10th annual Sustainable Cleveland Summit

The 10th annual Sustainable Cleveland Summit will be held Sept. 20-21 at the Cleveland Public Auditorium. Individuals are invited to join more than 500 sustainability leaders, visionaries and practitioners to learn about new innovations, strengthen existing initiatives and co-create Cleveland's sustainable future.

Summit highlights

Thursday, Sept. 20

2:30 to 5:30 p.m. Mayor Frank G. Jackson will open the event with a welcome, followed by remarks on the state of the Sustainable Cleveland initiative by Matt Gray, chief of sustainability for the City of Cleveland. There also will be a presentation for the Commuter Choice Awards. CWRU will receive a Silver Commuter Challenge award during this portion of the event. Radhika Fox, CEO of the U.S. Water Alliance, will give a keynote address titled “Celebrating Progress, Accelerating Change: How do we secure a sustainable water future for all?”

Friday, Sept. 21

8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Gray and Kristin Hall, of the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability, and Jon Berghoff, of the Flourishing Leadership Institute, will open the second day of events by introducing the topics to be covered during the day. Attendees will spend the day visioning, designing and action-planning with fellow Clevelanders and visionaries. Rue Mapp, founder and CEO of Outdoor Afro, also will give a keynote address titled “A New Narrative.”

CWRU involvement

President Barbara R. Snyder and CWRU Director of Energy and Sustainability Stephanie Corbett served on the stewardship committee this year to help plan the summit. The Case Western Reserve University Office for Sustainability is among the event’s sponsors. Additionally, David Cooperrider, Distinguished University Professor and director of the Fowler Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit, and Ronald Fry, professor of organizational behavior, will advise the order and break-out sessions through their appreciative inquiry processes. They have formerly facilitated the entire event. The CWRU Office for Sustainability will sponsor a number of CWRU community members to attend the event. Email sustainability@case.edu to let the office know which day you would like to attend and why. The office will supply a promotion code for you to register today (Sept. 17).