by George Stone
Natural Science InstructorClimate superstar to keynote MATC energy conference
It’s been a couple of years since I last composed a piece for my Our Home Planet column in the MATC Times. No, I didn’t retire from writing — I just took a little leave of absence. I’ve been waiting for something really important to brag about, and now here it comes — the 2009 Wisconsin Renewable Energy Summit!
This outstanding conference hosted by MATC will be held March 25-28 at Milwaukee’s Midwest Airlines Center. Now hear this: all students may register free of charge! Register online now at renewable energysummit.org.
A special highlight of this year’s Summit will be the keynote address by Dr. James E. Hansen at noon Wednesday, March 25! Jim Hansen is one of the world’s preeminent climate scientists. He is widely regarded as the foremost authority on global warming and the mitigation of dangerous climate change.
It is no exaggeration to say that Milwaukee Area Technical College is excited and supremely proud that Dr. Hansen has accepted our invitation to speak at the 2009 Wisconsin Renewable Energy Summit (WRES).
Jim Hansen is celebrated around the globe for his leadership in alerting humankind to the enormity of the climate crisis and the urgent need for mitigation
Dr. Hansen serves as Director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies at Columbia University in New York. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and has received numerous prestigious awards for his contributions to science and society. We believe that Hansen’s Summit keynote will be his first major address in Wisconsin.
As Jim Hansen’s appearance suggests, the scope of the 2009 Wisconsin Renewable Energy Summit is far broader than renewable energy; also under the Summit tent is energy efficiency and conservation, sustainability, water technologies, green energy practices and social responsibility.
The theme of this sixth annual conference is Green Business – Unlimited Economic Opportunity, but it might as well be “Window to the Future – the Green Economy.” If you plan to live and work on Earth in the future, there is a lot of importance for you at the Summit!
In addition to an extraordinary lineup of excellent speakers in plenary and breakout sessions from Wednesday through Friday, the Summit also hosts dozens of sponsors and exhibitors at booths in the conference exhibit hall.
Support this landmark MATC event and register now at renewableenergysummit.org. Remember, students may register free of charge before March 1, but everyone must register.
Free student registrations are made possible through the generosity of Summit sponsors and exhibitors. Among the principal sponsors are MATC, the Wisconsin Technical College System Foundation, Johnson Controls, Focus on Energy, We Energies, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Marquette University. The conference organizers seek your help in spreading the word and inviting participation by additional sponsors.
The 2009 Wisconsin Renewable Energy Summit provides a great opportunity to see and meet the movers and shakers in business, industry, government and education who offer information and employment for the workforce in the rapidly developing green economy. Get on board – it’s going to be an exciting ride!
