Businesses, Academics, Municipalities & Utilities To Share Best Water Use And Sustainability Practices At ‘A Gathering Of Green Teams’

What:

The 4th annual "Gathering of Green Teams" will bring together prominent sustainability experts and "green" teams from leading California agencies and businesses, along with community organizations and others, to share their innovative sustainability solutions and experiences. Engaging seminars will feature speakers who are successfully addressing water use issues, green office buildings, and developing employee engagement programs and incentives

The event, hosted by Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), Southern California Edison (SCE), Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), and San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), will provide more than 100 expected attendees the opportunity to network with other green professionals while sharing ideas and insights that can be implemented across industries

When:

Wednesday, October 14, 2015 -- 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m

Where:

SoCalGas Energy Resource Center

9240 E. Firestone Boulevard

Downey, CA 90241

Featured:

Keynote: Employee engagement is essential to making progress on environmental issues. Companies must harness the power of their employees– and their employees' families, friends and social networks—to take action and adopt behaviors that conserve and protect natural resources in their personal lives

Speaker: Jan Dell, PE, Chief Engineer, The Wyland Foundation

Groundwater Replenishment System: Learn how wastewater is being reused to add nearly 100 million gallons of water a day to Orange County's water supply, enough to meet the needs of nearly 850,000 people, while decreasing the amount of wastewater discharged into the Pacific Ocean

Speaker: Eleanor Torres, Director of Public Affairs, Orange County Water District

Los Angeles Storm Water Capture Master Plan: Learn why storm water collection is a key piece in enhancing LA's water supply, and how LADWP plans to increase the amount it captures by five times or more

Speakers: Andy Niknafs, M.S., PE, Lead Engineer, LADWP, and Virginia Wei, Civil Engineering Associate, LADWP

The Impact of Green Teams: Panelists will tell how regional utilities have developed employee "Green Teams" and are using them to affect positive change within their organizations and the community. Audience participation and questions will be encouraged

Speakers: Vanessa Alcantar, Project Specialist, SoCalGas; Maria Sison-Roces, Manager of Corporate Sustainability Programs, LADWP; Catherine Leland, Sr. Project Manager of Procurement Policy, SCE; Grant Frost, Manager of Environmental Strategy and Sustainability, SDGE

Moderator: Dan Olmsted, Market Advisor, SoCalGas

Background:

"Gathering of Green Teams" was launched by SoCalGas in 2012 to give green teams from Southern California-based companies the ability to share their individual initiatives and learn from one another. The goal is to enhance leadership surrounding the sustainability of California companies by inspiring, engaging and providing attendees with the tools they need. This year, for the first time, SoCalGas has brought in SDG&E, LADWP, and SCE to partner in hosting this program