Join activists and experts in a broad-ranging conversation about an old ideal, the pursuit of happiness! 

In July, 2011, the United Nations urged all member nations to make “the pursuit of happiness” the goal of their governments and find ways to measure their success. This conference is an exciting opportunity to explore the potential of this new movement. 

At the conference you’ll...

• Learn about the vital new worldwide movement for happiness
• Find out how you can use the Happiness Initiative to improve your community
• Learn about the connection between happiness and sustainability
• Help plan “Pursuit of Happiness Day” (April 13) for 2013
• Hear prominent authors including Eric Weiner, The Geography of Bliss; Vicki Robin, Your Money or Your Life; Cecile Andrews, Less is More; and John de Graaf, Affluenza.
• Meet leaders of happiness movement in the US, including Laura Musikanski, director of the Happiness Initiative, Tom Barefoot of GNH USA, and Dr. Ryan Howell, creator of the Happiness Initiative survey.

Workshops will explore Happiness and Health, Compassion, Environment, Mental Health, Education, Arts and Culture, Finances, Government, Time Balance, Social Connection, Government and Workplace Satisfaction.

Time and Place: August 24-25, 2012 at Seattle University

Fees: Full conference (includes reception with food and beverages): $55 general/$40 students and low-income. 

Day passes (buy at the door if space available): $35/25

Registration: www.brownpapertickets.com

For more information, including conference schedule and featured speakers: http://timeday.org/happiness2012/

The forum features inspiring keynote speakers, audience Q&A and high-powered networking. Now in its 8th year, the event series has featured luminary speakers Cameron Sinclair, Paul Hawken, Ray Anderson, Arianna Huffington, Alex Bogusky governors, mayors, leading economists, and dozens of Sustainable Industries most innovative CEOs. 

 The event's mission is to re-inspire the inspired, connect sustainable business thought leaders, and help get business done.

This year's event features keynote speaker Van Jones, with a focus on the Access Economy.

LOCATION:

McCaw Hall at the Seattle Center, Seattle, WA

TICKETS: 

Tickets must be purchased in advance

INFORMATION:

For additional information see:  www.sustainableindustries.com

RELATED ARTICLES

See some of Van Jones' recent writing at YES! Magazine

 Founded in 2005 by former White House speechwriter and author Eric Liu (The Gardens of Democracy), the Weekend has become one of the nation’s most creative, cross-sectoral convening for civic activists, educators, and entrepreneurs. 

“This is the moment for Americans to reclaim what it means to be a citizen,” said Liu. “At Guiding Lights Weekend, we teach with a playful spirit – and we are sparking a serious movement to reimagine citizenship.”

Luminary conference speakers include Van Jones, founder of Rebuild The Dream; Annie Leonard, co-director of The Story of Stuff Project; and Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, founder of MomsRising, as well as YES! Magazine co-founders Sarah van Gelder and David Korten.

Dozens of luminaries will lead hands-on workshops on the hard skills of citizenship, from storytelling and organizing to building .  Harvard Law professor and campaign finance reform activist Lawrence Lessig and Tea Party Patriots co-founder Mark Meckler will discuss building left-right alliances to reclaim politics for everyday Americans. 

Special events include a panel on telling the American story with noted journalist Jose Antonio Vargas; Supreme Court oral arguments adapted and performed by the acclaimed theater company Elevator Repair Service; a naturalization ceremony for new American citizens and the premier of a “re-naturalization” ceremony for longstanding ones. 

Thanks to the generous support of national and regional sponsors, registration fees start at only $100. Information on scholarships, volunteering and registration is at

  www.guidinglightsweekend.com

Presentations and workshops will offer everything from the basics of cohousing, designing and building communities, living in community, group process skill building, opportunities to learn from and share in each others' cohousing experiences, as well as how to contribute to making cohousing more sustainable and more affordable.

In advance of the conference, consider attending tours of local communities or pre-conference workshops.

Conference Highlights

	Conference Sessions More than 35 sessions covering a wide range of exciting and relevant topics will spark new ideas and give you tools you can use whether you are creating cohousing, living in it, or just wanting to find out more. Most of the sessions are participatory discussions not just presentations. You’re involved!
	Cohousing 101 New to the Cohousing idea and want to find out more? Cohousing 101 will provide you with a rich introduction to the basic components of the model, how it works and why it brings such value to residents. Sign up for the Friday afternoon session or the Saturday morning session at no extra charge.
	Community Tours Three rolling workshops will take you to a broad selection of Bay area communities so you can experience and learn about cohousing first-hand.
	Pre-Conference Workshops In depth, intensive workshops offered the two days prior to the conference, will provide tools and information you can use. Separate workshops will focus on Cohousing Development, Facilitation, Group Process, Marketing, and more. The Cohousing Research and Writers workshop connects scholars, practitioners and writers interested in the cohousing model and how it connects to broader social and sustainability themes.

