Black Think Tank Announces Climate Symposium

Washington - The black think-tank, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, today announced a special 2 day session "Critical issues in Climate Change":

The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies is hosting Critical Issues in Climate Change Symposium, a special day-long symposium on climate change during the 2010 Annual Legislative Conference of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc. The symposium will take place on Friday, September 17 in Washington, DC. Sessions will explore connecting environmental justice with science, policy and practice; how smart growth can scale up equity in transportation, housing and other related areas; and stimulating trade, investment, technology transfer and development between the U.S. and Africa. In commemoration of the Joint Center's 40th Anniversary, the symposium is sponsored by the Commission to Engage African Americans on Climate Change and Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX).

Opening Plenary
7:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
Walter E. Washington
Convention Center
801 Mount Vernon Place, NW
Room 146-C
Washington, DC 20001

Main Symposium
1:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Renaissance Washington, DC
Downtown Hotel
999 Ninth Street, NW
West Ballroom
Washington, DC 20001

7:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
SESSION I | Connecting Environmental Policies and Practices to Protect Our Places
Walter E. Washington Convention Center Room 146-C

Problems related to environmental justice are expected to exacerbate the detrimental effects of climate change within vulnerable communities, spotlighting the need for the science of climate change to be more closely connected with environmental law enforcement in disproportionately burdened communities. By addressing this need, stakeholders can be enabled to advance the shared goals of environmental equity and stewardship. With this in mind, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, through its Climate Change Initiative, is working to help stakeholders bridge the gaps in science, policy and practice for the betterment of African Americans and communities of color.

7:30 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.
8:00 a.m. - 8:15 a.m.
8:15 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
8:30 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.
9:30 a.m. - 9:55 a.m.
9:55 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.

Registration Check-In and Continental Breakfast
Welcome and Introductions
Remarks from Special Guests
Panel Discussion
Q & A
Closing Comments

1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
SESSION II | Designing Resilience: How Smart Growth Can Scale Up Equity
Renaissance Washington, DC Downtown Hotel, West Ballroom

Through its long experience in enhancing civic and political leadership, the Joint Center supports the empowerment of people of color to participate in land use decisions and planning as a means of achieving equity within and across communities on the front lines of the environmental justice movement. Through regional development and interagency collaboration, the movement to pursue "triple-bottom line" (revenue, social, and environmental) interests through smart growth holds the potential for solutions that address the unique issues facing African Americans in urban, rural and suburban areas. This session aims to debunk the "Green versus Jobs" myth by describing how regional and cross-sectoral approaches to development that pursue equity through transportation, housing and economic growth can revitalize communities in the present while mitigating the effects of climate change in the future.

3:15 p.m. - 4:45 p.m.
SESSION III | Stimulating Trade, Investment, Technology Transfer and Development: Making the Case for U.S. and Africa Energy Partnership
Renaissance Washington, DC Downtown Hotel, West Ballroom

Our dependence on fossil fuel combustion for energy has significantly increased global carbon emission levels, but without corresponding investment in less environmentally harmful renewable energy technology. Accordingly, populations with limited resources not only lose revenue but also suffer from lost opportunities. Given the untapped potential to expand energy infrastructure in African nations and improve energy capacity among low-income African Americans, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies realizes the significance of information sharing through partnerships in order to convey best practices and harness the collective power of these communities.

5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
VIP RECEPTION | 40 Years of Research ~ Empowerment ~ Engagement
Renaissance Washington, DC Downtown Hotel, West Ballroom Foyer

For four decades, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies has been driving America's progress toward that more perfect union envisioned in our nation's founding ideals. Always central to our mission has been to build relationships across racial and ethnic lines in order to strengthen the nation's pluralistic society. Please join us as we both celebrate and continue our non-partisan commitment to strengthen the impact of our research and policy activities, and to seek innovative ways to generate an abundance of opportunity for all Americans to learn, to achieve health and happiness, and to live their dreams.

The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies is one of the nation's leading research and public policy institutions and the only one whose work focuses primarily on issues of particular concern to African Americans and other people of color.

Since its founding in 1970, the Joint Center has made important contributions to every major policy debate. Today, the Joint Center continues to be a trusted source of information on the nation's critical issues—health and health care equity, economic security, energy and climate change, digital opportunity and innovation, and civic engagement and governance.

Through high-quality research, distinctive analysis of the issues and experience in assembling effective coalitions, the Joint Center is generating innovative, practical solutions to America's most challenging issues.

Amid rising concerns about the effects of global warming, the Joint Center has launched an effort to increase understanding among African Americans of climate change and the potential impact of this phenomenon and various policy proposals on their communities. The Joint Center's Commission to Engage African Americans on Climate Change brings together a diverse group of scientific and policy experts, activists, and business and labor leaders to advance research and information on climate change, to propose equitable policies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and to ensure that African Americans have a seat at the table when and where such policies are developed.