UPDATED 12/1
Here's an item for your calendar: Foresight Design Initiative is hosting the December edition of Green Drinks, a worldwide social event bringing sustainability activists, philanthropists, thinkers and interested citizens together for, well, some drinks. And networking. The idea started in London, and Foresight Design has been hosting the monthly event since 2003.
The December event is actually a combination of Chicago Green Drinks and the Business Edition, which is similar to the standard social hour but geared for business owners and professionals working towards sustainability. Here's the vital information, lifted from Foresight Design's helpful Web site:
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 6
5:00-9:00pm
CHICAGO GREEN DRINKS--BUSINESS EDITION & CHICAGO GREEN DRINKS
Where: Funky Buddha Lounge, 728 W. Grand
Cost: $5 ($2 student/low income)
Contact: info@chicagosmartbusiness.com, (773) 271-1990
Due to the plethora of holiday events, this month we combine Business Edition and "regular" Green Drinks into a single night.
5:30-6:30pm: Power Networking. Bring your business cards and a 2-minute elevator pitch about your business. Challenge yourself to meet everyone in the house!
7:30-8:30pm: Green Drinks moderated disscussion. Topic: Careers in Sustainability: How To Bring Sustainability Into Your Job or Workplace. Panelists will include:
Michelle Jost
Conservation Programs Manager, John G. Shedd Aquarium
Michelle Jost is the Conservation Programs Manager for the John G. Shedd Aquarium where she manages the Right Bite sustainable seafood awareness program and the Green Initiative. Michelle serves on Chicago's Green Museums Steering Committee and the American Zoo and Aquarium Association's Green Scientific Advisory Group. Before joining the Shedd team, Michelle worked closely with scientists worldwide to develop volunteer-based research expeditions for the international non-profit, Earthwatch Institute. While with Earthwatch, she traveled to Africa, the Caribbean, and Mexico to assist with field research on community health, Leatherback sea turtles, and whale sharks, respectively. Michelle also spent time with Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom, New England Aquarium, and Museum of Science-Boston as a conservation educator. Before embarking on her career, Michelle graduated with honors from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Conservation.
Jim Van der Kloot
Land Revitalization Coordinator, U.S. EPA Region V
Jim Van der Kloot is the Land Revitalization Coordinator at U.S. EPA Region V, in Chicago. Beginning in 1993, Jim managed the nation's first Brownfields program, at the City of Chicago (along with Donna Ducharme, who is now at the Delta Institute), which broadened the discussion of contaminated site cleanup to include community and economic development. Chicago's Brownfields Initiative created a successful series of processes which have replicated themselves virally across the country. Jim currently works on incorporating sustainable development practices into EPA's implementation of Superfund, Brownfields, RCRA, and the Clean Water Act.
Bonnie Paganis from Sodexho (no bio available)
