AGENDA
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
*Pre-conference workshops are an additional fee. Space is limited.
7:30 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.
Continental Breakfast
8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Workshop 1: DIY Social Media
Presented by Randy Krotz: Sr. Vice President, Director of Marketing, v-Fluence
Everyone is talking about Social Media 1.0 and 2.0 but you're not sure where to begin. Bring your laptops and cell phones to this hands-on Do-It-Yourself workshop where you'll learn to blog, tweet, Digg, create social media news releases and brainstorm content ideas for YouTube, and more. You'll also learn when to activate these tools to deliver your news and when to leave them floating in cyberspace.
Workshop 2: Crisis Communications vs. Issues Management
Presented by Wixted, Pope, Nora and Thompson (WPNT)
Poor planning frequently turns an issue into a full blown crisis for organizations and companies. During this session we'll unravel the issues management model and how best to develop a realistic plan. We'll also touch on the most frequent issues turned crisis and discuss tools to end the crisis and return the focus to business.
Workshop 3: A Strategic Relationship Approach to Fundraising
Presented by Michael D. Call, CFRE, APR
You have a cause, and it is so worthy that everybody should support it—but they're not! If only you could raise the money you need to get the word out. But bake sales and online auctions just don't bring in the big bucks. So what can you do? In this highly interactive workshop session, you'll learn a strategic relationship approach to fundraising—an approach that, if properly executed, is certain to bring results. You'll walk away with not only the tools, but also the hands-on experience to implement this innovative approach to finding long-term fundraising success.
12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Lunch
1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Workshop 4: Build Your Own Blog
Presented by Randy Krotz: Sr. Vice President, Director of Marketing, v-Fluence
Blogs can be a great tool for reaching reporters and consumers as well as help leverage the expertise of your spokespeople. In this session, you'll learn about blogs and the most effective ways to communicate with this tool as well as how to optimize your content to help you reach your target audiences. You'll need to bring your laptop to this workshop—you'll be building your own blog.
Workshop 5: Media Awareness Training
Presented Wixted, Pope, Nora and Thompson (WPNT)
The Media Awareness session discusses the fundamentals of how the media works and how it has changed in 2009. We will examine the Media Mindset and Editorial Process and participants will learn how to build strong media relationships — relationships that withstand the test of fairness. Other key learning elements include how news becomes news, how to shape a media interaction, and how media convergence and technology is changing the news.
Workshop 6: A Strategic Relationship Approach to Fundraising
Presented by Michael D. Call, CFRE, APR
You have a cause, and it is so worthy that everybody should support it—but they're not! If only you could raise the money you need to get the word out. But bake sales and online auctions just don't bring in the big bucks. So what can you do? In this highly interactive workshop session, you'll learn a strategic relationship approach to fundraising—an approach that, if properly executed, is certain to bring results. You'll walk away with not only the tools, but also the hands-on experience to implement this innovative approach to finding long-term fundraising success.
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Wednesday, April 22, 2009
7:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.
Continental Breakfast
8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
Opening Session
8:00 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Opening remarks: Joanna Schroeder, APR, 4R Communications
8:30 a.m. - 9:15 a.m.
"Green Noise?"
Matt Williams, Partner, Executive Vice President and Group Planning Director, The Martin Agency
We've all heard the term "white noise." Today we're experiencing "green noise"—the confusion that comes from contradictory messages and politicization of a suddenly salient issue. It seems every company in America is out with a green campaign, but instead of differentiating them, most are just adding to the green noise. How do you rise above it? Drawing in part from their campaign "Unlikely Alliances," Williams will discuss how to 'green' your brand from the core to create sustainability efforts that build your brand and differentiate you from your competition.
9:15 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
Who Killed the Electric Car?
Presented by, Chelsea Sexton, star of the film, "Who Killed the Electric Car"
Sexton will be narrating the story of Electric Vehicles (EVs) and how the grassroots movement around them evolved, while also weaving in a bit of her personal story. The presentation will include lessons learned about how she and her team learned to create compelling campaigns and identify innovative ways to tell the EV story. In addition, she will teach us how to activate consumers to our cause by showing us how to encourage the "average person to make a difference."
10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Break
10:00 a.m. - 10: 30 a.m.
Chelsea Sexton, autograph session
10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Pit Bull Media Tactics — How to Recover and Move Forward After the Fact?
