Business, educational, and other community partnerships that promote sustainability and environmental change will be showcased at the 14th annual Western New York Environmental Summit scheduled for Sept. 29 at Daemen College.
The summit, “We Are All Partners in Change,” will be held from 8:30 a.m. to noon in the Wick Campus Center Social Room. Registration and breakfast for all attendees at the environmental-focused event, which is free and open to the public, will take place from 8:30 to 9 a.m.
“The Environmental Summit is a wonderful opportunity to come together as a community to share information, develop networks, and support one another in our efforts to make positive change for the environment,” said Kristen Luppino-Gholston, director of Daemen’s Paul A. Saffrin Center for Sustainability and Civic Engagement. “Partnerships are important to making our world a better place and achieving sustainability and environmental goals.”
Opening the summit at 9 a.m., Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz will deliver the keynote address, “Climate Action and Sustainability.” He will discuss the county’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other measures to mitigate climate change as outlined in his 2018 report, “Erie County Commits to Paris: How Erie County Can Meet U.S. Target Reductions for Greenhouse Gas Emissions.”
Exhibitors from more than 25 local environmental, business, and grassroots organizations will be on hand starting at 8:30 a.m. with networking from 10 to 11 a.m.
A panel discussion, “Local Success Stories and How to Create Your Own,” from 11 a.m. to noon will feature five Western New York projects and their process for successful projects.
As part of the Environmental Summit, a community electronics recycling collection will take place outside the Wick Center.
The Environmental Summit is being sponsored by Daemen’s Paul A. Saffrin Center for Sustainability and Civic Engagement and the Global and Sustainability Program, The Knoer Group, and Western New York Apollo Alliance.
Additional information is available at daemen.edu/summit.