2009 International Greenbuild Conference & Expo offers business opportunity

Phoenix, Arizona is hosting the annual International Greenbuild Conference and Expo scheduled for November 11-13, 2009 at the Phoenix Convention Center, and it is being organized by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). It is an event that offers a wide variety of opportunities for the general public, ones seeking networking opportunities in the Green construction sector for expanding business or to obtain a new Green job, exhibitors to showcase Green building design or materials, and educational workshops for people of all knowledge levels. The fact it is an international conference in scope offers a higher degree of exposure for networking, since most of the related conferences are regional across the U.S. and other parts of the world.

 

Based on the lineup of exhibitors and seminars, the program appears to be weighted towards residential and commercial Green building design, construction and retrofits. In addition, there are several seminars on Green legislation and policies across the world, which are critical for substantial sales growth in the industry, especially as the world recovers from the global recession, and excess housing inventory is relieved. The emphasis in the Exhibit Hall of over 1,000 booths will be on architecture, efficient water and power utilization, energy-efficient products for lighting and appliances, and Green construction materials and operations with less deleterious impact on the environment. Thus, it is not necessarily the most appropriate conference to learn the scientific background behind clean energy technology such as solar, wind, and geothermal power or alternative fuels. However, this event will provide businesses with the opportunity to expand their presence in the field, since this is the premier annual conference of its nature. Several major international companies represented at the event include: GE, Siemens, Sanyo, 3M and Alcoa. In the case of solar panel producers, this meeting offers the chance to land new deals, as the industry suffers from a severe oversupply while critical pro-renewable energy legislation remains in limbo- pending approval in the U.S. Congress.  

 

For ones seeking to develop a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) background or an eventual LEED certification for practice in the field, there are approximately 100 educational sessions across a wide spectrum of issues including training, cost, tax incentives, emerging trends, and the chance to hear renowned speakers concerning sustainability. Many social events and tours of local highlights and attractions are slated as well for visitors. One may register for a single day, exhibit hall-only, and special focused activities. Registration details are available at this site, and the rates increase on September 8th.

 

The traditional opening plenary session has been transformed to include a featured concert by Sheryl Crow at Chase Field, home to the Arizona Diamondbacks major league baseball team. The concert is part of a new event combining the opening plenary presentation and the annual closing gala into one conference-wide celebration on the night of Wednesday, Nov. 11. It is only open to full-conference attendees and will follow a presentation by USGBC President and CEO S. Richard Fedrizzi and a currently unannounced keynote speaker.  Last year's Greenbuild Conference and Expo had an estimated 28,000 attendees, and it is expected to be a packed house yet again.

 

For more information on this and related topics, see the following core article published here.