Ron Sims Kicks Off CLF's 2010 Summit with a Bang!

This was just one of many gems shared by U.S. Housing and Urban Development Deputy Secretary, Ron Sims shared last Friday at Portland’s First Unitarian Church in his inspiring speech on “Earth Day for All: The Challenge of Inequity”.  The event marked the official kick-off of CLF’s Summit 2010; on April 29th we've lined up a full-day program covering some of the hottest regional livability and equity issues.

Sims' rousing address was filled with personal and professional stories that tracked his life's journey, which he described as being focused on “changing the world”. He expressed a deep love of America, while also pointing to the many places where we are falling short in meeting the needs of our people and the planet. Bringing people and place-based efforts together is sustainability’s great promise and great challenge.

With a final call to the audience to join him in this mission to change the world, he brought listeners to their feet for a standing ovation.

An excerpt of his presentation is available at EarthSayers.tv as part of its Portland Sustainability Leaders Special Collection. This collection features Portland's sustainability leaders and the leaders who speak on behalf of our earth here in Portland. The video is also available on YouTube as part of the earthsayer.tv channel or in their general collection.

Sims also presented at Metro that morning to discuss new federal Sustainable Communities Initiative grants. He was joined by another top national regional equity expert, john powell, director of the Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in the Americas at The Ohio State University. Read more about this presentation here.

The Skanner published a great story covering his visit: Want HUD Funds? Then Show Me The Equity.