2005 Annual Conference

Friday, June 24, 2005

• 8:00 a.m. — Smurfit-Stone Recycling 18-Hole Golf Scramble, Eagle Crest Resort Course (additional fee required)
  This is a package deal. For $85, you get green fees, cart, range balls, morning coffee, lunch and prizes. Check “Golf” under “Additional Special Events” and include the fee in your total registration. Credit card payers Click here to get the on-line registration form. Paying by check, Click here to get a printable registration form.
• 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. — Pre-Conference Workshop
  Grassroots Electronics Use, Reuse and Recycling at Community Technology Centers • Three Oregon examples sponsored by Metro – As rapidly changing electronics technology makes equipment obsolete almost before you get the software installed, the challenge of what to do with thousands of obsolete computers has perplexed businesses, individuals, legislators, and recyclers. Hear how three Community Technology Centers are reducing waste while empowering people. Watch in awe as the amazing Jhason dismantles a CPU right before your eyes! And learn about pending legislation in Oregon, Washington and at the national level which has created interesting alliances and thorny disagreements. Arturo Villasenor, Centro Cultural, Cornelius; Lorraine Kerwood, MacRenewal, Eugene; Oso Martin and Jhason, Free Geek, Portland; Scott Klagg, Metro, Portland.
• 9:00 - 12:15 - Shevlin Commons and Park Tour, Bend
  The bus leaves Eagle Crest at 9:00 a.m. sharp for some special Central Oregon sights and a tour of Shevlin Commons, a unique sustainable community which lies at the very edge of Shevlin Park, the crown jewel of Bend's park system. Along the way, your guide will point out natural features of the high desert region and tell tales about the area's cultural history. During lunch, you can stroll among the trees in Shevlin Park as the guide explains more about the area's natural wonders. Bring your camera, dress in layers and wear good walking shoes. Limited to the first 30 people. $45 per person includes lunch, transportation and guide. Credit card payers Click here to get the on-line registration form. Paying by check, Click here to get a printable registration form.
• 10:00 a.m. — Registration Desk Opens in Convention Center
• 11:00 a.m. — Recyclers Trade Show opens
• 1:30 p.m. — Welcome to the 27th Annual AOR Conference & Trade Show - Alex Cuyler, AOR Chair.
• Keynote Plenary - Bill Lunch, OPB Political Commentator and head of Oregon State University's Political Science Department, sponsored by Metro.
  Bill Lunch has been a popular speaker at past AOR conferences, and the current political climate lends itself to an encore visit from the entertaining man with the political insight. Lunch will go behind the headlines to talk about what really happened (or is still happening) at the Oregon Legislature, then move on to national politics which are anything but boring. You'll get a chance to ask those questions you've been screaming at the TV.
• 2:30 p.m. — Take a break in the Trade Show and enjoy some special treats.
• 3:00 - 4:30 p.m. — Concurrent Sessions
  1. Recycling Economic Development - Re-Made in Oregon - Learn the meaning of recycling-based economic development, how it's growing in Oregon and why it's important. Then meet some environmental entrepreneurs, whose products and services are making a difference, and learn about a network of investors and services especially designed to support this kind of entrepreneurship. Alisa Kane, Green Ways Planning, Portland; Terry McDonald, St. Vincent de Paul of Lane County, Eugene; Chad Kruse, Saava Portland, Portland; Pete Daly, RB Rubber Products, Inc., Portland. Moderator: Jennifer Porter, City of Portland.
  2. Modernizing Oregon's Bottle Bill - Our Bottle Bill was born in 1971 and set the stage for several other container redemption programs. Now we're lagging behind and it's time to catch up. Learn where we fit in the big picture and what AOR is doing to find a common ground among diverse stakeholders to modernize the existing law. Peter Spendelow, Oregon DEQ, Portland; Jenny Gitlitz, Container Recycling Institute, Dalton, MA; Elaine Hallmark, Oregon Consensus Project, PSU, Portland. Moderator: Kristan Mitchell, ORRA, Salem
  3. Corporate Recycling Coordinator: A New Job Title for a New Era - Recycling and waste prevention have taken root as many large corporations discover that the bottom line gets bigger as waste declines. Learn what it takes to make a large corporate program hum and where the pitfalls lurk which can turn off management. Lonny Knabe, Nike, Beaverton; Rick Woodward, Coastwide Labs, Wilsonville; Ron Corbin, Toyota Logistics Services.
