Welcome Session
10:00 A.m. ET Welcome Session
Location: International Ballroom, Walb Student Union -or- Online
Session Descriptions
11:00 a.m. Session 1
TRACK A: Inflation Reduction Act and Future Funding Opportunities for Communities (Suite WU 222-224-226 -or- Online)
The Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act have poured billions of federal dollars into Indiana communities. Even as grant funding from these sources winds down, there is still time to get take advantage of this legislation to fund your community projects. This workshop will provide an overview of grants, loans, rebates, incentives, guides, technical assistance, and other resources to build your capacity to successfully secure funding. Experts will then guide a table exercise to allow participants to get real-time assistance to find the funding and resources they need to move their projects forward from vision to concrete.
SPEAKERS: Bill Brown, Assistant Director for Strategy and Engagement at the Environmental Resilience Institute, Indiana University
Alex Crowley, Executive Director, Indiana Energy Independence Fund
Graham Richard, Former Mayor, City of Fort Wayne, Former State Senator District 15
TRACK B: Do's and Don'ts: Engaging Meaningfully with the Latine Community (WU 114)
Join the Earth Charter Indiana team for an insightful presentation and Q&A session on effectively engaging the Latine community in your environmental efforts. We'll cover topics from cultural awareness to language barriers, providing you with a deeper understanding of your role in making Indiana's climate initiatives more diverse and inclusive.
SPEAKER: Miranda Frausto, Latino/x/e Outreach Coordinator, Earth Charter Indiana
YOUTH TRACK: Passion into Purpose (WU G-21 Meeting Room)
Co-moderators Paige and Trent lead icebreakers and share their stories of how they got involved in climate leadership. They also share tips for navigating the convention as a student and best practices of networking.
MODERATORS: Paige Hein, Immediate Past Indiana District Key Club Governor, 4SEE Co-Founder and Director of Sustainability
Trent George, Member of Fort Wayne's Mayoral Youth Engagement Council
1:30 p.m. SESSION 2
TRACK A: Interactive Guide to Hoosier Local Climate Programs (Suite WU 222-224-226 or Online)
A tour of existing climate steps taken by Indiana towns, cities, and counties, from Municipal resolutions to participation in the Resiliency Cohorts and more. Come to share your region or community’s progress!
PRESENTERS: Therese Dorau - Assistant Director for Climate Policy and Implementation,
Jim Poyser, Earth Charter Indiana Director of Advancement
TRACK B: Indiana Solar for All (WU 114)
Updates on Indiana’s two Solar for All awards and many of the projects in line for this historic funding for disadvantaged communities to access customer-owned solar energy. While all projects are currently set to engage with a planning period, many of the awards have an expansive view of improving the solar landscape, from workforce development to policy support. There are many ways to engage with this program and the Indiana Solar for All Coalition.
PRESENTERS: Zach Schalk, Indiana Program Director, Solar United Neighbors
Alex Crowley, Executive Director, Indiana Energy Independence Fund
Kerry Korpela, Program Manager, Energy Engineering & Sustainability Services, Fort Wayne City Utilities
Brenda Scott-Henry, Director of the Office of Sustainability & Environmental Affairs, City of Gary
TRACK C: Local Coordination and Networking (WU G-08 Meeting Room)
This session will provide a space to build collaboration between cities, specifically sustainability offices or whoever is wearing the “sustainability hat” in their municipality. This session is not a presentation but rather a guided discussion for those who want to share ideas and start new shared projects.
FACILITATOR: Kathryn Lisinicchia, Earth Charter Indiana NE Indiana Regional Resiliency Coordinator
YOUTH TRACK: Youth as Experts (WU G-21 Meeting Room)
Youth from around Indiana will share what they are doing for their communities, and share their knowledge as the climate leaders of the future. Workshop will culminate in a group discussion about the issues facing the environment and the consequent challenges young leaders face. All are invited to share strategies for overcoming these obstacles and becoming an advocate for sustainability in their schools and communities.
FACILITATORS: Paige Hein, Immediate Past Indiana District Key Club Governor, 4SEE Co-Founder and Director of Sustainability
Trent George, Member of Fort Wayne's Mayoral Youth Engagement Council
3 p.m. SESSION 3
TRACK A: Engaging and Connecting Indiana Communities with Technical Assistance Resources (Suite WU 222-224-226 or Online)
DESCRIPTION: Purdue Extension is leading two efforts to support Indiana communities, including the Great Lakes Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Center (TCTAC) and the Renewable Energy Siting through Technical Engagement (R-STEP) program. The TCTAC assists rural and environmental justice communities in navigating federal funding. Through R-STEP, a state-wide collaborative is supporting renewable energy education and assistance for planning and siting utility-scale projects. Each effort focuses on building partnerships, accessible education and training, and engagement to support local goals. Attendees will learn about opportunities and resources and will also participate in a short introductory experience of a grant writing workshop.
SPEAKERS: Tamara Ogle, Community Development Regional Educator for Purdue Extension. She specializes in civic engagement, local government, and land use issues. Tamara also facilitates community forums and group decision-making processes. Tamara received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Purdue University Department of Agricultural Economics.
Dr Kara Salazar, Assistant Program Leader for Community Development and Sustainable Communities Extension Specialist with Purdue Extension and Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant. Program efforts emphasize collaborative planning and facilitated inclusive community forums to explore policy and management interventions that address complex natural resource management and land use issues.
Kayla Wright, Community Resilience Specialist with Purdue Extension. She graduated from Indiana University with a B.S. in political science and Purdue Global with a MPA. Her career began as a Legislative Assistant for the IN House of Representatives before moving into a role at the Indianapolis Mayor’s Office.
TRACK B: Helping Hoosiers Electrify Everything: What You Can Do (WU 114)
With a simple presentation and resource packet – and partners like you - Solarize Indiana seeks to quickly ensure that all Hoosiers have the information they need to “electrify everything”: cars, appliances, and heating and cooling. We’ve done it before: in the six months between when Indiana’s anti-net metering bill passed and when it started to take effect, Solarize trained teams across the state who provided info sessions to nearly 1500 Hoosiers and helped hundreds of them go solar. Come see what we have to offer and hear how we might work together.
SPEAKERS: Madeline Hirschland, Solarize Indiana and Creation Care Partners. Madi is a founder and co-chair of Solarize Indiana and the executive director of Creation Care Partners, which supports evangelical Christian churches across Indiana to install solar and reduce their energy footprint. Founder and director of The Seventh Day Initiative, she supported Hoosier congregations from 18 faith traditions to install solar panels and deeply reduce their and their members’ energy footprints.
TRACK C: Fort Wayne Climate Action Programs (WU G-08 Meeting Room)
Presenters: Gowri Sundaram, Resiliency Coordinator, Earth Charter Indiana
Doug Fasick, Chief Sustainability Officer, Mayor’s Office, Fort Wayne Utilities Engineering
Closing Panel
4:00 P.M. ET Mayors Discussion
Featuring: Mayor Strick (Huntington), Mayor martin (Logansport), Former Mayor Richard (Fort Wayne)
International Ballroom or Online
Double Feature
September 5, 2024 @ 7:00 p.m.
Thank you to our hosts!
CLS9 is only possible because of our Title Sponsors, to whom we are immensely grateful:
Our thanks to our wonderful sponsors and supporters:
