Registration is now open for Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility’s (VBSR) 22nd Annual Fall Conference. The daylong conference will take place Wednesday, November 19, at the Grand Summit Resort at Mount Snow in West Dover, Vermont. VBSR’s largest southern Vermont event will feature keynote speaker Allison Hooper, Co-Founder of the Vermont Creamery, six workshops, 35 exhibitors, a plenary panel on Vermont’s health care system, and the presentation of VBSR’s annual Legislator of the Year Awards. Last year, the conference drew over 225 attendees to Bennington County.
“We are thrilled to welcome Allison Hooper as our conference Keynote Speaker,” said VBSR Communications and Development Manager Scott Buckingham. “Hooper is a past recipient of our Annual Terry Ehrich Award for Excellence in Socially Responsible Business and consistently integrates a triple-bottom-line approach into her very successful business operations.” Buckingham noted that Hooper and Bob Reese co-founded Vermont Creamery in 1984 and started bringing the everyday cheese and dairy delicacies of France to the American table. The creamery’s creations have won more than 100 awards over the past 30 years and as a certified B Corporation Vermont Creamery is supporting local farms, developing future farmers, and engaging employees to create a meaningful workplace and contribute to the vibrancy of Vermont’s community.
VBSR’s Fall Conference is open to anyone interested in socially responsible business practices and is typically attended by Vermont’s business, policy, and nonprofit communities. Participants will learn new ways to implement social responsibility into their organizations, discuss public policy, and network with other forward-thinking business professionals committed to an approach to business which values not only financial success, but also the well being of employees, the environment, and the community.
The 22nd Annual Fall Conference is underwritten by: Front Porch Forum, The Green Up Girl, Interrobang Design Collaborative, J Andrews Marketing, Let’s Grow Kids, Linesync Architecture, Neighborworks of Western Vermont, Vermont Creamery, Vermont Digger, Vermont Health Connect, Vermont Public Radio and Vermont Rural Ventures.
Sponsors include: The Alchemist, A. N. Deringer, Inc., Black River Produce, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Vermont, Burton Snowboards, Business Culture Consultants, Business Energy Action, Cabot Creamery Cooperative, Casella Resource Solutions, Champlain College, Chroma Technology, City Market, Concept2, Davis & Hodgdon Associates CPAs, Dealer.com, Dunkiel Saunders Elliott Raubvogel & Hand, FairPoint Communications, The Farmhouse Group, Gravel and Shea, Hubbardton Forge, KeyBank, Marketing Partners, Inc., McKenzie Country Classics, Merchants Bank, Merritt & Merritt & Moulton, Attorneys at Law, Middlebury College, National Life Group, Northeast Kingdom Community Action, People's United Bank, Sugarbush Resort, SymQuest Group Inc., TruexCullins Architecture and Interior Design, University of Vermont, Vermont Energy Investment Corp., Vermont PBS, Vermont State Employees Credit Union.
Registration on or before November 18 is $95 for VBSR members and $125 for non-members. Rates for day-of registration are $115 and $135, respectively. Fulltime students can take advantage of a discounted registration rate of $40. Online registration, complete conference agenda, workshop details, and information on how to exhibit at the conference can be found at www.vbsr.org. Carpooling is encouraged.
Founded in 1990, VBSR is a statewide, nonprofit business association with a mission to advance business ethics that value multiple bottom lines: economic, social, and environmental. With over 750 members, VBSR advances its mission through educational offerings, policy advocacy, and networking.