The next two weeks we will be highlighting the inspired thought leaders who will be speaking at Ecocity World Summit 2009.
Today: Parris Glendening & Arnold J. Goldman
Parris Glendening, former Governor of Maryland, President, Smart Growth Leadership Institute, USA
Governor Glendening is President of the Smart Growth Leadership Institute, and two term past Governor of Maryland, United States of America, 1995 to 2003. As governor, one of his primary agenda items was the development strategy known as Smart Growth, which focuses development in higher density mixed use centers that work well with transit, save energy and address environmental issues at their foundation. He led the creation of a Smart Growth Initiative for the state of Maryland and another initiative working with Trust for Public Land, that helps States to align land use and water protection. Smart Growth Leadership Institute: http://www.sgli.org
Sunday, December 13, 11:30-12:30 Session 2: The City and the Shape of the Future
Arnold J. Goldman, Chairman & Founder, BrightSource Energy, Inc., ISRAEL – USA
Arnold J. Goldman is the Chairman and Founder of both BrightSource Energy Inc. and BrightSource Industries (Israel), Ltd. (BSII). He holds a B.S. in Engineering from UCLA and a MSEE from the University of Southern California. Mr. Goldman was the founder of Luz International, Ltd. and served as its CEO. Luz International, Ltd. designed, constructed, financed, and operated the world’s nine largest Solar Electric Generating Systems (SEGS) which, at the time, generated 90 percent of the world’s solar electricity. Mr. Goldman also co-founded Electric Fuel Ltd., an electric battery/fuel cell company listed today as Aerotech on the NASDAQ. He was the VP of Engineering and co-founder of Lexitron, the first word processing company in the US. Lexitron was bought by Raytheon in 1977. Mr. Goldman is the recipient of two international awards for his contribution to solar energy development. He holds numerous patents for his inventions and innovations. BrightSource Energy, Inc.: http://www.brightsourceenergy.com
Monday, December 14, 09:00-10:45 Session 1: Energy, Economy and Innovation
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Mr Paul Downton is Director and Principal Architect of Ecopolis Architects Pty Ltd. Working with his partner Cherie and colleague Emilis Prelgauskas in 1991 he formed Urban Ecology Australia, the national non-profit urban environmental community group which has been actively promoting ecological developments ever since. Paul is a talented artist as well as seminal thinker developing ecocity theory and giving countless public talks, radio, TV and newspaper interviews internationally on ecological architecture, urban ecology and ecopolis and unique experience actually building projects he designs. Paul and his partner Cherie were co-conveners of the Second International Ecocity Conference in Adelaide. Ecopolis Architects: http://www.ecopolis.com.au
Mr. Eroglu is Member of Parliament for Afyonkarahisar of the ruling AKP. He graduated in civil engineering from Istanbul Technical University, going on to an academic career at the same university until becoming general director of the Istanbul water board in 1994. Here he is remembered for successfully modernizing and cleaning up the city’s water supply, which had previously been a victim of corruption and neglect.He became head of the State Hydraulic Works (DSI) in 2003, where again he supervised a program of investment for renewal. In the past, Eroglu campaigned for the position of the mayor of Istanbul from AKP. He was elected to the parliament in 2007, becoming minister of environment and forestry, where, as part of his duties, he will be responsible for Turkey’s strategy and approach to global warming.
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Mr Wulf Daseking has been the director of city planning in Freiburg, Germany, since 1984. For six years before that, he held a similar role at Mullheim/Ruhr. At Freiburg, Wulf is responsible for urban development, land development, landscape planning, master plan development and individual projects. He is an associate member of the German Federation of Architects, a member of the German Academy of Urban and Rural Development/Berlin an a member of the exert committee city planning of the German Congress of Cities. Wulf is also a lecturer in city planning at Freiburg University and at Darmstadt/University of Architecture City of Freiburg: http://www.freiburg-home.com
Marcel Diallo is an American musician, poet, artist and community builder, known for his founding of the Black Dot Artists Collective, The Black New World and his revitalization efforts in West Oakland, California’s historic, predominantly African-American neighborhood. As a performance artist and an activist, Marcel Diallo has performed and shared the stage with such legendary poets and artists as Amiri Baraka, The Last Poets, David Murray, Kahil El Zabar, Sonia Sanchez, Kamau Da’oud, Marvin X, Piri Thomas, Micheal McClure, Lawrence Ferlingetti, as well as actor Don Cheadle. Diallo is currently active in land-based community building in his West Oakland neighborhood, with the intent of making sure that African-American residents do not get displaced by the rapid wave of gentrification that is taking hold of the historically black neighborhood. Black New World: http://www.blacknewworld.com
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Engin Ayaz is an energy and resources consultant in the Arup’s Buildings team in San Francisco. Engin has an interdisciplinary background in engineering and architecture and focuses on carbon, climate change and informatics in the context of architecture, engineering and planning. Engin enjoys exploring synergies across various technical focus areas and developing integrated design scenarios with strong visual outputs. Previously, he worked on a sustainability research assignment across five Arup offices. Originally from Istanbul, Turkey, Engin has a Civil and Environmental Engineering degree from Stanford University and is a LEED accredited professional.
Jake Levitas is a Sustainability Consultant with Arup’s Planning team in San Francisco. His experience in sustainability consulting ranges from applying sustainability to design, construction and operation of urban planning projects and infrastructure to analysis of corporate objectives and implementing sustainability plans for organizations. He has contributed to environmental impact assessment work, as well as both public and private sustainable development projects. He has notable experience with GIS analysis, mapping, and database management in the context of integrated sustainable design.
The Biopolitics International Organization (B.I.O.) is an non-profit, non-governmental organization based in Athens, Greece. Over the course of its history, B.I.O. has been promoting a shift from an anthropocentric to a biocentric system of values in society, in order to curb environmental destruction and place appreciation of the environment at the core of every human endeavour. B.I.O. has held numerous international conferences and symposia, paving the way for the development of new strategies to secure environmental protection as a primary societal aim.
Dr. Sahar Attia is Professor of Planning & Urban Design at Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt. With a Ph.D. in Urban Planning from the Urban Institute of Paris, France. She is Technical Coordinator and Urban Planning Consultant for improving the informal settlements in Eygpt. Her work is centered around cultural and natural heritage conservation in Mediterranean cities. Dr. Attia currently serves as Secretary of the committee of “Urban Planning and New Communities” – The Academy of Scientific Research and Technology, The Ministry of Scientific Research, Egypt. She is also a member of the Research Institute for Development.
