In Great Company: Growing a great company, what you can do today, and case example with Veritable Vegetable. A stimulating conversation with Patti Lee-Hoffmann, author of In Great Company, and Bu Nygrens, Co-Owner Veritable Vegetable.

Palo Alto, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 05/02/2011 -- Sustainovation and co-sponsors Bay Area Society for Organizational Learning, Continuing the Conversation, PLANT!, and World Centric present a discussion with Patti Lee-Hoffmann, author of the new business book, In Great Company, and Bu Nygrens, co–owner of Veritable Vegetable, one of the great companies highlighted in the book. Patti will share her insights from her research with companies that thrived in times of great recession. Learn more about their leadership, culture, environment, and community that enabled them to thrive.

Along with Patti, industry pioneer in the organic foods business Bu Nygrens will talk about Veritable Vegetable, the company mission, way of work, and opportunities and challenges that face the organics movement. This insightful and informative evening will include time for networking, presentation, and dialogue among participants.

Monday April 25, 2011
6:30 PM -7:00 PM Networking
7:00 PM -8:00 PM Presentation
8:00PM -9:00 PM Dialogue

Location: World Centric Community Space, 2121 Staunton Court, Palo Alto, CA 94306
Registration: $15 advance online registration, $20 at the door (Cash only)
For online registration information please visit: http://www.acteva.com/booking.cfm?bevaid=218646

About the speakers
Patti Lee-Hoffmann Patti is the author of a new business book, In Great Company, which profiles 11 companies engaged in businesses that were hit hardest by the Great Recession yet still continued to thrive. She is a co-founder of Triage Consulting Group, a national consulting firm in the field of healthcare. For several years running, her company is listed as one of the best medium-sized companies to work for in America by the Great Place to Work Institute. Last year, Women's Initiative named Patti "Business Woman of the Year". Following in her footsteps are her two daughters, ages 11 and 9. They are also vigilant environmentalists and even refuse tangible birthday and Christmas presents.

Bu Nygrens Bu Nygrens is co-owner and Purchasing Manager of Veritable Vegetable located in San Francisco, California. Established in 1974, VV is the nation's oldest distributor of certified organic fruits and vegetables. Since joining in 1978, Bu has contributed to the company's reputation for integrity, advocacy and leadership. Woman-owned and operated, VV serves organic farms and independent retail businesses throughout California, Hawaii, and the Southwest. Veritable Vegetable promotes equitable and sustainable food systems for all people. http://www.veritablevegetable.com

About World Centric
World Centric's mission is to create a better world, inspire change, make the best products and leave no waste. World Centric's high quality, certified compostable products are made with annually renewable resources like corn, sugarcane and wheat straw fiber.

Sugar cane and wheat straw fiber are also discarded by-products of the agriculture industry, and it uses this discarded fiber to make sustainable alternatives to plastics and polystyrene.

World Centric is committed to becoming the model of how sustainable enterprises should be run. For example, they offset their carbon emissions and annually give 25% of their profits (before taxes) to grass root social and environmental organizations. World Centric hopes to one day give away 100% of their profits. The overall mission, vision and values of World Centric have remained consistent since their founding - to make a difference and create a more just and sustainable world.

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/release-3.htm

Sustainovation along with co-sponsors Bay Area Society for Organizational Learning, Continuing the Conversation, Sustainable Silicon Valley, and World Centric presents B Corporations – Changing the DNA of Business for Good.

Palo Alto, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 03/23/2011 -- Businesses committed to generating social and environmental benefits in addition to profits have begun to achieve success despite many challenges from the greater business community. Many of these companies are becoming B Corporations, an exciting initiative to support and institutionalize "for benefit" corporations.

Please join Sustainovation along with co-sponsors Bay Area Society for Organizational Learning, Continuing the Conversation, Sustainable Silicon Valley, and World Centric to learn why B Corporations matter and how B Corporations are changing the game. In addition, hear how innovative practices used to create new standards for environmental and social responsibility can have positive systemic effects.

Challenges and opportunities that companies face when they make a commitment to environmental and social change will be explored. Further discussions will include how the landscape has changed since B Corporations started and where B Corporations are headed. The evening will include time for networking, presentations by the panelists, and conversations.

