SAMPLE WORKSHOPS/SKILLSHARES
Wondering what kind of experience you might have while at Bioneers? Here are a few examples of the more than 30 workshops and skillshares that are being offered. Be sure to take advantage of the event guide, which provides schedules, presentation descriptions and biographies for our presenters - some of the finest practitioners in Chicago!
FRIDAY
Friday's sessions will be moderated and focus on one of six major themes (food, water, waste, shelter, energy and community resilience).
These workshops are designed to be interactive, fun, fast-paced, inclusive, and culminate in an action plan. You will be able to work side-by-side with peers, colleagues and some of Chicago's finest practitioners, including Doug Farr, Farr Associates; Karen Weigert, Chief Sustainability Officer at City of Chicago; Nance Klehm, Social Ecologies; Elise Zelechowski, ReBuilding Exchange; Nate Kipnis, Nathan Kipnis Architects, Inc.; Orrin Williams, Center for Urban Transformation; 2013 Goldman Environmental Prize Winner Kim Wasserman; and many more. Each session includes one of our keynotes.
You don't need to be an "expert". The blend of participants with different skills and knowledge will bring forward the collective wisdom we're seeking for brainstorming how to scale up what works; add what we need to be more resilient in each of these areas; and identify how we are going to make it happen. Read more (click through topics) ...
Dismantling Barriers to Ecological Plans, Places and Buildings
This fast interactive session will immerse you in cutting edge ecological design practice and engage you in how to accelerate its adoption. Doug Farr seeks feedback on how to overcome barriers to cutting edge ecological design at three scales: the plan, the place and the building. Three Peccha Kuchas will highlight implementation barriers. Each will be followed by 15-20 minutes of quick discussion. Get inspired and contribute your insights!
Biking to Soccer Practice, Groceries and the Hair Salon: What's the Real Potential for Replacing Car Trips in the Midwest?
This session is a unique opportunity to work with Randy Neufeld and bicycle policy and product experts. Chicago and the region is seeing the growth of protected bike lanes and bike share. But how do we increase cycling use and political support in the awkward years while a safer more complete network is being built out? Explore practical tools, products and strategies for changing behavior in urban, suburban and small town communities in the near term. This is important to build broader support for future reallocation of street space. This promises to be a fun and mind-opening experience!
The Permaculture Toolbox: Sensible Strategies for Senseless Times
Urban life in the face of peak energy and climate change can be a daunting prospect, but there is a better path than the one we're currently on. In this presentation, we will discuss what permaculture is (and isn't), and how to apply its simple-but-effective solutions to our day-to-day lives by learning to use the right tool for the right job - all from the permaculture toolbox.
SUNDAY
Renewable Energy for Resilient Communities
Most of us are aware that we need to get off the extreme energy road trip that, while meeting our needs, relies heavily on depleting fossil fuels no matter what the cost to our health and environment. We need to rethink the way we use energy, what our real needs are, and how we generate it.
In this session you'll be able to work with presenters Lisa Albrecht and Nathan Kipnis to explore reduced consumption; efficiency; distribution (ensuring all have equal access); and generation of clean, safe, renewable energy in order to reduce or eliminate carbon emissions; stop environmental damage from fossil fuel extraction; and lessen our dependence on sources of energy outside our region. Bring your ideas!
Interface: A Business Model for the Future
Learn how Founder and Chairman Ray Anderson challenged his 21 year-old company in 1994 to adopt a bold vision for sustainable business, manufacturing and products - one that required new thinking and a new model, globally. There was no roadmap, but Ray's vision was a compass for his company's journey that has influenced companies inside and outside the floor covering industry. Learn about the "seven fronts" that have made this company a model for sustainability, including its zero waste, benign emissions, renewable energy and closed loop initiatives.
What would it mean to embed resilience into your community? What changes would you need to make so that you are able to collectively survive and thrive through disturbances, both large and small? Using biomimicry methodology, this seminar will provide an opportunity for you to learn from Nature's deep principles of resilience, draw parallels between Nature's systems and human designs, and begin to translate them to the context of restorative, resilient communities.