A greener future may be on the horizon for La Plata County. This weekend, the Sustainability Alliance of Southwest Colorado will be holding its first ever green networking conference, “Opening the Green Umbrella: We’re all in this Together.” The free, half-day event is open to community organizations, businesses and individuals, all with the interest of forwarding goals of sustainability and plans for achieving them.

According to event organizer Werner Heiber, the philosophy behind the event is that more can be achieved through cooperation. “We feel there’s a real need to interconnect all aspects of sustainability

in the community, from social and environmental to economic,” he said. “We wanted to provide a means for groups to connect on these issues.”

Topics to be explored include ways to promote healthier lifestyles, greener

homes, affordable housing, a self-sufficient economy, local food and environmental conservation.

The event will include a presentation by retired professor Dick White, founding chairman of the Southwest Sustainability Alliance, addressing the need for urgency in working toward sustainability. Following him will be Janna Six, of the Alliance of Sustainable Colorado, who will talk about sustainability efforts across the state, the governor’s climate action plan and the City of Denver’s “Greenprint,” a comprehensive outline for reducing emissions and becoming more energy efficient.

The event will also include breakout sessions on “Unifying Community Resources,” which will seek to define sustainability and what people or organizations can do to achieve it. The breakout sessions will be followed by an open discussion. Heiber said in addition to coming up with an action plan, he is hopeful that the event will produce a resource guide for the entire community.

“We really encourage everyone to participate,” he said. “Because, it doesn’t matter who you are, we all ultimately want to achieve the same thing. We’re all in this together.”

– Missy Votel