Monday March 21, 2011
6:30 PM -7:00 PM Networking
7:00 PM -8:00 PM Presentation
8:00PM -9:00 PM Dialogue

Location: World Centric
2121 Staunton Court
Palo Alto, CA 94306

Registration
$15 advance online registration, $20 at the door (Cash only)
For online registration information go to http://www.sustainovation.org
For online registration information please visit Sustainovation on the web.

About the speakers
Aseem Das, Founder and CEO of World Centric

Aseem Das, founder and CEO of World Centric, has managed the overall operations and growth of the company since its founding in 2004.

Aseem is passionate about social and environmental change and envisions a new breed of businesses driven by values and not profits. Before World Centric, Aseem was an armchair activist and worked as a software engineer and architect in the area of user-interfaces, knowledge based systems and knowledge representation. He has worked at NASA, Boeing, TIBCO, Vertical Net and other software companies and has an M.S. in Computer Science. http://www.worldcentric.org

Dermot Hikisch, Director of Business Development-B Lab

Dermot oversees B Lab's community development of Certified B Corporations, focusing primarily on North America with new inroads now beginning globally. Dermot is the former Head of Research for ENDS Carbon and Wind Power Intelligence. Since 2007, he has been running an independent carbon ratings and consulting business, annually rating over 100 multinationals for the organization Climate Counts. He has produced reports on business and climate change for the UNPRI, water insecurity for Ethical Corporation, true cost accounting on food and natural resources, and contributed a chapter to the World Guide to CSR. He has consulted SMEs, multinationals, NGOs, and municipalities in Europe and North America, and worked on an internal sustainability team while at Procter & Gamble. www.bcorporation.net

Jeff Mendelsohn, Founder and President of New Leaf

Jeff is the founder and president of New Leaf Paper, a company with the mission of driving a fundamental shift toward sustainability in the paper industry. Paper manufacturing is one of the most polluting and resource intensive industries in the world. Jeff envisions a complete redesign of the paper industry to incorporate the principles of sustainability, and is a frequent public speaker on this topic. He leads New Leaf Paper's product innovation, creating a wide selection of market leading environmental papers that fit this vision. Since it was founded in 1998, New Leaf Paper has seen real change in the marketplace through its efforts, and inspired some of the largest paper companies in the world to pay attention to environmental concerns. www.newleafpaper.com

John Montgomery, Montgomery & Hansen, LLP

John is committed to accelerating the growth and success of his clients' businesses using a blueprint distilled from working with some of Silicon Valley's most successful, venture capital financed companies. John works primarily with high potential entrepreneurial teams and applies the law to help them realize their visions. John also assists clients in mergers and acquisitions and has helped his clients buy and sell businesses in transactions involving companies like Cisco, Intuit and Google. John's experience in having closed hundreds of M&A transactions empowers his clients to focus on the critical process of integrating the businesses and their people to ensure a successful outcome. John also advises established companies on improving their corporate governance in alignment with the principles of Conscious Capitalism. In addition to being a frequent speaker on venture capital at such forums as the Future Salon, Haas School of Business and NexGen, he also leads continuing legal education programs about the process of raising venture capital.

Having practiced corporate law in Silicon Valley since 1984, John has represented clients in connection with venture capital financings, public offerings and mergers and acquisitions. Prior to co-founding M&H, John was the co-chairman of the venture capital practice at Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison, LLP. Earlier in his career, John was a corporate attorney at Baker & McKenzie, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and The Cooper Companies. John holds a B.A. from Stanford University and a J.D. from Northwestern College of Law, Lewis & Clark College. www.mh-llp.com/

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/release-3.htm

Sustainovation along with co-sponsors Bay Area Society for Organizational Learning, Continuing the Conversation, and World Centric explores the theme “Changing the World through Food” with Shivani Ganguly, WindowfarmsTM CFO.

Palo Alto, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 03/04/2011 -- WindowfarmsTM promotes environmental stewardship and improves quality of life by reimagining and rebuilding urban indoor spaces.

WindowfarmsTM is a high-yield hydroponic garden for growing fresh local vegetables indoors.

