The Green Wine Summit

It’s still not easy being green, but once you’ve found your social consciousness it becomes easier… Remember Kermie the Frog singing, it’s not easy being green? I sang along with my children, because I had made a commitment to the environment by the late 1960, and I’ve been committed to it ever since. My first real life changing activity came when I swore off aerosol cans. It seemed so trite at the time. What good could I – only one human being – do to change the world?

Now, well over 40 years have passed, and if I stacked all the cans that I would have purchased, it would be really substantial, not to mention all subsequent commitments that I made and have kept. Don’t ever believe that you, as one person, can’t/won’t make a difference. You do and will.

The wine industry has its green leaders, with my friend Paul Dolan of Mendocino Wine Company really leading a good chunk of the way. I remember one time when Paul was going to be a guest speaker at one of the Petite Sirah Symposiums. This one particular person just raised an eyebrow. (That person owns a chemical company, and I thought, “Yeah, I see your point” — not.) Paul was brilliant, and his crusade is being carried on with many more people coming into the fold, thankfully.

Check it out below, and see if this interests you.

Details:

The Green Wine Summit
November 29 and 30, 2011
Napa Valley Marriott
Napa Valley

Registration

• Day 1: Tuesday – November 29, 2011 ~ Registration 3:30pm to 5:30pm
• Green Showcase, Welcome Reception & Wine tasting 5:30pm to 6:30pm
• VIP Aged Cabernet Networking Dinner 6:30pm to 8:30pm
• The Latest Consumer Trends in Sustainability: Where Are The Opportunities?

FROM THEIR SITE: Based on 20 years of expertise, Steve French, Managing Partner of Natural Marketing Institute (NMI), will share the latest consumer trends in sustainability. Based on the connection between personal and planetary health, the LOHAS (Lifestyles Of Health And Sustainability) concept is one of the hottest trends in today’s mainstream marketplace. LOHAS describes an integrated, rapidly growing market for goods and services that appeal to consumers who have a meaningful sense of environmental and social responsibility and incorporate those values into their purchase decisions. New research from NMI’s LOHAS Consumer Trends Database® will be highlighted based on research among 500,000+ consumers. Learn about the latest market trends, relevance to the wine industry, global consumer perspective, the LOHAS consumer segmentation model, and much more. Explore new, breakthrough ways in which you can leverage LOHAS trends into the wine industry to become part of this revolution.

• Day 2: Wednesday – November 30, 2011
• Registration 8:00am to 8:45am
• Green Showcase & Continental Breakfast 8:00am to 8:45am
• General Session 8:45am to 12:00pm
• Welcome: Lesley P. Berglund, Green Wine Summit Event Chair 8:45am to 9:00am
• Why Be Green If Nobody Cares? ~ Marc Stoiber, Creative Director 9:00am to 9:45am
• Business & Sustainability – A Global Perspective 9:45am to 10:45am
• Tony Hansen, Partner, Seven Streams Group, Moderator
• The panel will include a Retailer, Supplier, Academic and Accountant.
• Networking Break 10:45am to 11:00am
• Global Green Perspectives — Benchmarking California With Other New World Countries, 11:00am to 12:00pm
• Alison Jordan, Executive Director, California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance, Champion
• Panelist to be announced
• Networking Lunch, 12:00pm to 1:15pm
• Luncheon Speaker: Bob Bunting, President of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), Chair, International Services Group and former CEO of Moss Adam LLP, Member of The Prince of Wales’ Accounting for Sustainability Project and the Global Reporting Initiative recently announced the formation of the International Integrated Reporting Committee (IIRC), which aims to advance the creation of a globally accepted framework for sustainability accounting.
• Green Showcase 1:15pm to 2:00pm
• Breakout Sessions I ~ 2:00pm to 3:15pm
• A. Green Operations: Measuring What Matters
• Lisa Franconi, Program Manager, California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance, Moderator
• Joe Browde, Ph.D., Professional Services Manager, SureHarvest, CSWA Performance Metrics Overview Project
• Wendy Garcia, Senior Environmental Engineer, Constellation Wines US, Winery Case Study
• Mandi McKay, Sustainability Coordinator, Sierra Nevada BrewingCompany. Outside industry Brewery Case Study
• B. Green Sales & Marketing: Communicating Green
• Mimi Gatens, Wine Industry Consultant, Moderator
• Laura Levy Shatkin, Executive Producer, Blogger, Freelance Writer
• Lisa A. Walter, Principal, Adams Walter Communications
• Other panelists to be announced
• C. Green Business: Life Cycle Analysis
• John Epperson, Special Counsel, Farella Braun + Martel, Moderator
• Tom Jablonowski, Lean Six Sigma Black Belt—Owens-Illinois
• Gerald Rebitzer, Ph.D., Sustainability Leader, Amcor Flexibles Europe & Americas
• Networking Break 3:15pm to 3:30pm
• Breakout Sessions II ~ 3:30pm to 4:45pm
• A. Green Operations: What Is New & Upcoming In Sustainable Winegrape Growing?
• Clifford Ohmart, VP of Professional Services, SureHarvest, Moderator
• Clifford Ohmart: View from the Vineyard: A practical guide to sustainable winegrape growing; a new resource for winegrape growers.
• Andrew Arnold, Program Manager, SureHarvest: Ecosystem Services and Winegrowing: What is it and where is this going?
• Matthew B. Hoffman, University of California Davis, Dept. of Environmental Science and Policy: Sustainability programs in California Viticulture: Program effectiveness, practice adoption, and social networks
• B. Green Sales & Marketing: Does Green Packaging Make A Difference?
• John Garn, Co-Founder,Viewcraft, Moderator
• Matt Elhardt, Director of Marketing, Longview Fibre Paper and Packaging
• Other panelists to be announced.
• C. Green Business: Greening Your Organization
• Wine Reception & Green Showcase ~ 4:45pm to 6:00pm