STAMFORD, Conn. (Jan. 31, 2014) — Charlotte Mayor Patrick Cannon will welcome more than 400 community improvement leaders from across the nation when they gather at the 2014 Keep America Beautiful National Conference, taking place from Feb. 4-6 at the Westin Charlotte.
Keep America Beautiful’s National Conference is the premier educational and networking event for its national network of state and local affiliate directors as well as community and volunteer leaders.
The conference will bring together business leaders, policymakers and other national experts who will focus on cultivating new ideas and strategies to build and sustain vibrant communities; update and enhance programs that lead to behavior change; provide guidance on how to build public-private coalitions; share fundraising ideas and best practices; address urban blight through vacant lot restoration, urban gardens and public space recycling; and explore the power of youth and corporate employee engagement.
Conference keynote speakers include:
- Vicki Wojcik, Ph.D., research director, Pollinator Partnership, and Richard Crespin, CEO, Crespin Enterprises, will explore the complex matrix that interacts with pollination issues, one of the defining issues of our time.
- Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard, will speak about his city’s successful partnership with KAB affiliate Keep Indianapolis Beautiful at the annual President’s Circle Luncheon.
- New York University Professor Robin Nagle, author of “Picking Up: On the Streets and Behind the Trucks with the Sanitation Workers of New York City,” will provide a “garbage-eye” view of the state of trash in America.
- Shirley Sagawa, former presidential appointee in the first Bush and Clinton administrations and the lead planner for the White House Conferences on Philanthropy, will share her insights on effective storytelling for nonprofits.
- Richard Crespin, the executive director of the Corporate Responsibility Officers Association and a Senior Fellow, Business Civic Leadership Center, US Chamber of Commerce, will address why public-private-civic collaborations fail and how to model success.
- Consultant Roger Brooks will share his 20 universal truths in making downtown districts and communities vital.
The 2014 National Conference also features the award-winning work of KAB affiliates, partnering organizations, and community leaders and volunteers at the annual National Awards celebration.
For a list of sessions and times, please go to KAB’s National Conference website. On the day of the events, reporters and photographers should contact KAB on site at (704) 375-2600 and ask for the Keep America Beautiful registration desk.
America’s leading companies have made this conference possible. Title Sponsors – Waste Management and Wrigley Company Foundation. Leadership Sponsors – Altria, Bud Light and Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company. Stewardship Sponsors – Anheuser-Busch and Ingersoll Rand. Strategic Sponsors – The Burt’s Bees Greater Good Foundation, Dow, Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Keep Charlotte Beautiful, Lowe’s Charitable & Educational Foundation and Novelis. Supporting Sponsors – The Coca-Cola Company, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Keep Mecklenburg Beautiful, Keep North Carolina Beautiful, Re-TRAC Connect, The Sherwin-Williams Company, Steel Recycling Institute and Troy-Bilt® Lawn and Garden Equipment.
About Keep America Beautiful
At Keep America Beautiful, we want to ensure that beauty is our lasting signature. A leading national nonprofit, Keep America Beautiful inspires and educates people to take action every day to improve and beautify their community environment. We envision a country in which every community is a clean, green, and beautiful place to live. Established in 1953, Keep America Beautiful provides the expertise, programs and resources to help people End Littering, Improve Recycling, and Beautify America’s Communities. The organization is driven by the work and passion of more than 620 state and community-based Keep America Beautiful affiliates, millions of volunteers, and the support of corporate partners, municipalities, elected officials, and individuals. To donate or take action, visit kab.org. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, like us on Facebook, or view us on YouTube.
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