For tomorrow's radio show

Tomorrow will be a great day--we are recording a radio show and broadcasting one live (1-2p, EST, WARL 1320, over-the-air and on their stream).  You can listen to all of our shows a renewablenow.biz.

Here's some background on the organizations and guests we will be profiling.  We'd love for you to tune in and send us your questions, comments and feedback:

Live Show

Washington County Planning Commission:

Mission Statement

The purpose of the Washington County Regional Planning Council is to work with municipalities and other stakeholders to:

• Identify effective solutions to regional challenges
• Encourage their implementation
• Realize the shared vision of the nine Washington County municipalities

Vision

Our vision for Washington County is a region defined by its rural character, with vibrant village centers, a strong economy, permanently preserved natural areas and farmland, scenic coastline, clean and plentiful water, affordable housing, and protected cultural resources, such that the quality of life is maintained for all residents of Washington County, present and future.

Washington County

Washington County, Rhode Island (also locally referred to as “South County”) has 130,000 residents distributed throughout nine towns: North Kingstown, South Kingstown, Exeter, Narragansett, Charlestown, Hopkinton, Richmond, Westerly, and New Shoreham. It is a largely undeveloped region with communities ranging from rural farming enclaves to destination beach communities, punctuated by classic New England village centers. The past twenty years have witnessed dramatic growth for Washington County – growth in this county, in fact, has steadily remained three times that of the state’s growth rate for over two decades – and rapid development has begun to change the face of this predominantly rural landscape.

Washington County Regional Planning Council

Faced with growing impacts from rapid growth and sprawl in Washington County, the Washington County Regional Planning Council (WCRPC) was founded in 1992 by then President of the Univeristy of Rhode Island Robert Carothers and Michael Rauh, a Vice Preisdent of a large local bank, with the intent of employing a coordinated approach to more effectively addressing those issues that transcend municipal boundaries.

The WCRPC is the only organization in Rhode Island that works specifically with a municipal government partnership to address regional challenges collectively. The WCRPC's Board of Directors is comprised of one town council member from each of the nine towns within the county, and serves as a unique forum for inter-municipal communication, coordination and cost-sharing. The Council’s overall goal is to integrate local economic development with preservation of unique and valuable natural and cultural resources, such that the quality of life for Washington County residents is maintained, for present and future generations.

The Council also strives to prevent, and in some cases reverse, the negative impacts of unplanned rapid development that have characterized this region’s growth in recent years. To do this, we have identified five key issues on which to focus our work:

• Land Preservation
• Economic Development
• Transportation
• Water Quality
• Affordable Housing

Since its establishment, the WCRPC has met regularly to exchange information and collaborate on joint projects, with technical assistance and generous in-kind support from the University of Rhode Island Coastal Resources Center/Rhode Island Sea Grant Program and The Washington Trust Company. The WCRPC is also supported by contributions from its nine member municipalities, and the Rhode Island Foundation.

Structure

The WCRPC is RI nonprofit corporation that is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3).  It is governed by a Board of Directors and managed by an Executive Director.  

Strategy

Our region-wide strategy deals with those issues that transcend municipal and political boundaries and are most effectively approached on a regional scale. We approach preservation, infrastructure development, and economic growth as interrelated issues. Our strategy prioritizes the need for communication and cooperation among all nine Washington County municipalities, their citizens, and state elected and appointed officals.

Guests:  Jeffery Broadhead

                     Executive Director

jb@wcrpc.org

Office: 401-792-9900

Jeff brings a wealth of multi-jurisdictional public, private, and nonprofit sector experience to the position of Executive Director of the Washington County Regional Planning Council. With a BA in Economic Geography and Environmental Studies from the University of Washington and an Executive MBA from the University of Rhode Island, Jeff has developed excellent communication, analytical, and creative skills.

Jeff’s career spans both coasts, including two environmental and socio-economic consulting firms in Washington State where he authored numerous Environmental Impact Statements for projects as diverse as an urban mixed-use project, a landfill, numerous residential subdivisions, and a Pacific Ocean floor mining operation. While on the west coast he also worked for the City of Kent’s Planning Department and Seattle’s Department of Community Development. His duties included multi-governmental relations as well as interdepartmental coordination.

Recorded Show

About Us

Vestergaard is an international company dedicated to improving the health of vulnerable people, most of whom live in developing countries. Our game-changing solutions contribute to a healthier, more sustainable planet by fighting malaria, HIV/AIDS, diarrheal diseases and neglected tropical diseases. Additional company initiatives are focused on mitigating climate change and enhancing food security.

Vestergaard is the largest producer of long-lasting insecticidal bed nets. Our PermaNet® bed nets have played a significant role in last decade’s highly successful fight against malaria. More than half a billion PermaNet® bed nets have contributed to the reduction in deaths from malaria by more than one third.

Breakthrough solutions also include the award-winning LifeStraw® water filter, which was named "One of Ten Things that Will Change the Way we Live" by Forbes magazine. The portable version of LifeStraw® has been deployed following almost every natural disaster since 2005, and the family version is the backbone of the LifeStraw® Carbon for Water™ campaign in Kenya.  This is the world’s largest privately funded household water program, providing more than 4.5 million Kenyans with sustainable access to clean and safe drinking water.  

Vestergaard is headquartered in Switzerland and has offices around the world where highly skilled staff members work with stakeholders to ensure global reach with local support. We’re proud to be a valued and trusted partner to governments, aid agencies, NGOs, faith-based groups and the private sector. 

Guests:    Tara Lundy is a Concept Development Manager within Vestergaard’s LifeStraw® business unit.  Tara works on development of new business models, and oversees technical development of field-based training materials and resources for LifeStraw® products.   She also manages a large portion of the LifeStraw® Carbon for Water Program in Western Kenya.   Tara holds masters degrees in business administration and public health from Johns Hopkins University. 

 

Eartheasy:   Hello! My name is Greg Seaman, and I’m the founder of Eartheasy. Here's a little information about my background and how Eartheasy came into being.

A native of Long Island, New York, I was raised in a typical middle class home with two working parents and four children. After graduating from university, my first job was supervisor of the Centennial Exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History. The exhibit was called "Can Man Survive?", and was a multimedia presentation of the impact of our modern lifestyles on the health of the environment. It illustrated how the earth's carrying capacity was threatened by excessive energy consumption, pollution, overpopulation and unsustainable development. It was a real eye-opener, and this was 1970! Little did I know at the time that this job experience was the seed which would ultimately lead to the development of the Eartheasy website.

Guests:  

Ben

Ben graduated with a BSc from the University of Victoria, while concurrently building a successful contracting firm to pay for his university expenses. Over three years, Ben built the firm to almost half a million dollars in sales and 30 seasonal employees. His desire to do more for the environment, inspired by his lifelong love of nature, led him to work with his father on Eartheasy in 2007. Under Ben’s management, the various products sold on Eartheasy were consolidated into a dedicated online store, with an office and warehouse in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

On the weekends, Ben can usually be found gardening, hiking, or fishing.