Buying Green...Buying Smart Conference Summary

Speaker Bios

Carolyn Bloede, Sustainability Program Manager for the County of Alameda.

Ms. Bloede became the County of Alameda's first Sustainability Program Manager in 2003. She leads her Team in reducing the County's ecological footprint by implementing sustainability programs, developing policies, building regional partnerships, and influencing legislative activity. She has 15 years of private sector experience and holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from University of Colorado and a M.S. in Engineering from San Jose State University. Carolyn was selected and trained by former Vice President Al Gore's The Climate Project to represent the organization as a climate change lecturer in the Bay Area.

Robert Brushia, Ph.D., Research Scientist, Department of Toxic Substances Control

Dr. Brushia is a Research Scientist who has been with the Department of Toxic Substances Control for approximately 10 years. He is currently working to develop a process for identifying and prioritizing chemicals of concern in consumer products, and to develop educational materials about chemicals in consumer products. He obtained a PhD in biochemistry and molecular biology from U.C. Davis.

Alicia Culver, Executive Director of the Green Purchasing Institute.

Ms. Culver has more than two decades experience working on sustainability. The Green Purchasing Institute is a nonprofit organization that helps public agencies, schools and businesses implement environmentally preferable purchasing policies and practices that use “the power of the purse” to promote toxics reduction, producer responsibility and green collar jobs, and to help clients meet climate protection, zero waste and other goals. She co-authored is Buying Smart: Experiences of Municipal Green Purchasing Pioneers, which details how jurisdictions across the country implemented EPP programs that yielded both economic and environmental rewards.

Art Gibney, Manager of Operations, Public Works Department Operations and Maintenance Division, City of San Rafael

Mark Green, Mayor of Union City, ABAG Vice President

Mark Green was elected Union City's Mayor in 1993. He was elected to the Union City Council and appointed to the Planning Commission 1987-1991, and served on the Redevelopment Agency Advisory Board in1986-87. Currently the Vice President of the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG), Green is also Chair of the ABAG-Regional Planning Committee, Vice Chair of the Bay Area Hazardous Waste Management Facility Allocation Committee, and serves on the Executive Board, Finance Committee, and Administrative Committee. He is a member of the Alameda County Waste Management Authority and the Tri-Cities Waste Disposal Authority.

Sam T. Liccardo, Councilmember, City of San Jose

Sam Liccardo represents District Three, on the San Jose City Council. He leads several key legislative bodies, as Chair of the Council's Transportation and Environment Committee, as Vice Chair of the Community and Economic Development Committee and as Co-chair of the Envision San Jose 2040 General Plan Update Task Force. He serves on several regional agencies: as Vice Chair of the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), as Chair of the VTA's Congestion Management Committee, on the Executive Committee of the Santa Clara County Cities Association, and on the Executive Board of the Association of Bay Area Governments.

Mark Luce, Supervisor, Napa County, Chair, Hazardous Waste Management Facility Allocation Committee

Mark Luce is a member of ABAG's Executive Board and Chair of the Hazardous Waste Management Facility Allocation Committee. He was elected to the Napa County Board of Supervisors in 1996 following a term on the Napa City Council. Among his numerous appointments, he serves on the Napa Sanitation District, the Napa-Vallejo Waste Management Authority, and the Upper Valley Waste Management Agency. For more than 25 years he worked as a Senior Environmental Engineer for the Chevron Foundation, providing advice on how to prevent pollution, manage hazardous waste, and remediate contaminated sites.

Debbie Raphael, Program Manager, Toxics Reduction and Green Building Programs, City & County of San Francisco

Ms. Raphael works with City agencies, local businesses, and San Francisco residents to reduce the use of toxic chemicals and implement the City's award-winning Integrated Pest Management, Environmentally Preferable Purchasing, and Green Building programs. Debbie was part of the team of City staff and community members that crafted San Francisco's Precautionary Principle Ordinance and is helping to lead the effort to implement the principle within City government. Debbie also led the implementation of San Francisco's ban on phthalates in children's products and is now working to expand extended producer responsibility and green chemistry initiatives.

Walter C. Rossmann, Chief Purchasing Officer, City of San José

Mr. Rossmann serves as San Jose's Chief Purchasing Officer responsible for contract activities for goods, non-professional services, and information technology. Since joining the City four years ago, he has reformed and streamlined the purchasing process including implementation of an e-procurement system and development of an EP3 program. The City of San Jose was recognized for the EP3 program in April 2008 by receiving the California Green Leadership Award at the Green California Summit and Exposition. Walter holds a Master's Degree in Applied Mathematics and a Bachelor's Degree in Hotel, Restaurant, and Travel Administration.

Antoinette Stein, Ph. D., Department of General Services, Procurement Division

Dr. Stein is an Associate Procurement Engineer for the CA DGS Procurement Division in its EPP Program. She holds a PhD in environmental engineering from the University of Cincinnati. She develops policies, technical specifications and impact metrics, and conducts outreach and education on sustainable practices. She is a member of two Green Action Team Task Forces for the Governor's Green Building Executive Order. She chairs the Indoor Environmental Quality sub-committee of the Collaborative for High Performance School's (CHPS) Technical Advisory Committee. She co-founded the Healthy and Sustainable Schools Working Group.

Julie Weiss, Environmental Specialist, Public Works Department, City of Palo Alto

Ms. Weiss work as an Environmental Specialist for the City of Palo Alto's Regional Water Quality Control Plant and also serves as one of the City's Sustainability Coordinators working on green purchasing and climate protection. During the last 14 years she has coordinated both internal and regional programs for storm and waste water pollution prevention, solid waste reduction, and sustainability projects. Before joining the City she worked for national and state parks as an environmental educator and natural history interpreter. Julie has degrees in Psychology, and a certificate in Solid Waste Management.