I sure am curious just how many bucks the City of Portland, as one sponsor, has put into this conference.

I'd also like to know which bureau budget this came out of, and if the bucks are general fund dollars or what "color" the money is and from what "bucket" it came.

"The whole lineup..." says it all ....with that many speakers, just let them talk 'mongst themselves...no need to seek attendees. Self sustainability....sounds like.....???

"... help local communities realize the benefits of globalization..."
Right.

Sounds like a circle jerk for planners, big business, and other megalomaniacs. Lord help us all.

Put a turd on it!

420, heh.

He attended Oregon School of Design where he forged a deep sense of process. He attended University of Oregon, and discovered a holistic design approach.

Man, apparently I don't know how to write a resume anymore.

I mean hey, I can pad it with the best of 'em. But even if this is just fluff, what does it mean?

I don't think it is proper or legal for CoP to promote only two hotel choices, University Place and Modera, at the expense of all others. Trolley, buses, and cabs serve many lodging choices in the city. Isn't that part of being sustainable? Why exclusive recommendations?

Maybe they're on the greened palm list.

From the web site:

Outside of the conference, enjoy Portland's bustling social scene. The city's neighborhoods are accessible by bike, rail or foot - and they come complete with local restaurants, breweries, parks and Portland's famous creative class.

Are there guided Creative-Class Watching tours available? "Oh honey look! There's one! Look at the size of that blow hole!"

'help local communities realize the benefits of globalization'

Yes, our workforce is currently enjoying said benefits.

The city's neighborhoods are accessible by bike, rail or foot

Right...take that train east out to Rockwood. Go at night.

Someone needs to tell these bozos the emperor has no clothes on. If they are so worried about sustainability and impact on the environment, then lead by example - Lock every thermostat in every public building at 60/80F.

These guys generate so many useless presentations, it's breathtaking.

Just be happy its not Sam, he's working on the NBA now (from his tweet):

"Also, I called TBlazer GM Larry Smith to express concerns/offer help"

Since when did we get a new GM?

I'm shocked, shocked, to discover that Cylvia Hayes isn't one of the speakers.

"Nuin-Tara Key is also a National Audubon Society and Toyota 2010 TogetherGreen Fellow, through which she leads the Climate Justice Initiative, an effort to bridge the climate and equity gap by raising awareness of the policy implications of climate change through an equity lens. Previously, she worked at Coalition for a Livable Future as the Regional Equity Atlas Outreach Coordinator."

This is The Onion, right?

Also high on the amusement meter is the fact that the conference program included a section: "Why is Portland good for entrepreneurs?", which was a March 23, 2010 article in Fast Company: "Why You Should Start a Company in... Portland, Oregon", featuring an interview with David Hersh, chairman of the board of Jive Software explaining why Portland was so great for startups.

Jive, of course, announced on May 18, 2010 that it was moving its headquarters from Portland to Palo Alto. (Hersh himself had already moved to Palo Alto when he did the interview with Fast Company.)

BTW, the Portland Plan appears to have arrived:
http://www.portlandonline.com/portlandplan/index.cfm?&c=56527

Those who continue to believe that language was mankind's greatest innovation may again be disillusioned.

"His work focuses particularly on the critical contribution of innovation at the micro-level of the locality, business model, or consumer cluster to achieve macro-level strategy objectives."

I know those are English words, I just have no idea what they mean.

This is the type of conference where you spend three days squinting in confusion trying to figure out what specifically they are talking about, only to leave with the realization that they weren't saying anything.

I think that we the readers of BoJack should have our very own cyber conference. Kinda like the cyber Christmas office party.
Everyone pays in 5 bucks to join in and The One who comes up with the best BS (Jack gets to choose) gets to donate the money to a charity of choice like the football pool.
I see some possibilities here now.
What think you fellow bloggers?

OMG! Te $420 does not include the "workshops" which are $150 each!
There are so many speakers that there won't be any space for the attendees.
Oh well...they can all just talk to each other.

"Eco-districts??" Hold onto you wallets boys and girls -- this sounds like it has the potential to morph into a new type of planning and taxing district. Sure to be high-value.

BTW, take a look at the list of speakers and count all the Green thinker/planners from Portland. Yikes!

Nancy, PDC/CoP is already trying to morph a new taxing district-in SoWhat.

About four months ago a few of these EcoDistrict attendees made a presentation to the URAC. They want to put a biomass energy-collector, sustainable, Green, incinerator in SoWhat to cool/heat buildings. When asked if anyone down there wanted it, it was "duh, don't know, never asked except for a few "stakeholders". When asked who will pay for it, it was "duh." When asked are you probably going to take some UR TIF and LID money, "well, that might be a possibility (wink, wink)".

