West Coast Green 2008

Looks like the West Coast Green has a change of venue this year. Held at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in 2007, the West Coast show is heading south to Silicon Valley to the San Jose Convention Center. The event, scheduled for September 25 to 27, is a three-day expo of everything green, with exhibits and conferences for trade professionals (Thursday through Saturday) and for homeowners (Saturday only).

The show has grown significantly with 380 exhibits this year (270 in 2007), with everything from design, alternative energy, green building products and services, and more. Experts from around the country and world will present their latest developments. Speakers include Al Gore, architect Michelle Kaufmann, David Suzuki (author and host of The Nature of Things), Alison Arieff of Sunset and the NYT, architect Eric Corey Freed, and Sarah Suzanka, author of The Not So Big Life: Making Room for What Really Matters.

West Coast Green bills itself as “a feast of innovations, ideas and opportunities designed to expand your business, widen your vision, and stimulate your thinking with the latest, best practices and key players in green building.” This expo will be a gathering point for professionals in the green building industry to showcase their products, pontificate on the realities and necessities of green building, and network unlike ever before. Homeowners can benefit from seeing the displays and attending educational workshops. The overall program is very ambitious with the schedule shaping up to offer anything you can think of. I am particularly interested in multi-family design, pre-fab and alternative construction, as well as green building materials and energy efficiency. But that is only the tip of the iceberg, as the Educational Tracks are well thought out and should be very informative for the trade and public alike.

You can register online or purchase tickets at the door. Cost for homeowners (Saturday only) has dropped in price this year to only $20. Should you be serious about this subject, homeowners can participate in the full conference. (More about that here.) Can’t afford it? Volunteer and gain access for free.

Hope to see you there!