Regional business leaders gathered yesterday for the 2015 Chesapeake Bay Business Forum in Baltimore, Maryland, to rally business and support for Bay restoration.
The day-long Forum, sponsored by the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay at the Bond Street Wharf in Baltimore, Maryland, drew representatives from over 60 organizations, both large and small, from across the Chesapeake watershed. The event provided an opportunity to network and learn more about how environmental sustainability goals and link with Chesapeake Bay restoration. Business leaders shared challenges and successes, identified needs, and discussed thoughts on sustainable solutions. The Forum also helped kickoff Businesses for the Bay, the Alliance’s new program designed to heighten business involvement in Chesapeake Bay restoration and spotlight their growing sustainability efforts.
The Forum’s goal was to heighten businesses’ awareness of their role in environmental stewardship and provide an opportunity for sharing successful strategies as well as to build networks and connections to continue progress in Bay restoration. Forum presentations and small group discussions helped shape and prioritize future efforts.
Forum keynote speaker Ken Ulman, Chief Strategy Officer for Economic Development at the University of Maryland, College Park, President of Margrave Strategies, and former Howard County Executive, was joined by Ben Grumbles, Maryland Secretary Department of the Environment, and Nicholas DiPasquale, Chesapeake Bay Program Director. Forum panelists included senior representatives from Lockheed Martin, Luck Companies, and Pepco Holdings, Inc. who shared their commitments to environmental sustainability and projects they are involved in to advance Bay health.
Joe Carnahan, General Manager of Emerging Businesses at Luck Stone, remarked, “Luck Ecosystems’ priority is to improve the outdoor environment in the communities we serve. We were excited to join together with other regional leaders at the Forum and to sponsor Businesses for the Bay program so that we can help businesses connect their everyday actions to the health, protection, and restoration of the Chesapeake Bay.”
Corinne Stephens, the Alliance’s Business Partnerships Manager, stated, “Businesses want to play a role in caring for the environment and in Bay restoration. We’re supporting their efforts though our new Businesses for the Bay program, helping businesses to find and share successful environmental initiatives.”
About The Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay
Founded in 1971, the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, with headquarters in Annapolis, MD and offices in Pennsylvania and Virginia, works throughout the Bay watershed to lead, support and inspire local action and build partnerships with individuals, communities, governments, businesses, and other groups to restore the Bay watershed and its forests, rivers and streams. For more information on about the Alliance and Businesses for the Bay, visit: www.allianceforthebay.org.