So, put a Jail and Incinerator with the trucking/smell into SoWhat. I thought that was one of the reasons they declared SoWhat a "blighted" area. How quick we forget. Safeway doesn't even want to move into SoWhat because it is a trucking/traffic mess for delivering goods.

It's all absurd, and they want the taxpayers to pay for the system that benefits the property owners down there. Why doesn't the City pay for the heat for the rest of us? Ask the Council candidates how they'll vote on this?

So many words, yet so little meaning.

Portland Native:I think that we the readers of BoJack should have our very own cyber conference. Kinda like the cyber Christmas office party....

I enjoyed that cyber Christmas office party and like the idea. I would participate.
This could be our "Sustainable Community Solutions", bet we could come up with some good ones.

Lee:...I thought that was one of the reasons they declared SoWhat a "blighted" area. How quick we forget...

These ideas and terms are like moving targets. Blight used to mean blight.

http://www.atlassociety.org/tni/supreme-assault-private-property-interview-scott-bullock

A good read on cases, excerpts:

BULLOCK: That was another of the more outrageous aspects of this case. Oftentimes condemnations are done through redevelopment agencies. But those are still public bodies in that they’re appointed by city officials. They’re not private bodies like the NLDC. This is so far removed from what eminent domain was originally intended for—a limited power to be used only for true “public use” projects.

BULLOCK: And those who know how to play the game. The ones who are used to going to city council meetings and have great PowerPoint presentations about all the benefits that are going to come to the city. The people who are best able to take advantage of the process are the ones in the know—who have power, influence, money, who know all the local influential people within the community.

When reading this:
His work focuses particularly on the critical contribution of innovation at the micro-level of the locality, business model, or consumer cluster to achieve macro-level strategy objectives.

I'm reminded of this:
Bob Slydell: What would you say ya do here?

So he's a micro-to-macro-level critical-innovations strategic modeller... which does... eh...

I guess I'm the only one old enough to have heard the term "circle jerk".

Normally I'd be making fun of this guy, but there seems to be an awful lot of them these days. I think they came in with the creative class and were helped along in forming their ideology at our colleges and universities. I feel an energy ration coming on-energy equity and all that. Maybe this is a way for the wealthy to transfer their wealth to the 99% by buying their energy shares? I really think that those who like to micro-manage others do it out of fear that they can't handle a competitive environment and are looking to tame others' ambitions to match their own.

Nolo, I think getting a worthless degree and getting a worthless degree along with an actual job are two entirely different things. Universities have always offered worthless degrees or ones just not applicable to the actual workforce unless you intend to go to grad school and eventually teach. Bachelor's in humanities, liberal arts, media, general history, etc. are a few that come to mind (at least I've known people who have gotten these degrees and never found work after graduating).

I chock it up to the typical government make-work jobs that Portland has been known for in all it's various forms of planning. I guess that's why this fluff can pass for actual work skills. In my line of work I would get nothing but horse laughs if I put this kind of fluffy crap in my resume. If I can't describe in tangible terms what my skills are and how they will make a company more money I'm just as good as worthless to any employer.

Another example of college destroying logic and reason.

These brainwashed clowns think they know more than you or me because they have a degree in global nannyism- as sponsored by the developer class.

Their ultimate wet dream is to force us all into one big giant consumer cluster f...

Clinemen, thanks for the link. After reading Bullock's interview regarding the Kelo v New London decision and having experienced Portland's version of urban renewal, I'm more of the opinion that urban renewal, besides being able to use eminent domain, IS eminent domain.

Besides taxing the whole body politic, it insidiously transfers "ownership" to a select few of "stakeholders".

veiledorchid:....Self sustainability....sounds like.....???

Sure does sound like SELF sustainability, great careers on the green movement. My continued criticism on our local scene here is why is there not a movement from these "sustainable promoters" to save our sustainable water system?

I "got it" that our elected officials are laying down on this water issue, so these "sustainable careerists" are too??

The EcoDistricts Summit will also serve to enhance existing dialogue on integrated performance assessment; neighborhood leadership; green building, infrastructure, and behavior practices to reduce resource consumption; new sources and structures for project finance; and green neighborhood ratings....

Haven't we had enough of behavior practices around here?

Note that our Portland Compost pail came out just in time for the summit!

Clinamen, you are on to something!
Everyone should take their compost pail, full of your compostable material of choice, preferably well "seasoned", down to the conference and leave it.
Sustain this! You jerks!

Partnering with GE on another sustainability project? What are they going to do next? Partner with Enron for a corporate accountability conference? Partner with Halliburton for a peace conference? Can it get any more Orwellian?

BTW, I tried to get the kids at Occupy Portland to actually take a critical look at Sam Adams and his deals with GE. All they can do is say he's cool because he hasn't busted them.

If it weren't for muckrakers like Jack Bog I would go insane from all the lies.