Great Lakes Bioneers Chicago will take place on November 1-3, 2013, at Roosevelt University, 430 S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago. This conference is a local, self-organized group of National Bioneers, which now is in its 24th year. Last year’s inaugural Chicago gathering presented visionaries from diverse disciplines related to environmental, social and justice issues. This year’s program promises to be even more inspiring than 2012.
Great Lakes Bioneers Chicago’s mission is to promote sustainable community that fosters life-giving relationships, nurtures connections, and celebrates solutions for restoring and healing Earth’s communities. They employ a number of strategies to fulfill their mission including:
Educating the community on innovative solutions.
Offering a systemic framework, i.e. a way of “connecting the dots” that is holistic,
systemic, and multi-disciplinary.
Linking individuals and networks in order to foster connection, cross-pollination, and collaboration of people and ideas, all focused on positive change.
Advocating for opportunities to heal and restore our damaged and depleted community.
Being an oasis of hope that sparks mass creativity and engagement.
This event Great Lakes Bioneers Chicago is hosting a fun, action-oriented, three-day gathering for people of all ages and experience levels who want to come together to learn; exchange ideas; and network with others who want to build a future that is based on just, nature-inspired solutions.
Today’s enormous environmental, social and economic challenges mandate new ways of thinking and acting, accelerating a shift in the way we live on this planet that honors the web of life, each other, and future generations.
Friday, November 1: 8:00 am to 7:00 pm
Saturday, November 2: 9:00 am to 6:00 pm
Sunday, November 3: 9:00 am to 5:30 pm
Bioneers’ vision is rooted in nature-inspired solutions to the world’s social justice, environmental and economic challenges. Great Lakes Bioneers Chicago’s November event celebrates and illuminates those solutions through:
Peer-to-peer participatory working sessions on Friday;
Interactive workshops and skill shares on Saturday and Sunday. and
Cultural performances that include poetry, music, dance and theatre.
Programming has been designed to inspire; provoke discussion that focuses on solutions; and foster collaboration among attendees. The goal is to first raise awareness, and then inspire attendees to take action – in their homes, their neighborhoods and in Chicago.
Here is what previous attendee and speaker had to say about the event
“The biggest love-fest to hit Chicago in the 21st century. It’s for people who choose to prove the cynics wrong, we can create a better Chicago and we’re doing it today.”
– Attendee, 2012 Great Lakes Bioneers Chicago gathering.
“I attend a lot of conferences as a speaker and have a fairly high bar, but it was exceeded at every turn. Many of the speakers were that perfect blend of inspirational and practical. The measures to minimize the ecological footprint of the conference were very thorough. The Bioneers walked their talk all weekend long.”
– Speaker, 2012 Great Lakes Bioneers gathering.
Who will Attend
Join Innovators and Visionaries in a Movement for Change “Celebrating Community Resilience.” Chicago-area practitioners in attendance include:
Karen Weigert, Chief Sustainability Officer, Chicago
Doug Farr, AIA, LEED AP, Farr Associates
Lisa Albrecht, Solar Service
John Edel, Plant Chicago
Naomi Davis, Blacks in Green
Kathy Kelly, Voices for Creative Non-Violence
Colin Rolfing, HOK
Randy Neufeld, SCRAM Cycle Fund
Martha Boyd, Angelic Organics Learning Center
Jamie Ponce, Chicago City Director, C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group
Kim Wasserman, 2013 Goldman Environmental Prize Winner Kelly Mitchell, Greenpeace
Dennis Kelleher, Workplace Democracy
Wes King, Illinois Stewardship Alliance
Earl Hatley, Tribal RIverkeeper
Amy Coffman Phillips, Biomimicry Chicago
Brian Dolan, Living Building Challenge
Terry Evans, Photographer
Mike Nowak, The Mike Nowak Show
Monica Eng, WBEZ
Don Washington, The Mayor Tutorial
And more. Six nationally-known keynotes also will be on hand most of the weekend to interact with attendees.
Speakers Include:
Sandra Steingraber, acclaimed ecologist and author (“Living Downstream” and “Raising Elijah”).
Professor David Orr, Oberlin Collage and creator of The Oberlin Sustainability Project.
John Michael Greer, human ecologist, visionary and author (“The Wealth of Nature”, “The Long Descent”, and “The Ecotechnic Future).
Albert Bates, Director, Global Village for Appropriate Technology and author (“The Biochar Solution”, “The Post Petroleum Survival Guide and Cookbook”, and “Climate in Crisis”.
Ameena Matthews, member of Cure Violence and featured in the documentary “The Interrupters”.
Gunther Hauk, Director, Spikenard Farm Honeybee Sanctuary and featured in the documentary “Queen of the Sun”.
A number of entertainers and musical guest will also be performing.
Click here to find out more.
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