And so much more!

http://conference.cohousing.org/

Real Prosperity Starts Here will be held in Grand Rapids, Michigan, named “America’s Greenest City” by Fast Company magazine. As home to nationally acclaimed BALLEnetwork and conference cohost, Local First West Michigan, Grand Rapids has put apathy, malaise and economic decline on the ropes, and you don’t want to miss the final round.

Join more than 700 of the world’s most innovative community leaders, entrepreneurs, independent business owners, policymakers, economic development professionals, funders and investors for our 10 year anniversary in Grand Rapids. Come for the cutting-edge solutions, stay for the party.

 

 

• restore the earth by promoting sustainability for farmers, farm workers, and consumers alike;
• advance education and action on issues of food safety, security, and sovereignty;
• create a table where all are welcome.

For more information, visit: www.worldonyourplate.org

West Coast Green has three components:

• The Expo: A showcase for new and emerging products and technologies
• The Conference: An educational platform featuring bright minds, bold innovations, and better practices
• A networking opportunity with 11,000 engaged participants

Featuring Van Jones and William McDonough.

Participants will engage in:
• training and education in nonviolent theory and practice through tools to engage in social change.
• opportunities for networking and peer-to-peer learning with movement builders from all over the country.
• an entry point for community members to become engaged in movement work.
• involvement in working groups that will continue the work throughout the year.
• a nexus of people who are new to the movement and movement leaders to share and inspire action in a cross-cultural and inter-generational environment.
• the opportunity to learn about best practices and develop new ones based upon our shared experience.

Conference participants will end this transformational weekend in a better position to decide, strategically, where to focus their energies for maximum effect and equip them with concrete tools to use in their personal and social movement work.

For more information, visit: www.gandhikingconference.org

Join us in furthering our collective understanding of the unique and precious ecosystem that is the Salish Sea. Together, we will explore the state of the science, build our management capability, and reinforce our strong foundation of research and policy. The exciting, dynamic program creates opportunities for peer-to-peer interactions, cultural celebrations, knowledge transfer, and practical collaborations. Enjoy workshops, special sessions, field trips, keynote speakers, and other engaging events throughout the conference.

For more information, visit: salishseaconference.org

The BECC Conference is convened by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE), California Institute for Energy and Environment (CIEE), University of California, and the Precourt Energy Efficiency Center (PEEC), Stanford University.

For more information, visit: www.beccconference.org

The 2011 TimeBanks Conference will provide an opportunity for individuals, youth, families, communities, states, and countries across the world to come together to share and learn more about time banking from one another.

TimeBanks will unveil the newly enhanced Community Weaver 2.0 and showcase its capability to support time banking as a critical social networking tool and technology that partners with the principles of Timebanks to re-balance our core values and organize to support humanity, transform local and global economies, environment, and promote the well-being and sustainability of future generations and our planet.

The 2011 Conference will include plenary sessions, concurrent workshops, an exhibit hall, networking opportunities, and organizing as a collective movement for change and further the development of sustainable solutions through time banking for the future.

High lights of the conference will include:

• Pre and Post Conference Training Opportunities
• Racial Justice Initiative: Child Welfare Colloquium
• Healing, Hope, and Humanity: TimeBanks USA First Annual Fundraiser Event
• RI TimeBanks Community Potluck Dinner Event:  Time, Taste, and Talent

Participants will include members of many types of intentional communities (ecovillages, cohousing, urban coop houses, student coops, etc.), community seekers, students, community organizers, and people interested in the basic principles of living more cooperatively

For more information, visit: artofcmty.com

Opportunities will be provided to learn about and practice facilitation methods and pedagogies used during the conference (experiential learning, action learning, participatory learning, incorporating the wisdom and diversity of participants). This year there will be a special focus on the dimension of education.

Ecovillages act as research and training centres for sustainable development within wider society.

The hosting Ecovillage of Tamera serves as a living example and field of practice for the themes of the conference.

The themes of this year’s conference include:

• Collaborations for Sustainability – Inspirations from the Global Ecovillage Network
  
• Widening networks for Resilience – Broadening the concept of 'Ecovillage'
  
• Education for Sustainability - GEN-Strategies

Creating great public spaces that relate to the community and user depends on an effective implementation strategy, including how those spaces will be managed. In the end, good management is why a public space succeeds or fails and why people come to it or why they stay away. This training course will describe the roles that different types of public space management organizations play, complemented by lessons learned from experts with hands on experience implementing improvements and managing public spaces. Also included are narrated site visits to a few of the best managed spaces in New York City and numerous opportunities for networking, including an optional welcome reception the evening of June 8.

The course will feature presentations by PPS staff, along with Norman Mintz, industrial designer, historic preservationist and designer of public space amenities, Eldon Scott, Director of Urban Space Management and developer of “lighter, quicker, cheaper” projects, and Alan M. Hantman, FAIA,10th Architect of the US Capitol and former Vice President of Architecture, Construction, and Historic Preservation at Rockefeller Center.

For more information, visit: pps.org