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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (April 20, 2001)
011588 He’ll be eating at How about WOODY HARRELSON is coming to campus today. His only request is to be fed organic vegan food. Earth Day Suits! Jiggles 2165 W. 11th • 344-6897 Free Trees In honor of Earth Day Sundance will giveaway 1000 Douglas Fir seedlings 12-7 PM 4 Saturday & Sunday, April 21st & 22nd 'once NATURAL FOODS *\ Open Daily 7am-11pm • 24th & Hilyard • 343-9142 Nourishing Our Community since 1971 Making conservation history ■The Oregon Wilderness Conference will emphasize protecting Oregon’s forests By Jessica Cagle for the Emerald The Oregon Natural Resources Council has a mission: “to aggres sively protect and restore Oregon’s wild lands, wildlife and waters as an enduring legacy.” In keeping with that goal, the organization is co-sponsoring, along with eight other environmental groups, the first annual Oregon Wilderness Conference. “Standing Tall: Protecting Ore gon’s Wild Forests” will be held at Lane Community College April 27 29. Leanne Siart, ONRC’s Conserva tion and Outreach Coordinator, says that public involvement is the key. “The conference is aimed at edu cating and motivating people to participate in forest wilderness conservation,” she said. The Wilderness Conference will bring several organizations under one roof, each with a specific interest in protecting Oregon’s diverse wilderness areas. Bill Marlett, Execu tive Director of the Oregon Natural Desert Association, explained that while the emphasis of the conference is on forest protection, “the underly ing theme is wilderness protection.” Conference co-sponsors have or ganized steering meetings over the course of the year to ensure the event is a success. “This is a statewide effort. This conference is going to be a public expression of support to protect the last wild places in Oregon,” said Ric Bailey, Executive Director of the Hells Canyon Preservation Council. According to the ONRC, only 3 percent of Oregon’s wild forests are protected as wilderness. To help guard the rest of the state’s wilder ness, ONRC, along with more than 10 other environmental groups, formed the Oregon Wilderness Coalition (OWC) beginning the Oregon Wild Campaign. Since then, the OWC has mapped and completed inventory on roadless areas of 1,000 acres or more around the state. The results of these efforts will be unveiled at the conference in a proposal to protect 5 million acres of Oregon’s wild forests. The three-day conference will feature speakers, panel discussions and workshops, as well as music, and entertainment. Topics are di verse: “Women in the Wilderness Movement,” the “Media’s Perspec tive on Wilderness Issues,” “Carni vores in the Cascades,” fire man agement, grassroots organizing and drinking water. Keynote speakers include Gloria Flora, director of Sustainable Obtainable Options in Montana; Elizabeth Furse, retired U.S. Rep. From Oregon’s 1st Dis trict, known for her support of en vironmental issues; Robert Freimark, director of the Pacific Northwest region of the Wilderness Society; and Chris Wood, senior ad visor to the Chief of the U.S. Forest Service. Melissa Unger, a senior at UO and campus organizer of OSPIRG, explained what a unique opportu nity it is that this conference will happen in Eugene. ONRC expects about 200 people at the conference, which costs $55 for the weekend (including meals). Registration for Saturday events is $25. Siart encourages the public to take advantage of this opportunity to be a part of what she calls “con servation history in the making.” SBS continued from page 4B aware that the public is demand ing more from them when it comes to environmental steward ship. The symposium provides ideas and guidance for business seeking to learn more about sus tainability." There is substantial evidence that the movement to ward environmentally and social ly responsible business practices has gained strength over the past decade. "In the early 1990s, I felt like corporate ecology seminars were quite a bit like pulling teeth. At the end of the decade, I felt like a wave had gone right over my head. The wave of activity was greening businesses," said John Baldwin, SBS faculty adviser. "Sustainable" or "green" busi ness means different things to dif ferent people. A common interest is in improving environmental performance while maintaining healthy profits. For most corpora tions, incorporating sustainability into business practices is an incre mental and dynamic process. Dole Food Company, the world's largest producer of foods and veg etables, recently announced they would sell certified organic ba nanas. Patagonia has taken a re cent stand against genetically en gineered products. Coca-Cola Co. is currently responding to a group of socially concerned sharehold ers who want to see more post consumer plastic used in their bottles. For a select group of businesses, the commitment to sustainability rises above all other priorities. Gen esis Juice, for example, is a Eugene employee-owned cooperative that sells fresh organic juice in reusable containers. Indigo Teiwes-Cain, a Research Analyst for Progressive Investment Management in Port land, and former SBS Board mem ber said, "Portfolio 21, our global mutual fund focusing on environ mental sustainability, currently holds over 40 publicly traded com panies that meet our rigorous screening criteria. These are com panies that are going far beyond 're sponsibility' and 'stewardship' by recognizing the impending ecolog ical crisis and innovating new ways to change how they do busi ness so they can be ahead of the curve." Sustainable Business Symposium It’s never too early to think about the Fifth Annual Sustainable Busi ness Symposium which will be held November 9-11 at the University campus in Eugene. The program in cludes nationally recognized keynote speakers, panels, workshops and an exposition of businesses engaged in sustainable activities. In conjunction with SBS, the Institute for Sustain able Ethics and Economics and the Willamette Valley Btisiness Alliance will co-sponsor The Natural Step Workshop, a sustainability training for community leaders. In addition to fulfilling an urgent need for dialogue in the business community, there is also a need for us, as students, to hear first-hand the problems of business and communi ty leaders as they share their experi ences, their failures and their suc cesses. Kathy Lynn, current PPPM graduate student and former SBS Board member: "The Sustainable Business Symposium provides Uni versity students with opportunities to engage in activities that are at the forefront of initiatives in Oregon, na tional issues, and of global concern. Through the symposium, students have the opportunity to learn about the different strategies being under taken by corporations, non-profits and other organizations, and interact with inspiring innovators in the field of sustainable business.” Defining "sustainable business" is an ongoing discussion. As plan ners of the SBS, we strive to con strain our vision of sustainability to a strict set of criteria, and to include the most committed businesses in our planning. However, it is also important to recognize incremental change in companies which are working toward sustainability. We hope to encourage all businesses and individuals to broaden their vi sion of what is possible as we work towards a healthy planet. If you are interested in learning more about the Sustainable Business Symposium, or in participating in planning for the 2001 Symposium, please email sbs@darkwing.uore gon.edu, or call (541) 346-0670 and a leave a message. You can also check out the SBS Web site at http://www.uoregon.edu/~sbs. Robyn Scofield is a member of the board of directors of the Sustainable Business Symposium.