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SVN 2010 Spring Member Gathering Video Coverage

 

Watts Wacker, author and futurist to the world’s leading companies, regaled the 2010 SVN Spring Member Gathering with his insights into how “digital natives,” “techno geezers” and “neo-tribal behavior” are changing the future of business. You can watch highlights from his talk here. Click here to read more about his plenary.

Serial innovator Gunter Pauli, co-founder of SVN Europe, Ecover, and Zero Emissions Research & Initiatives (ZERI), discussed the potential of turning innovations from the natural world into clean, sustainable businesses. In his newest book, "The Blue Economy – 10 Years, 100 Innovations, 100 Million Jobs", Gunter crisscrosses the globe examining the 100 most cutting-edge, compelling and promising technological innovations inspired by nature.

Matt Flannery, founder of Kiva Microfunds, Jensine Larsen, founder World Pulse Media and Mark Marosits of Woldways Social Marketing discussed ways to leverage internet technology to more effectively grow social ventures. They offered concrete examples of how to engage a truly global audience online.

Bob Beisner of SolarWorld, Roby Roberts of Horizon Wind Energy and Catherine Mater of Mater Engineering discussed the hurdles and opportunities for renewable energy in the Pacific Northwest, in the U.S. and around the world. Innovations will have to drive costs down to make renewable energy accessible to the developing world and drive efficiency up to meet our insatiable appetite for energy.

Friday night ended with a bang as Michelle Long of the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) and Jay Coen Gilbert of B Lab engaged in a dialog on the issue of whether going to scale or staying local is more effective in building a sustainable economy.

 

From growing your own food in the backyard to changing the entire dynamic of the beef industry, there are a number of ways for you to have an impact on our food production systems. During the “Sustainable Food Mavericks” plenary, Doc and Connie Hatfield of Country Natural Beef and Patti Moreno of Garden Girl TV talked about their experiences changing the food game.

 

How much impact can your business sustain in tough times? How do you balance passions and the need to raise equity and debt? David Berge of Vancity and David Chen of Equilibrium Capital discussed concrete financial strategies to expand your social impact while also raising capital for your business.

 

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