Presented by Eileen Wixted, Principal, Wixted, Pope, Nora and Thompson (WPNT)
60 Minutes move over. Mike Wallace and Morley Safer are no match for today's digital citizen journalists. Whether it is a misunderstanding or a full fledge controversy, today's media tactics can be harsh, unfair, and deceiving. How do you recover your company's brand, reputation, and market share? Leveraging today's communication tools is vital to being successful in managing the new media market. During this session we'll look at some case studies and learn how to be prepared and survive a Pit Bull Media attack.
11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Lunch - Keynote
Paul Dickerson, Partner, Haynes and Boone Clean Tech Practice Group
Paul Dickerson, a recognized leader and sought-after speaker on issues of clean tech and energy efficiency, launched Haynes and Boone's Clean Tech practice group in 2008. Paul, a partner who offices in the firm's Houston and D.C. offices, returned to the firm to launch the group, a new
concentration for the firm that builds upon the firm's broad experience in intellectual property, litigation, technology, financing and many other legal issues that companies in the nascent industry must face.
1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Social Networking "The New Range War"
Presented by Jay Bryne, President, v-Fluence
Advocacy organizations are effectively using social media to reach consumers with the message they want heard. And consumers are listening. These advocacy efforts are impeding the success of the alternative energy industry including biofuels, solar, electric vehicles, etc., when discussing products and issues such as food vs. fuel, CO2, water use, etc. Using the success of advocacy organizations as a "best practice" platform, this presentation will teach communicators how to effectively use Social Media 1.0 and 2.0 to break free of the clutter and get your message heard.
2:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Panel: How the Administration's Policy Will Change Your Tactics and Messaging
Moderator: Tom Collina, Executive Director, 2020 Vision
Panelists: Chelsea Sexton, lobbyist for the electric vehicle industry
Sean O'Hanlon, Founder and Executive Director, American Biofuels Council
Kassia Yanosek, Hudson Clean Energy Partners (invited, but not confirmed)
Get ready for the green revolution. The Obama administration and the new congress are reinventing energy and environmental policy. Green jobs, global warming and energy independence are now high priorities, and new federal policies are needed. Plug-in electric vehicles, sustainable biofuels, and renewable energy are all poised to jump into the spotlight. Come learn what Washington policy-makers are thinking about.
3:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Break
4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Breakout Sessions
Breakout 1: Fundraising 101 - Best Practices
Presented by Michael D. Call, CFRE, APR and
Todd Taylor, Fredrikson & Byron, P.A.
Fund raising involves complying with a number of federal and state laws, many of which do not coordinate and almost all of which are complicated and carry significant penalties for violations. Todd will talk about the various securities laws most commonly used by newer companies looking to raise money, what can and cannot be said to whom and when to say, or not say, it. Practical examples will be provided to help attendees understand the laws as they apply to their situation.
Breakout 2: How to Develop Effective Media Relationships: Best Practices
Presented by Joanna Schroeder, APR, Principal, 4R Communications and Joshua Morby, Executive Director, Wisconsin Bio Industry Alliance Coalition
The rules have changed when it comes to developing media relationships. As the number of reporters is dwindling, the amount of industries and stories filed are increasing. So how do you develop a solid relationship? Should you participate in desk side chats or are email pitches more effective. This "Best Practices" presentation will inform participants about what tools are currently available to develop relationships and how and when they should be used to get the best results.
Breakout 3: Unification of Messages through Coalition Building
Presented by Sean O'Hanlon, Founder and Executive Director of American Biofuels Coalition
Developing relationships with other associations, coalitions, businesses and the like are very important when communicating about an issue. Oftentimes, one of your partners is a more credible expert than someone from your own company. But how do you trust that they are delivering the right message for your cause? And how do you determine who to partner with and how to develop these relationships? Coalition building is becoming a core role of many communicators in the alternative energy industry, and this session will give you tips and tactics and how to develop effective coalitions with members who will deliver your key messages.
Breakout 4: Grant Writing 101
Presented by David Kostik, APR, Kostik Associates, Inc.