Why have more than 18,000 community members joined the research and develop it yourself (R&D-I-Y) movement? Find out at the WindowfarmsTM event and R&D-I-Y movement, taking place at the World Centric Community Space!

Schedule of event:
6:30 PM-7:00 PM Networking
7:00 PM -8:00 PM Presentation
8:00PM -9:00 PM Dialogue

When: Monday, February 28, 2011
Where: World Centric, 2121 Staunton Court, Palo Alto, CA 94306
Registration is $15 advance online registration, $20 at the door (cash only).
For online registration, please visit Sustainovation on the web.

About the speaker

Shivani Ganguly is a social entrepreneur who is fascinated by food, technology, and business. She joined WindowfarmsTM and the R&D-I-Y movement in October 2010, bringing her extensive experience growing businesses with effective, sustainable business models to the Core Team. She has also consulted with diverse organizations including 18Rabbits, SomaFM, the Napa County HHSA, and AchieveMission. Previously, Shivani was Sr. Director of Business Operations & HR at OQO, where she was a member of the Executive Team that created the world's smallest personal computer.

About World Centric
World Centric's mission is to create a better world, inspire change, make the best products and leave no waste. World Centric's high quality, certified compostable products are made with annually renewable resources like corn, sugarcane and wheat straw fiber. Sugar cane and wheat straw fiber are also discarded by-products of the agriculture industry, and it uses this discarded fiber to make sustainable alternatives to plastics and polystyrene.

World Centric is committed to becoming the model of how sustainable enterprises should be run. For example, they offset their carbon emissions and annually give 25% of their profits (before taxes) to grass root social and environmental organizations. World Centric hopes to one day give away 100% of their profits. The overall mission, vision and values of World Centric have remained consistent since their founding - to make a difference and create a more just and sustainable world.

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/release-3.htm

World Centric presents Films of Hope and Vision: Livable Cities. Feature film, A Convenient Truth, Friday, February 25, 7pm. Join us at the World Centric Community Center for our winter film series on the environment.

Palo Alto, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 03/02/2011 -- The winter film series has begun at World Centric Community Space. Fridays, beginning January 21 at 7pm, we will look at what went wrong with our cities, how sprawl replaced neighborhoods, and what can be done to bring back community and sustainability to our cities and towns.

Feature Film this Friday, February 25
A Convenient Truth
In this inspirational film, you will learn why cities around the world look to Curitiba, Brazil as the model for creative and enlightened urban planning. The city of Curitiba has demonstrated for the past 40 years how to transform problems into cost effective solutions that can be applied in most cities around the world.

Film begins at 7:30pm, but there will be snacks at 7pm.
Admission is free and open to the public!
World Centric Community Space, Wheelchair Accessible
2121 Staunton Ct, Palo Alto, CA 94306

The "Films of Hope and Vision: Livable Cities" series focuses on hopeful and positive solutions to environmental problems affecting our world. Join us for provocative films, great discussions, and opportunities to connect with others who want to make a difference. We hope to see you there!

Sponsored by Acterra, Common Ground, Silicon Valley Action Network, Transition Silicon Valley, Transition Palo Alto, World Centric, and more.

About World Centric
World Centric products are made with annually renewable resources like corn, sugarcane and wheat straw fiber. Sugar cane and wheat straw fiber are also discarded by-products of the agriculture industry, and it uses this discarded fiber to make sustainable alternatives to plastics and polystyrene.

World Centric is committed to becoming the model of how sustainable enterprises should be run. For example, they offset their carbon emissions and annually give 25% of their profits (before taxes) to grass root social and environmental organizations. World Centric hopes to one day give away 100% of their profits. The overall mission, vision and values of World Centric have remained consistent since their founding - to make a difference and create a more just and sustainable world.

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/release-3.htm

World Centric hosts “Changing the Way We Eat”. TEDxManhattan: The one-day event will highlight several aspects of the sustainable food movement and the work being done to shift our food system from industrially-based agriculture to one in which healthy, nutritious food is accessible to all.

