Everyday Green ~ Lecture Series

Consumers make choices every day that impact their health, the health of the environment, and influence supply, demand, and prices. Speak with professionals, share concerns, and get answers to help you make informed decisions for daily living.

NOTE: Sign language interpreters will be available at these presentations.

Speaker Information

Green Building ~ March 12
Andrew Grigsby - Commonwealth Sustainability ~ has worked many years in various construction trades, served as a program facilitator in the experiential education industry and managed the Sustainable Communities Initiative of the City of Austin, Texas. His formal education includes a Master's Degree in Community and Regional Planning from The University of Texas and a Bachelor's Degree in social theory from Virginia Commonwealth University. Mr. Grigsby is a LEED® Accredited Professional and a Certified Home Energy Rater. Commonwealth Sustainability’s goal is to help people learn about issues important to their lives and businesses and then find ways to incorporate that information into positive actions. George Washington University with a degree in Psychology (Magna Cum Laude). As a full-time electrologist, I was also doing counseling for immigrant and refugee students in Virginia.

After my bachelors degree, I continued pursuing my Masters in Clinical Community Counseling from The Johns Hopkins University (Suma Cum Laude).

Susan Pierce, CommonWealth Home Remodelers ~ AIA, is a registered architect, licensed in the State of Virginia. She is a graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute's College of Architecture and Urban Studies. Susan interned for the Washington, DC office of the national architecture firm of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill before spending over two years at the award-winning architecture firm of Sutton Sullenberger Associates Architecture in Vienna, VA. She is the principal architect for Commonwealth Home Remodelers. Recently remodeling a 1950’s log cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, this cabin project is in line to become the second residential project in the state of Virginia to follow the guidelines of LEED ®.

Cosmetic Conscience ~ Tuesday, April 8
Jovana Ruzicic - Environmental Working Group staffer
"It is our mission at the Environmental Working Group to use the power of information to protect human health and the environment. EWG's data gives you practical solutions to protect yourself and your family from the health risks we all face from everyday exposures to myriad industrial chemicals."
Watch Jovana in the video "What Is Fragrance?"

Honi Borden - Derma Hair Care LLC
Due to personal aspiration and passion for her clients, Borden decided to take a dramatic approach by introducing the organic world to the field of medical aesthetics. She is the first to pioneer an organic approach to the medical aesthetics field and was recognized by Co-op America in April 2007 as a socially-responsible green company. Derma Hair Care LLC is the first organic med spa in the US that is green. Honi's green mission is to provide aesthetic treatments from a holistic perspective without harming one's health or damaging the environment. Honi has a bachelor's in psychology from George Washington University, a master's in clinical community counseling from The Johns Hopkins University, and is a Board Certified Laser Specialist (CLS).

Debra Claire - Perfect Organics
After working as a commercial make-up artist whereupon she was exposed to conventional products full of toxic and unregulated ingredients, Claire set out to provide clean, luxurious, organic alternatives to conventional body care products. Perfect Organics was created using sustainability as the guiding principle. Perfect Organics boasts ethically traded organic ingredients that are extracted and clarified naturally and establishing low impact manufacturing techniques. Claire speaks regularly on a variety of social and environmental issues and was most recently featured on NBC 4, Fox News, Sprig, WNPV AM 1440, and at the D.C. Green Festival’s panel on “Influential Green Business Leaders”.

Informed Consumer ~ Tuesday, May 13
Mark Smallwood - Green Mission Specialist, Whole Foods
Regional Specialist for the mid-Atlantic region. His responsibilities include 35 stores located in Virginia, Kentucky, Maryland, Washington D.C., New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio. Mark is focused on the environmental footprint of the region including best sustainable business practices, waste diversion from landfills, energy efficiency, green cleaning, education and community outreach. This past year, Mark was chosen as one of only 1,000 people worldwide to train with Mr. Al Gore, and is now a messenger for the The Climate Project. Mark has been a consultant to the green industry, an organic farmer and a public school educator. Mark was born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio, and has a degree in education from Ohio Wesleyan University.

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