• 4:30 - 6:30 p.m. — Brand Oregon Reception - Great food, drink and Oregon treasures in the Trade Show for all conference attendees. The Redmond Chamber of Commerce will be on hand with tips to make your Central Oregon trip a real treat!
• 4:30 - 6:30 p.m. — Junk Art Challenge - As a tribute to the artist in each of us, AOR, reSource and the Redmond Chamber of Commerce are pulling together to bring you the Fourth Annual Junk Art Challenge. We've got junk coming from everywhere, so you'll have the raw materials you need. You bring your tools and team, suited up and ready to create. Finished works will be sold at silent auction to benefit AOR and reSource. Check the box to receive info about signing up as an individual or a team. Credit card payers Click here to get the on-line registration form. Paying by check, Click here to get a printable registration form.

Saturday, June 25, 2005

• 7:00 a.m. — Pancake Breakfast in the Trade Show Hall, Trade Show Opens - Dine with the exhibitors and pick up a baler, some rollcarts, paper recycling systems or a new idea or two!
• 8:00 - 8:35 a.m. — Shape Your Organization • AOR Policy Session - Provide input to the AOR Board on the outcomes from last year's policy session, the AOR mission statement — is it still working? — the role of the recycling industry in the sustainability arena, and if AOR should combine the conferences into one event. You may also vent your spleen during Open Mic! Board members and staff will be on hand to take your questions.
• 8:45 - 10:15 a.m. — Oregon Recyclables Feed World Markets - With Oregon's spot on the Pacific Rim, it's only natural that plastics and paper from Portland and Pendleton often end up on the other side of the ocean. How do international markets affect commodity prices and how do Oregon markets compete? Hear what the experts have to say about 2005's outlook. Moderator: Les Joel, AOR Markets Chair/Blue Heron Paper Company.
• 10:15 — Take a break in the Trade Show
• 10:45 - Noon — Keynote Presentation: David Sarasohn, The Oregonian, Portland - David Sarasohn, associate editor of The Oregonian, exemplifies Oregon values. He doesn't pump his own gas, doesn't pay a sales tax, doesn't carry an umbrella and recycles devoutly. His commitment to recycling is reflected both at work - where his office shows his refusal never to throw anything out - and at home, where he and his wife recently built a small room onto their kitchen to hold recyclable material - although he promises to take it all out to the curb soon. He arrived in Oregon as a history professor, but soon recycled himself into a journalist, with his columns appearing three times a week in The Oregonian and nationally distributed by the Newhouse News Service. His book on the Lewis and Clark bicentennial, "Waiting for Lewis and Clark," will appear this fall, just in time for major bicentennial events in Oregon and Christmas giving.
• Noon - 1:15 p.m. Lunch and Annual Meeting and Election of Officers - Grab your lunch and join us. Members will elect AOR's next Treasurer and Education, Legislative and Markets Chairs. Hear what the candidates have to say and vote. All AOR members whose dues are current are eligible to vote.
• 1:15 - 2:30 p.m. — Concurrent Sessions
  1. Rural Recycling - Innovations in Small Places - The rural towns and communities that are sprawled across the largest part of the Oregon have to be innovative to succeed in recycling. Markets are distant and when landfilling is cheap, recycling is a tough sell. Hear how three rural businesses are blazing new trails and adding services. Allen & Dari Jongsma, Agri-Plas, Keizer, Cissy Ramos, Hood River Garbage Service, Hood River; Darin Larvik, City Garbage Service, LaGrande. Moderator: John Matthews, Garten Services, Salem.