Palo Alto, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/10/2011 -- World Centric is hosting a very important event about the Environment. On Saturday, February 12, The Glynwood Institute for Sustainable Food and Farming will host TEDxManhattan: Changing the Way We Eat, a one-day TEDx event on sustainable food and farming. It will explore our food system -- from what happened, to where we are, to what we are doing to shift to a more sustainable way of eating and farming. In an effort to have as many people as possible participate, the event will be webcast live.

For those unfamiliar with TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design), it is a small non-profit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, using talks and performances. Thought leaders from around the world are invited to give presentations up to 18-minutes long that explore important topics to society. All of the talks are recorded and available in an archive at TED's web-site. Some memorable talks include, Dan Barber's How I Fell in Love With a Fish and Jamie Oliver's TED Prize Wish: Teach Every Child About Food. Check them out and get hooked.

Then plan to join World Centric on Saturday, February 12th. The line-up is impressive, including Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis, makers of King Corn, Brian Halweil of the Worldwatch Institute, Josh Viertel, president of Slow Food USA and many more. The full list can be found at the TEDxManhattan web-site. There is no schedule for individual speakers, but the event will be broken into sessions:

7:30 AM - 9:15 AM Session 1 - What Happened?
9:15 AM - 10:30 AM Break
10:30 AM - 12:15 PM Session 2 - Where are we?
12:15 PM - 1:00 PM Potluck Lunch Break
1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Session 3 - Where are we going?

Come for one session or stay all day. Those present for lunchtime will share a potluck lunch together. Bring something simple, seasonal, local - something sustainable - to share with your neighbors.

[This event is brought to you by a number of partners: Collective Roots, Slow Food South Bay, Transition Palo Alto, Transition Silicon Valley and our host World Centric.]

Saturday, February 12, 7:30 AM – 3:00 PM

World Centric Community Space, Wheelchair Accessible
2121 Staunton Court, Palo Alto, CA 94306

About World Centric (http://www.worldcentric.org/about-us/company-info)
World Centric's mission is to create a better world, inspire change, make the best products and leave no waste. World Centric's high quality, certified compostable products are made with annually renewable resources like corn, sugarcane and wheat straw fiber.

Sugar cane and wheat straw fiber are also discarded by-products of the agriculture industry, and it uses this discarded fiber to make sustainable alternatives to plastics and polystyrene.

World Centric is committed to becoming the model of how sustainable enterprises should be run. For example, they offset their carbon emissions and annually give 25% of their profits (before taxes) to grass root social and environmental organizations. World Centric hopes to one day give away 100% of their profits. The overall mission, vision and values of World Centric have remained consistent since their founding - to make a difference and create a more just and sustainable world.

For more information, please contact Traycee Roberson, traycee@worldcentric.org

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/release-3.htm

World Centric Presents, Community by Design, Friday, February 4, 7pm. Join us at the World Centric Community Center for our winter film series on the environment.

Palo Alto, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/08/2011 -- The winter film series has begun at World Centric Community Space. Fridays, beginning January 21 at 7pm, we will look at what went wrong with our cities, how sprawl replaced neighborhoods, and what can be done to bring back community and sustainability to our cities and towns.

Feature Film this Friday, February 4
Community by Design
Learn about the key role that design plays in community from some leading progressive thinkers on the subject. This film takes you through San Francisco, Berkeley, Toronto, and Vancouver to meet the inventive planners that have developed innovative ways to create communities that benefit the environment and the people that live in them.

Film begins at 7:30pm, but there will be snacks at 7pm.
Admission is free and open to the public!
World Centric Community Space, Wheelchair Accessible
2121 Staunton Ct, Palo Alto, CA 94306

The "Films of Hope and Vision: Livable Cities" series focuses on hopeful and positive solutions to environmental problems affecting our world. Join us for provocative films, great discussions, and opportunities to connect with others who want to make a difference. We hope to see you there!
Sponsored by Acterra, Common Ground, Silicon Valley Action Network, Transition Silicon Valley, Transition Palo Alto, World Centric, and more.

About World Centric
World Centric products are made with annually renewable resources like corn, sugarcane and wheat straw fiber. Sugar cane and wheat straw fiber are also discarded by-products of the agriculture industry, and it uses this discarded fiber to make sustainable alternatives to plastics and polystyrene.

