, he is a nationally designated “Houston Hero for the Environment”, a Permaculture design graduate, and has been inducted into the “Texas Legacy Project” by the Conservation History Association of Texas. A dynamic speaker on green home and green living matters, his speaking engagements have included several Gulf Coast Green Symposiums, at NASA-JSC, and “Going Beyond Green” at the 2008 World Future Conference in Washington, DC, and the 2009 NeoCon World’s Trade Fair in Chicago.

Having long pursued solutions to the “Living Cost” of homes, I decided many decades ago to do what I do. It was my answer to: “What can I do to make a difference?”. Now it’s also about “What can I do about this “mess*” in which we find ourselves?”.

By applying “Design for Healthy Passive Sustainability” concepts and principles, the “Living Cost” of our homes can be far less, because such homes are healthier, more durable, and result in healthier, more secure lives, healthier land, more nutritious food, better comfort, can result in no energy bills, no water bills, and in general, an overall better quality of life, not just for us, but for all living things as well.

Dozens of examples of what others have done to create more sustainable homes will be shown along with how to apply the concepts and principles of Design for Healthy Passive Sustainability.

No one has all the answers to this mess we are in, but I do know where we each can begin solving it. It’s at home. By each of us starting at home, everybody can do something that is good for them as well as for the Planet. Since at home is where we spend most of our time, if a new home isn’t being designed or our present home isn’t being remodeled to facilitate health and sustainability, not considering these core matters will carry over to adversely affect our lives now and far into the future.

Our homes are the place we have the most control over the outcome of how we want to live. We have more freedom to decide and implement sustainability decisions here than probably anywhere else. As more and more households make similar decisions about living more sustainably, by “Starting at Home”, we have a better chance to resolve this big mess we are in, because our individual decisions about what we each decide to do add up to influence the sustainability of everything up and down the supply chain.

*By “mess”, this means this country’s and the world’s financial mess and our concerns about climate change & rising seas, water shortages, overpopulation, social injustice, peak oil, water scarcity, ethics, corporate power, depleted & eroded soils, declining ocean productivity, species extinction, divisive politics, ethics, concentration of media ownership, etc.
 

Sunday Keynote Panel - Rebate & Incentives Panel ( Noon - Green Tent) Elledge, Myers, Zarnikau

Lisa Elledge - State Energy Conservation Office -

The Texas State Energy Conservation Office (SECO), Stimulus Division, is actively engaged in the process of distributing funds for the stimulus programs outlined by the Department of Energy: 1) State Energy Program, 2) Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant, 3) Energy Efficient Appliance Rebate Program, and 4) Energy Assurance Program. This talk will give an update on the programs and the distribution of stimulus funds.

Lisa Elledge currently serves as the Stimulus Program Manager for the Comptroller of Public Accounts overseeing the administration of U.S. Department of Energy funding allocated to the State Energy Conservation Office through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Ms. Elledge has extensive experience in the government relations and public affairs arena. Previous to her service at the Comptroller of Public Accounts, Ms. Elledge held the position of Senior Manager for Public Affairs and Government Relations with Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. She worked on both the local and state levels of government in Texas focusing on real estate/land use issues and public policy issues including energy matters. Prior to this, Ms. Elledge served as the Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Governmental Affairs at the Texas Department of Agriculture. She worked primarily on federal and international issues dealing with a broad range of matters impacting agriculture, trade, rural development and natural resources. In Washington, D.C. Ms. Elledge held legislative positions with U.S. Congressman Elton Gallegly (R-Ca) and U.S. Congressman Larry Combest (R-Tx; ret.). She also held a position with the National Grocers Association as the Director of Government Relations. Ms. Elledge received her Bachelor of Liberal Arts from the University of Texas at Austin in government and history.

Mike Myers - Myers Verde -

Mr. Myers will speak on the opportunities to take action and receive credits and rebates. For a limited time federal tax credits are available along with state rebates and potential local incentives. Mr. Myers will highlight the federal incentives, many of which will expire at the end of 2010. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 extends and expands on already existing renewable energy and home energy efficiency credits for existing homes and new construction. The bill removed caps on renewable energy technologies such as small wind and geothermal heat pumps and increased the maximum amount on other energy efficient improvements.

Mr. Myers is the founder of the Myers Verde Company supporting efforts to implement EO 13514 in Federal facilities and consults on local sustainable development policies. Mr. Myers also provides technical assistance in support of the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program. Michael Myers is a LEED® Accredited Professional who has 30 years experience in the fields of energy efficiency, environmental planning, green building and sustainable development. He travels nationwide speaking on green building and sustainable development issues. He has worked for Lockheed Martin Corporation, the City of Austin, the City of San Antonio, the City of New York, and the U.S. Department of Energy. He recently served as the Technical Committee Chair for the City of San Antonio’s Sustainable Buildings Task Force and served as a Governor appointee on the Texas Weatherization Policy Advisory.

Jay Zarnikau of Frontier Associates, representing EUMMOT (the organization of investor owned utility efficiency managers) -

Jay Zarnikau of Frontier Associates, representing EUMMOT (the organization of investor owned utility efficiency managers), will give an overview of the regulated utilities incentive programs and where they are available.

As president of Frontier Associates, Jay provides consulting assistance to utilities, large industrial energy consumers, and retail trade associations in the design and evaluation of energy efficiency programs, electricity pricing, demand forecasting, and energy policy. Jay formerly served as a vice president at Planergy, a program manager at the University of Texas at Austin Center for Energy Studies, and a division director at the Public Utility Commission of Texas.  His publications include articles in numerous academic journals. Jay has a Ph.D. degree in Economics from The University of Texas at Austin, where he also teaches statistics classes as a part-time visiting professor.