The Bainbridge Island Chamber of Commerce  held its second Sustainability Forum on April 26, 2010 at IslandWood. More than 60 people attended the half-day session.

The Forum followed the Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors’ unprecedented move last November of passing a resolution binding the organization to following the tenets of the “Natural Step” process. We are the first chamber of commerce in the U.S. to have done so.

In December, the Chamber held an invitation-only Sustainability event aimed at explaining in more detail the Natural Step, along with citing examples of how other communities nationwide have made a push in this direction: to tread lightly on the environment while working within their communities to establish best practice nodes around reducing, reusing and recycling.

Sustainability Forum

Our April 2010 Sustainability Forum focused on how our business community, and the community-at-large, can incorporate the Natural Step into their everyday lives.

The April event was moderated by Bainbridge sustainability expert Jeff Leinaweaver, PhD, Global Zen LLC, and Holly Brunk of The Natural Step USA,  provided a primer on the Natural Step.

A number of fun exercises occurred during the day, and those in attendance participated in a World Café on how islanders can implement the approach locally.

Below you will find links to notes from the April forum that include ideas, challenges, and innovative approaches to transforming Bainbridge into sustainable community.

We encourage you to share your sustainability ideas with us on this blog. We want it to become a clearinghouse for your thoughts, and a place where island businesses and community members can  share tips and learn more about Sustainable Green Practices.

Notes From the World Cafe April 2010

BI-Challenges to Sustainability April 2010

Synopsis of Sustainability Challenges April 2010