Take it Back! 2007 Will Present Two Dozen Speakers from Across the U.S. and Around the World for a Global Perspective on All the Key Issues.

MONDAY - MARCH 12: 8:45 am - 5:30 pm

8:45 AM: Welcome remarks by Bruce Popka, Vice President, Raymond Communications.

9:00 AM: In the past few years, there has been an increasing number of legislative actions on mercury-containing products, including mercury thermostats. What does this mean for you? Scott Cassel, Executive Director of the Product Stewardship Institute, offers an overview of mercury products legislation on the books and in progress,and discusses key initiatives on mercury thermostats, including a model state mercury thermostat program

9:30 AM: Confused about REACH? Worried that you won’t be able to adapt fast enough to all the chemical bans it proposes across the Europe? Kris Pollet, Principal of Pollet Environmental Consulting (Brussels, Belgium), will speak on what to expect from this recently passed and far reaching European Union legislation, as well as the Energy using Products (EuP) Directive.

10:30 AM: Implementation of the European Union's Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment (WEEE) Directive by member states is still ongoing. Are there unforeseen problems? Is it a success that everyone should be lining up for? Hans Korfmacher, President of the European Recycling Platform is flying in from Europe to offer both a round up of legislation and a glimpse of the end of life process on the ground.

11:00 AM: What happens to “reusable” electronics that are exported to Africa? In Lagos, while there is a legitimate robust market and ability to repair and refurbish old electronic equipment including computers, monitors, TVs and cell phones, the local experts complain that of the estimated 500 40-foot containers shipped to Lagos each month, as much as 75% of the imports are “junk” and are not economically repairable or marketable. Sarah Westervelt of the Basel Action Network explores this issue and offers solutions to halt the mislabeling of e-waste as reusable.

12:30 PM: Lunch and keynote presentation by Ross Farnsworth, Divisional Merchandise Manager, Home Office Electronics and Photo Products for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc..

1:30 PM: With all the legislation coming out of China it can be hard for global manufacturers to know what applies and what doesn’t. Leading China expert and attorney, Richard “Tad” Ferris of the international law firm, Holland and Knight, will be on hand to discuss Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment (WEEE) recycling in China. (Holland and Knight maintains an office in Beijing.)

2:00 PM: So what impact does China’s RoHS policy have on companies? Chuck Derrow of Zebra Technologies offers a case study highlighting the best practices that will help keep your company in line with regulations.

2:30 PM: What happens once a recycler has picked up an electronic device? Jim Gardner of Metech International, a leading global service provider to multinational corporations for the management of electronic materials, presents a look at the lifecycle of a recycled electronic device.

3:00 PM: Each month, it seems another U.S. state is proposing or implementing WEEE legislation. Garth Hickle, Product Stewardship Team Leader for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, will be presenting a round up of U.S. electronic recycling policies. What’s in existence? What may be happening in 2007? In the case of Minnesota, how will it be implementing its own landfill ban?

3:30 PM: What is the view of the electronics industry on the expanding number of states implementing e-waste regulations? Parker Brugge, Senior Director and Environmental Counsel for the Consumer Electronics Association, will be joining us to share CEA's prespective and outline industry initiatives to encourage reuse, recycling and more.

4:00 PM: Curbside recycling seems to be effective in most urban settings, but what about in rural areas? What cost effective methods work to properly dispose of waste in rural areas ? Anne Peters, President of Gracestone Inc., (Boulder, Colorado) will provide the latest research on this topic.

TUESDAY - MARCH 13: 9:00 am - 5:30 pm

9:00 AM: (Speaker to be confirmed)

10:00 AM: In the United States, to landfill less by recycling more is a particular challenge for metropolitan areas. Christine McCoy with the City of Alexandria's Department of Transportation and Environmental Services, will discuss the challenge. Since colonial times, Alexandria has had to manage solid waste. Today, this densely populated municipality is implementing expanded business and multi-family properties recycling and other initiatives in an effort to maintain Virginia's minimum 25% recycle rate. How can manufacturers, retailers, consumers and local governments work together to facilitate more effective municipal recycling?

11:00 AM: The European Union’s Packaging Directive was amended in June 2005. Julian Carroll, Managing Director of the European Organization for Packaging and the Environment or EUROPEN (Brussels, Belgium) will be at Take it Back! 2007 to give an update on EU environmental legislation developments that can impact the bottom line of companies and what may lie ahead.

12:30 PM: Lunch and keynote presentation (Presentation description to come)

1:30 PM: Eiko Risch of Ricoh Electronics, Inc. will discuss that corporation's Zero Emission Strategy and how Ricoh became a Zero Waste to Landfill facility, which yielded substantial savings to both Ricoh (REI) and their Green partners.. Ricoh will share the methods they use to maintain the status of Zero Waste to Landfill year after year since 2001 and expanding the circle of influence, product stewardship and procurement that have shaped relationships with their business partners.

2:00 PM: The automotive industry has a plethora of producer responsibility laws to grapple with, particularly in the European Union. From the End of Life Vehicle Directive to the Restrictions on Certain Hazardous Substances Directive and, more recently, REACH this industry has found itself the proving ground for many best practices in compliance issues. Arnold J. Guikema of Tetra Tech offers invaluable advice for what works effectively.

2:30 PM: With a population of nearly 23 million people on an island of less than 14,000 square miles, Taiwan has been ambitiously pursuing a goal of zero waste. The Take it Back! Conference is pleased to have Ying-Ying Lai of the Taiwan Environmental Protection Agency on hand to discuss the solid waste reduction and recycling programs in Taiwan and what’s on the horizon. Are there lessons here for all of us?

3:30 PM: "Bottle bills" may be fashionable again. What does that mean for the packaging industry? Have bottle recycling laws really proven effective? Pat Franklin, Executive Director of the Container Recycling Institute (Washington, D.C.) provides some insight. CRI claims that nearly 124 billion beverage cans and bottles have been landfilled, littered, and incinerated in 2006.

4:00 PM: South Bay Business Environmental Coalition is an organization formed by Northrup, Honda, Chevron and others. Over the past 15 years, SBBEC has focused attention on environmental issues and helped addressed them through educational outreach, development of programs that yield triple bottom line benefits. J. Michael Huls, an SBBEC Board Member, will be discussing the organization's business communications model through which it communicates effectively to peer businesses and local communities on environmental issues.

4:30 PM: Recently enacted California regulations prohibit residents from throwing old batteries, fluorescent lights and electronic devices away in the trash. Leonard Robinson, Chief Deputy Director of the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, will be providing an update on that agency's "Take it Back Partnership," a collaborative effort by government and business to recycle electronics. What have been the successes and the obstacles to date for this program that effects 30 million Californians? What can we all learn from this initiative? Hear directly from the man responsible for the effort.