There is no reason to suffer a serious attack of writer's block when you find yourself faced with the task of writing a grant proposal even if
you've never written a grant proposal before. This session will provide you with a clear understanding of how to approach writing a grant proposal, including what you need to know before you begin writing, and where to find the critical information you'll need. We will examine the anatomy of a grant proposal, and discuss key tips from foundation executives. Participants will leave with a basic grant-writing toolkit they will find helpful with almost any grant proposal they tackle. (Participants are encouraged to bring grant proposals they have worked on or are working on currently to discuss during the workshop.)
6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Coalition Building Reception
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Thursday, April 23, 2009
7:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.
Continental Breakfast
8:00 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.
Opening Session
8:00 a.m. - 8:45 a.m.
A Reality Check: What consumers really think about green and what motivates them to make sustainable choices
Presented by Suzanne Shelton, President and CEO, The Shelton Group
Utilities are offering $2 billion a year in energy efficiency programs. Our Federal government will likely spend hundreds of millions more on weatherization and renewable energy incentives. And manufacturers are working hard to make products greener and more efficient every day. But what does the mainstream consumer think about all of this? Those 180,000,000 people not already predisposed to the whole green movement...those folks who maybe take a reusable bag to the store when they think of it, but drive there in an SUV? These consumers are the holy grail. If we get them to form sustainable habits, this "movement" becomes a way of life. Suzanne Shelton will speak from her firm's ongoing proprietary consumer research—Energy Pulse, Eco Pulse and Utility Pulse—to reveal the deep-seeded beliefs, emotional drivers and propensities to purchase of mainstream Americans so you can immediately apply this understanding in your daily communications work around sustainability.
8:45 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.
Panel: Pitching Energy Reporters
Moderator, Jeff Simmons, former Team Ethanol driver and ethanol spokesperson
Panelist, Jim Lane, blogger BioFuels Digest
9:30 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.
"Hope for a Heated Planet"
Presented by Robert K. Musil, Ph.D., M.P.H
Rejecting cries of gloom and doom, Hope for a Heated Planet shows how the fight against global warming can be won by the grassroots efforts of individuals. Robert K. Musil, who led the Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization Physicians for Social Responsibility, explains that a growing new climate movement can produce unprecedented change—in the economy, public health, and home—while saving the planet.
Musil draws on personal experience and compelling data in this practical and rigorous analysis of the causes and cures for global warming. The book presents all the players in the most pressing challenge facing society today, from the massive fossil fuel lobby to the enlightened corporations that are joining the movement to "go green." Musil thoroughly explains the tremendous potential of renewable energy sources—wind, solar, and biofuel—and the startling conclusions of experts who say society can do away entirely with fossil fuels. He tells readers about the engaged politicians, activists, religious groups, and students who are already working together against climate change.
But the future depends, Musil insists, on what changes ordinary citizens make. Through personal choices and political engagement, he shows how readers can cut carbon emissions and create green communities where they live. With practical and realistic solutions, Hope for a Heated Planet inspires readers to be accountable and enables them to usher in an age of sustainability for future generations.
10:15 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.
Break
10:15 a.m. - 10: 45 a.m.
Musil autograph session
10:45 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Breakout Session 1: Informing the Public—Reaching Out to Communities for Controversial Projects
Presented by: Randy Fordice, Project Communications Specialist at Great River Energy
Breakout Session 2: Best Communication Practices for the New Energy Economy
Presented by J. Drake Hamilton, Fresh-Energy
Solving global warming means we must make dramatic shifts to a low-carbon economy powered by clean energy. This new energy economy will be powered by dozens of types of renewable and many innovative products. The session will offer best practices for effectively communicating the extent of the changes we need to make, and the wide variety of attractive technologies available to revitalize our economy around clean energy.
11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Lunch - Keynote with Mayor Bob Dixson
On May 4th, 2007, an EF-5 tornado tore through Greensburg, Kansas, destroying or damaging 95% of the town's homes, businesses, schools and churches. Before the tornado, Greensburg was a typical Midwestern farming town of 1400 people. After the tornado, Greensburg recognized the opportunity to rebuild in ways that could attract new residents and businesses. Because Greensburg is a small town with limited financial resources, we wanted this new "green" community to be affordable. What we lacked in financial resources, we more than made up for it in resourcefulness and ingenuity. Greensburg has gathered a diverse group of experts and enthusiasts to help make our vision of a "green" community a reality.
1:00 p.m.
Conference Ends
