Nadine Block, SFI Senior Director of Government Outreach, talks about SFI’s participation in the White House Council on Environmental Quality’s GreenGov Symposium, October 5-7, 2010.
The first GreenGov Symposium, sponsored by the White House Council on Economic Quality came to a close last week. The event focused on President Obama’s Executive Order 13514, which set sustainability goals for Federal agencies specifically in their environmental, energy and economic performance. The Executive Order, signed just over a year ago, requires Federal agencies to increase energy efficiency, reduce fleet petroleum consumption, conserve water, reduce waste, support sustainable communities, and leverage Federal purchasing power to promote environmentally-responsible products and technologies.
SFI took part in the event as a sponsor to demonstrate to government officials how the SFI program and forest certification in general can help Federal agencies support responsible forestry and purchasing. It was great to see so many government officials coming together to find solutions to meet their sustainability requirements. On the first day of the symposium, Secretary of Energy Steven Chu and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack both spoke about the importance of this new Executive Order for Federal agencies and as an example for the private sector. Breakout session topics throughout the symposium included clean energy, water efficiency, achieving zero waste, greening the supply chain, and sustainable communities.
Many government officials stopped by the SFI booth and were eager to learn more about forest certification and its connections to responsible procurement and green building. Additionally, SFI sponsored the “Greening the Supply Chain” track, helping to draw attention to the many steps that can be taken to help make more efficient procurement decisions.
Cups used throughout the event were SFI-labeled ecotainers – check out the picture below. These cups provided an excellent example of consumer products sourced from responsibly managed forests and demonstrated how simple purchasing decisions can make a difference.
Overall, it was an exciting event and we at SFI hope to take part in it again in the future.
