80 Georgia Lawmakers to Meet with Trauma Care Specialists September 29

80 Georgia lawmakers to meet with trauma care specialists Statewide briefing on trauma care on Monday, September 29 is free and open to health care providers, business and community leaders, educators, and the media at the Georgia Railroad Freight Depot in downtown Atlanta.

More than 80 Georgia legislators will meet next Monday, September 29, with dozens of trauma care professionals, other health care providers, and active stakeholders to brief government and the public on the status of the Georgia statewide trauma care system. Some 118 state lawmakers have signed on as hosts and supporters of this project, and they are working to develop a permanent funding source.

The Trauma Care in Crisis statewide briefing is expected to draw several hundred participants to the Georgia Railroad Freight Depot in downtown Atlanta for the luncheon forum from 10 AM till 1 PM.

The event is free and open to health care professionals and others interested in trauma care.

Topics covered by speakers and panelists will include an overview of the statewide trauma system, legislation, preparedness, the regional approach, communication, business, funding, and prevention.

Speakers representing major hospitals, emergency medical services (EMS), universities, the Governor's Office of Highway Safety, and business organizations will present a variety of perspectives on how to establish and fund a comprehensive statewide trauma care system to serve all the people of Georgia.

The briefing is sponsored by Healthcare Georgia Foundation, a non-profit grantmaking institution that has funded a series of roundtables and forums facilitated by Atlanta-based Reece & Associates, a group that specializes in public policy and government relations.

Register online now > or call Christine Jordan at (404) 586-2100.

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Water Seminar to Focus on Business’ Role

While a number of smaller lakes and reservoirs have recovered from last year’s searing draught, Lake Lanier, a main water supply for much of metro Atlanta, remains low and state environmental leaders say conservation will be as important as ever as we head through what promises to be a long, dry summer.

To highlight what business can do, should be doing, and is doing, to conserve water , Georgia State University’s Center for Ethics and Corporate Responsibility will host a day-long seminar featuring top environmental experts, executives from some of the area’s most environmentally-conscious companies and local government leaders, including Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin.

Water: A Natural Resource in Peril will be presented from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 17 at the Georgia Aquarium, 225 Baker Street.

Linda DiSantis, an executive-in-residence at the J. Mack Robinson College of Business’ ethics center and the seminar’s lead organizer, says more and more companies are thinking about their environmental impact and use of natural resources.

Beyond companies that use water in production, like beverage bottlers who depend on a continuous supply of clean water, she said companies are thinking about how their use of resources is viewed, and how to make their operations sustainable.

“Companies need to behave responsibly because water is a limited resource and if they are viewed as not being responsible, they could suffer the consequence of a backlash,” she said. “It’s not something you do just because it’s a nice thing to do. It’s an important strategy issue.”

Presenters at the seminar will include keynote speaker David Orr, the Paul Sears distinguished professor of environmental studies and politics at Oberlin College, and Jason Morrison, director of the Pacific Institute’s Globalization Program and a project coordinator for the U.N. Global Compact CEO Water Mandate.

Their discussions will give attendees a “big picture” view of the world’s water resources, said Steven Olson, the director of the Center for Ethics and Corporate Responsibility.

“A lot of people in the room – it’ll be a real eye-opener for them,” Olson said.

Greg Koch, the Coca-Cola Co.’s director of Global Water Stewardship; Jeff Carrier, the sustainability manager for the Carpet and Rug Institute; and Gary Black, president of the Georgia Agribusiness Council will address best practices and water usage by the private sector during a panel discussion.

Olson says the carpet industry tackled its water use years ago, and can be viewed as an example of how companies can work together within an industry to solve environmental challenges.

“They’ve had to really get their hands around this,” Olson said. “Many of these sustainability issues can’t be addressed at the firm level. They have to be addressed at the industry level.”

Atlanta’s Mayor Franklin, who has dubbed herself the “sewer mayor,” is expected to discuss where business stands as the city grapples with water supply and infrastructure issues. The city is in the midst of a massive $1 billion sewer rebuilding project and the sewer plan is just one part of the $3.8 billion Clean Water Atlanta initiative to improve drinking water and reduce pollution.

Gail Cowie, a senior planning and policy advisor from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, will also give an overview of the statewide water plan, adopted by lawmakers and signed into law in February, and explain what will be expected of business under the plan.

Optimus Solutions to Host EcoTech Tour 2008 on June 12 at Atlanta Botanical Gardens

BUSINESS WIRE--Optimus Solutions, a comprehensive technology solutions provider and value-added reseller (VAR), today announced that it is hosting EcoTech Tour 2008, a one-day event where the company and its partners will share best practices on how businesses can green the IT environment while enhancing the bottom line. The event, which is hosted by Optimus Solutions and sponsored by Brocade, is Thursday, June 12 at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens, 1345 Piedmont Road in Atlanta. Registration starts at 11:30 a.m.

At the event, Optimus Solutions experts and its partners will lead sessions that cover the following topics:

• Green technologies that raise a businesses’ competitive advantage while cutting environmental impact.
• Energy efficient initiatives and proven technology solutions that can transform existing IT infrastructure.
• Industry leading power and cooling efficiency products.
• Implications of utilizing green products/services when designing data centers and what savings may be realistically expected.

To register for EcoTech Tour 2008, visit http://forms.optimussolutions.com/forms/EcoTech_Atlanta.

Steve Johnson, president of Optimus Solutions, said, “We’re excited about hosting a green-minded event such as EcoTech, which provides significant value to businesses of all sizes. It allows companies to learn green IT from a best practices perspective and to think about the role of technology in environmental change. Coupled with our partners, this program will offer tangible solutions on how IT managers can effectively incorporate green initiatives into their existing IT infrastructure.”