World Centric is committed to becoming the model of how sustainable enterprises should be run. For example, they offset their carbon emissions and annually give 25% of their profits (before taxes) to grass root social and environmental organizations. World Centric hopes to one day give away 100% of their profits. The overall mission, vision and values of World Centric have remained consistent since their founding - to make a difference and create a more just and sustainable world.

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/release-3.htm

World Centric Presents, Save our Land, Save our Towns, Friday, January 28, 7pm. Join us at the World Centric Community Center for our winter film series on the environment.

Palo Alto, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/27/2011 -- The winter film series has begun at World Centric Community Space. Fridays, beginning January 21 at 7pm, we will look at what went wrong with our cities, how sprawl replaced neighborhoods, and what can be done to bring back community and sustainability to our cities and towns.

Feature Film this Friday, January 28
Save our Land, Save our Towns

Small town newsman Tom Hylton explores why America's towns have declined and what we can do to revive them. "Development and zoning issues normally make the eyes glaze...Tom Hylton makes them downright fascinating." Philadelphia Daily News

Film begins at 7:30pm, but there will be snacks at 7pm.
Admission is free and open to the public!
World Centric Community Space, Wheelchair Accessible
2121 Staunton Ct, Palo Alto, CA 94306

The "Films of Hope and Vision: Livable Cities" series focuses on hopeful and positive solutions to environmental problems affecting our world. Join us for provocative films, great discussions, and opportunities to connect with others who want to make a difference. We hope to see you there!
Sponsored by Acterra, Common Ground, Silicon Valley Action Network, Transition Silicon Valley, Transition Palo Alto, World Centric, and more.

About World Centric
World Centric products are made with annually renewable resources like corn, sugarcane and wheat straw fiber. Sugar cane and wheat straw fiber are also discarded by-products of the agriculture industry, and it uses this discarded fiber to make sustainable alternatives to plastics and polystyrene.

World Centric is committed to becoming the model of how [b]sustainable enterprises[/b] should be run. For example, they offset their carbon emissions and annually give 25% of their profits (before taxes) to grass root social and environmental organizations. World Centric hopes to one day give away 100% of their profits. The overall mission, vision and values of World Centric have remained consistent since their founding - to make a difference and create a more just and sustainable world.

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/release-3.htm

World Centric Presents, Bag It, Is Your Life Too Plastic? Wednesday, January 5th, 7pm. Join us for this great documentary as well as a discussion, question and answer session from the producers/directors, Jeb Berrier and Suzan Beraza.

Palo Alto, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/30/2010 -- Americans use 60,000 plastic bags every five minutes, disposable bags that they throw away without much thought. But where is "away?" Where do the bags and other plastics end up, and at what cost to the environment, marine life and human health?

Bag It follows "everyman" Jeb Berrier as he navigates our plastic world, Jeb is not a radical environmentalist, but an average American who decides to take a closer look at our cultural love affair with plastics. Jeb's journey in this documentary film starts with simple questions: Are plastic bags really necessary? What are plastic bags made from? What happens to plastic bags after they are discarded? What he learns quickly grows far beyond plastic bags.

Bag It, Is Your Life Too Plastic? (Runtime 79min) For more information: www.bagitmovie.com

Wednesday, January 5, 7pm

World Centric Community Space Wheelchair Accessible
2121 Staunton Court, Palo Alto, CA 94306
$5-$7 donation with no one turned away for lack of funds.

About World Centric, http://www.worldcentric.org/about-us/company-info
World Centric products are made with annually renewable resources like corn, sugarcane and wheat straw fiber. Sugar cane and wheat straw fiber are also discarded by-products of the agriculture industry, and it uses this discarded fiber to make sustainable alternatives to plastics and polystyrene.
World Centric is committed to becoming the model of how sustainable enterprises should be run. For example, they offset all their carbon emissions and annually give 25% of their profits (before taxes) to grass root social and environmental organizations. World Centric hopes to one day give away 100% of their profits. The overall mission, vision and values of World Centric have remained consistent since their founding - to make a difference and create a more just and sustainable world.

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/release-3.htm