Green Business Guru Next Speaker for VCU’s Business Talks Business Series

By Tom Gresham

Karl Bren, founder and president of GreenVisions Consulting, will speak about “Sustainability and the Economics of Going Green” next week for “Business Talks Business,” the speakers series developed by the VCU School of Business.

Bren, a well-known expert on sustainability, will help attendees better understand the methods and mission of the green business movement and why sustainability is such a hot topic. Bren will speak on Jan. 27 at 11:30 a.m. in Room B2165 of Snead Hall on the VCU campus, 301 W. Main St.; on Jan. 28 at 7:30 a.m. at Innsbrook, 4521 Highwoods Parkway; and on Jan. 29 at 7:30 a.m. south of the James River at the Arboretum, 300 Arboretum Place.

Each event is open to the public. Registration is $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Lunch or breakfast is included. For registration, visit http://www.business.vcu.edu/businesstalksbusiness.html, call (804) 828-1485 or e-mail bus-rsvp@vcu.edu.

GreenVisions provides consulting services relating to the application of green building and sustainable design, especially in single and multifamily affordable housing. Bren is a LEED accredited professional with the U.S. Green Building Council and has been involved with green building and sustainable development for more than 15 years.

Bren is a co-founder of EarthCraft Virginia, a non-profit that administers the EarthCraft green builder program in Virginia, and a founding board member of the James River Green Building Council and the Better Housing Coalition. He also is a member of the Board of Directors of the Virginia Conservation Network and was appointed to the Governor’s Energy Policy Advisory Council in 2007.

“Business Talks Business” is the VCU School of Business 2009-10 speakers series. Topics are presented in three different locations, covering downtown, the West End and south of the James. Speakers include VCU faculty and staff, VCU Business Society members and other experts in the community.