AREDAY 2011 Summit Promotes the Power of Women in Sustainability

The eighth annual AREDAY summit, themed “Putting the Green in Green: Monetizing Carbon in the Global Economy,” will feature 22 women speakers from across numerous environment-focused disciplines, including:  Dr. Jane Lubchenco, under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA); Leilani Munter, NASCAR race car driver and “Carbon Free Girl”; Jayni Chase, founder, Green Community Schools; Tisha Connoly Schuller, president and CEO, Colorado Oil and Gas Association; Dr. Sylvia Earle, renowned oceanographer and National Geographic explorer-in-residence; Graciela Chichilnisky, author of the carbon market of the UN Kyoto Protocol; and Heidi Van Genderen, director, national and regional outreach for the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE), among many others.

Dr. Heidi Cullen will serve as “Host of the Day” and Keynote speaker opening day. She is currently Director of Communications for Climate Central and was The Weather Channel’s first on-air climate expert.  She helped create Forecast Earth and also serves on the NOAA Science Advisory Board.  

 In addition, an armchair discussion entitled “Leveraging Women’s Leadership for Climate Change Solutions” will be held at the Summit on Friday, August 19.  Moderated by Osprey Orielle Lake, director of Women’s Earth and Climate Caucus, the discussion will include panelists Sally Ranney, AREDAY co-director, and Kathleen Rogers, president of Earth Day Network.

 “It’s incredibly exciting to realize at this year’s AREDAY Summit we are extending the important work of women like Rachel Carson and Jane Jacobs, whose tireless efforts in the 1960s have paved the way for women in the modern environmental movement,” said Sally Ranney, AREDAY co-director.  

“Since that time, countless strides have been made by women in addressing global climate change and recalibrating our actions toward a more sustainable way of life, undoubtedly exemplifying the Chinese proverb that ‘women hold up half the sky’.”    

 As the environmental, sustainability and climate change movements have focused with greater urgency toward solutions-based work, the role of women has been recognized as nothing short of imperative in nature.  In recent years, numerous writings on women’s contributions to environmentally oriented causes and business practices have reflected this sentiment – including the book Women in Green: Voices of Sustainable Design and articles such as Andrea Learned’s ‘Gender and the Sustainable Brain’ and Cynthia Figge’s ‘A Sustainability Mystique for Women’.

 “AREDAY is pleased to be both examining and celebrating the unique efforts of women in advancing the global community toward positive environmental change,” Ranney said.

 For additional information on sponsorship opportunities and registration, visit www.areday.net.  To learn more about exhibiting at the AREDAY 2011 Expo, log on to www.areday.net/expo.html.

 About AREDAY

Since 2004, American Renewable Energy Day (AREDAY) has been bringing top leaders and educators together to promote the rapid deployment of renewable energy and energy efficiency strategies via demonstrations, presentations, performances, film screenings and dialogue. Each year, AREDAY has hosted nationally and internationally renowned speakers and attracted attendees from across the globe – resulting in unique, powerful cross-sector collaborations and actions around the climate change issue. For more information, visit www.areday.net.

-# # #-