Through the power of his vision, the consistency of his purpose, and an undying belief in the goodness of human beings, Bill Strickland, President and CEO of Manchester Bidwell Corporation, will restore your faith in ethical, accountable and visionary leadership.  His organizations have created a model for arts, education, training, and most importantly, hope – and have reshaped the business of social change in America.  In the course of his remarkable journey, he has won a MacArthur Genius grant, and received the "Coming Up Taller" Award, presented to him at the White House by former first lady Hillary Clinton.  

Bill Strickland will present during the conference's opening plenary session on Monday, May 5th, beginning at 9:00 a.m.  He will sign copies of his book "Make the Impossible Possible" immediately following his talk in the conference bookstore.

Welcome and introductory remarks will be provided by

Ed Daley, ICMA President and City Manager of Hopewell, Virginia

Anthony Adams, Deputy Mayor, City of Detroit, Michigan

Elizabeth Lowery, General Motors, VP Environment, Energy and Safety Policy

Luke Keller (invited), Atlantic Richfield Companies a BP Subsidiary

Opening Plenary sponsored by:

EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson brings a health appreciation for the necessity of scientific rigor, effective policy-making, and outcome-based performance measurement to this nation’s most important environmental job.  His numerous awards include the Presidential Rank Award and the Vice President’s Hammer Award.  As a trained biologist and pathologist, he continues to challenge the American people to look at sustained actions to advance the environmental agenda while maintaining economic competitiveness.

Administrator Johnson will speak during the afternoon Federal plenary on Monday May 5th, beginning at 4:15 p.m.

Introductory remarks will be provided by

Susan Bodine, Assistant Administrator for the U.S. EPA's Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response

Mary Gade, U.S. EPA Region 5, Regional Administator

From NPR West, National Public Radio studios in Culver City, California, Renée Montagne joines Steve Inskeep in Washington to host Morning Edition.  Renée is a familiar voice on the radio, having worked for NPR’s science, national, and foreign desks as well as a two-year stint co-hosting All Things Considered with Robert Siegel. 

Town Meeting Plenary Sponsored by:

Introductory remarks provided by

Roger Fraser (invited), City Administrator, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Curt Cramer, Executive Vice President, ARCADIS

Dan Kildee is President of the Genesee Institute, a research and training institute focusing on Smart Growth, urban land reform, and land banking.  Kildee initiated an effort to use Michigan’s new tax foreclosure law as a tool for community development and neighborhood stabilization. He founded the Genesee Land Bank – Michigan’s first land bank - and serves as its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. In 2003 Governor Granholm and legislative leaders appointed Kildee to the Michigan Land Use Leadership Council, which made 160 recommendations to deal with urban sprawl and other land use issues.  In 2005 Governor Granholm appointed Kildee as one of the initial directors of the Michigan Land Bank Fast Track Authority, the nation’s first statewide Land Bank.

In July, 2002, Sheena Wright was named the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Abyssinian Development Corporation (ADC). A native New Yorker and long-time Harlem resident, Ms. Wright previously served as Chief Operating Officer of ADC.  ADC is an innovative not-for-profit organization dedicated to renewing and reclaiming the spirit of community in one of New York City’s oldest and most storied neighborhoods. For almost 20 years, ADC has helped to strengthen and rebuild the socioeconomic fabric of the Harlem community by developing housing, spearheading commercial development, stimulating the local economy, fostering education, strengthening families and building community capacity through civic engagement.  ADC has grown into a $300 million, 135+ person agency with significant accomplishments, playing a key leadership role in the current “Harlem Renaissance.” ADC established the Thurgood Marshall Academy for Learning and Social Change, a public intermediate and high school, and its successor, opened in September of 2005, the Thurgood Marshall Academy Lower School.

As Lead Broker and founder of CBRE’s first Brownfield Practice Group, Mr. Paul Cohen’s areas of expertise involve industrial brokerage, land sales and Brownfield redevelopment. Mr. Cohen’s affiliation with CB Richard Ellis came after twenty-eight years with SBWE, Inc., a regional New Jersey industrial real estate specialist. In addition to brokerage, Mr. Cohen founded and managed SBWE’s Central New Jersey Branch office.  Mr. Cohen has worked on sale and lease assignments ranging from mid-sized industrial buildings to larger 700,000 square feet build-to-suit projects, with transactions having total considerations in excess of $150,000,000 sold and leased properties.  Mr. Cohen’s wide-ranging experience has proved to be an invaluable asset in property evaluation, opportunity analyses,  planning and negotiations for the owners and users he has represented.

John K. Blanchard is currently the Executive Director for GM Worldwide Real Estate and is responsible for the acquisition, disposition and redevelopment of corporate real estate around the world.  Prior to his current assignment, John was responsible for all real estate activities throughout North America including overseeing the redevelopment of the GM Global Headquarters at the Renaissance Center and River East, the urban waterfront development along the Detroit River. He also spent several years as Regional Manager of the Retail Real Estate Group for both the East and West regions.  John joined General Motors in 1983 as a Financial Analyst at the Milford Proving Ground and spent nine years in GM's Corporate Finance organization in various positions including Joint Venture Analysis, Strategic Planning, Business Development and Budget and Cost Analysis.

Scott Sherman is the EPA Associate Assistant Administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response.  As the Agency’s deputy program official for OSWER, he focuses on policy development and implementation of the nation's hazardous and solid waste programs and cleanup initiatives, including Brownfields, Land Revitalization, Superfund, RCRA, Emergency Management, Federal Facilities, and USTs.  Before his appointment as Associate Assistant Administrator, Scott was the Agency’s Associate General Counsel for Solid Waste and Emergency Response, where he managed the Solid Waste and Emergency Response division of the EPA Office of General Counsel. He is a member of the adjunct faculty of Johns Hopkins University, where he teaches environmental issues in real estate at the Carey Business School.