WAIMEA — As part of its commitment to public outreach, education, and long-range vision and planning, Hawaii Leeward Planning Conference (HLPC) is pleased to announce that it will host Hawaii Energy Challenge 2008 (HEC08). Registration now is available for the two-day conference to be held on November 20-21, 2008 at the Fairmont Orchid Hawaii on the Kohala Coast of Hawaii Island.
HEC08 will assemble keen minds from throughout Hawaii and our nation to realistically assess the rising cost of imported oil, its import for key sectors of Hawaii’s economy and impact on island lifestyles, and a range of forward-thinking, dynamic opportunities to develop sustainable energy and fuel sources.
Matthew Simmons, founder and Chairman of Simmons & Company International, an independent investment bank specializing in the entire spectrum of the energy industry, will deliver the opening day keynote address on Thursday, November 20th. Author of Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy, Simmons is world-renowned for his insights in the arenas of energy and Peak Oil.
William Bonvillian, director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Washington, D.C. office, will offer a featured talk on structuring innovation and energy policy the following day. During his 17 years as Legislative Director and Chief Counsel to U.S. Senator Joseph Lieberman, he worked extensively on legislation creating the Department of Homeland Security, intelligence reform, defense and life science R&D, national competitiveness and innovation. His upcoming book Structuring an Energy Technology Revolution will be released in early 2009.
Peter Adler, Ph.D., President of The Keystone Center, which applies consensus-building and cutting-edge scientific information to energy, environmental and health-related policy issues, will serve as conference facilitator. He will engage the many conference speakers and panelists in a civil, facts-based assessment of Hawaii’s pressing energy impacts and our visions and solutions for a sustainable energy future.
For more information and registration, please visit HLPC’s dedicated conference website at http://www.hec08.com or call 808-885-9588.