  2. Food Waste Diversion - A Program That Really Works - All the pieces must fit together from the businesses to the local governments to the processor in order to develop and maintain a successful food waste diversion program. Hear the challenges from each perspective and how stakeholders are working together to make food waste diversion a reality in Portland. Michael Luehrs, Doubletree Hotels, Portland; Jennifer Erickson, Metro, Portland; Denise Foland, Cedar Grove Composting, Maple Valley, WA. Moderator: Paul Rosenbloom, Community Environmental Services, Portland.
  3. Contamination: From the Curb to the MRF to Mill - When contaminants make it into the recycling stream at the curb, commingled collection makes it difficult if not impossible to separate them from potentially marketable materials. Learn about contamination levels at MRFs, what ends up at markets and how best practices for commingled programs are working. Steve Apotheker, Metro, Portland; Richard Gertman, Environmental Planning Consultants, San Jose, CA; Les Joel, Blue Heron Paper Company, Oregon City. Moderator: Peter Spendelow, Oregon DEQ, Portland.
• 2:30 p.m. — Take a break in the Trade Show and stick around for prize drawings.
• 3:00 p.m. — Trade Show Closes
• 3:00 - 4:15 p.m. — Concurrent Sessions
  1. Putting the Cart After Reuse - Revisiting the Recycling Hierarchy - Reduce, reuse and recycle have been in the same order since the hierarchy was adopted with Oregon's recycling laws. But sometimes we forget and need a refresher. Hear the latest on DEQ's packaging study and other case studies on waste reduction. Learn about a building materials reuse center taking root in the Columbia Gorge. And find out what King County, WA is doing in-house to promote waste prevention, and also how they are bringing waste prevention to the public. David Allaway, Oregon DEQ, Portland; David Skakel, Gorge Rebuild-It Center, Hood River; Tom Watson, King County Solid Waste, Seattle. Moderator: Mike Riley, reSource, Bend.
  2. New Ideas for Multi-Family Programs - With changes in curbside recycling collection, some municipal programs are taking new approaches to better serve apartment complexes. Other programs are using tried and true approaches to collection with a few twists to encourage participation and boost recovery. Hear about the successes and challenges faced by communities that are working to improve multi-family recycling. Rita Smith, Waste Management of Washington, Woodinville; Dianna Kennedy, Eureka Recycling, Minneapolis, MN; Ginger May, Waste Connections, Inc., Vancouver, WA. Moderator: Rich McConaghy, City of Vancouver, WA.
  3. A Cart for Every Customer: Convenience vs. Contamination - Many programs have switched to carts for recycling collection and many more are still grappling with the decision. While convenience and diversion seem to be on the plus side of the equation, cost and contamination are causing second thoughts for some collectors and municipalities. Hear from two who have made the leap to carts and another who is researching benefits and drawbacks while considering the move. Greg Dittman, Valley Refuse and Recycling, Salem; Jeff Murray, Far West Fibers, Portland; Jennifer Porter, City of Portland, OR. Moderator: Elizabeth Pape, City of Gresham, OR.
• 4:30 - 6:30 — Far West Fibers 18-hole Putt Putt Challenge, Eagle Crest Putting Course. $10 Adults; $5 Juniors 17 & under - Bring the whole family. The kids will love this one! No equipment needed. Putter, ball and beverages provided. Forget the AstroTurf! This is a miniature course with real grass, sand traps and water hazards. Prizes go to the most Perfect Putters. Credit card payers Click here to get the on-line registration form. Paying by check, Click here to get a printable registration form.
• 7:00 p.m. — Thirsty? - No Host Drinks before the festivities
• 7:30 p.m. — Recycler of the Year Awards Banquet and AOR Entertainment sponsored by Waste Connections, Inc. - Join us for an Oregon-style barbeque (it might be indoors) and a great time recognizing the best bona fide Brand Oregon recyclers for 2005. Then stick around for door prizes, election results and AOR's special brand of entertainment.