-Workshops - Panels - Talks -

- Posters - Performances-


Energy, climate, food, equity and justice will be the focus of talks, workshops, demonstrations, posters, and exhibits highlighting ways to eat local, conserve energy, reduce bills, and be climate smart.  

The 2026 program includes the following (times and room locations may shift - please confirm as date draws closer ):


1:00-2:00 - Poster Session - Multipurpose Room A 

Students participated in a S26 class to explore the potential for wildfire in the ADK region and the need for communtities to prepare for wildfires and their afternmath.

Over the course of seven days, discarded items of litter around Potsdam, NY were collected and then put together as this work. This piece portrays a sea-faring ship made of many people's trash, its crew now hunting for treasure. They say one's trash is another's treasure. 

This gives a small glimpse into the types of things littered by people in their everyday lives, whether on purpose or mistake, over the course of just one week, illustrating how much of an impact we have in the amount of trash that accumulates even when we may not realize it. 



Electricity, Innovation, and the Grid - Room 204/The Forum 

2:00 -3:00 Nuclear 101 - Tim Judson - Executive Director, Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS)

3:00 -4:00 Nuclear Policy - Dr. Greg Jasczko, former head, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

4:00 -5:00 How the Grid Works - Rob Pike, New York  Independent System Operator (NYISO)

5:00-6:00 BESS -Battery Energy Storage Systems - Camille Warner, New York State Energy Research & Delevopment Authority (NYSERDA) 

This session will be an engaging, interactive workshop that breaks down Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) in clear, practical terms. We'll explore what BESS are, how they work, and why they're becoming essential to building a reliable, resilient electric grid -- especially as renewable energy grows. We'll also address common concerns, unpack the different types of storage technologies, and discuss the critical role BESS can play in stabilizing power, reducing outages, and supporting our communities. Whether you're curious, skeptical, or simply want the facts, this session will give you the knowledge and confidence to understand the conversation and participate in it.



Using Energy - Room 203

2:00 -3:00 Electric Transition -  How You Can Join the Party - Scott Shipley, Northern Lights Energy

A presentation on the overall progress of the electric transition and how individuals can participate.

3:00 -4:00 Save Energy/Save Money Workshop - Louise Jensen, North Country Clean Energy Hub

Want to save on your utility bills? Join our Energy Advisor, Louise Jensen, at the Save Money/Save Energy Workshop. Participants will receive a free energy saving kit with useful DIY tools and supplies along with information about no- and low-cost programs to assist them with larger energy efficiency improvements and savings.

4:00 -5:00 From Advocacy to Action: How Hamilton College is Framing a Sustainable Future for Campus Facilities – Sara Culotta and Nick Kreidler, Hamilton College and Siemens

Discover how Hamilton College is pursuing both environmental and financial sustainability, with a spotlight on the systems modernization of its science center and main library, reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 14%. Learn about the faculty and student pilot project creating community dashboards that make real-time flows of energy, water, environmental conditions and community life visible. Campus and community buildings become active components of the learning environment, while demonstrating climate action progress and possibility.

5:00-6:00  Understanding the Forces That Affect Your Electric Bill - Nick Hamilton-Honey, Cornell Cooperative Extension, North Country Clean Energy Hub, NYSERDA 

Ever wonder what goes into your electric bill and how the utilities set the price that you pay? This presentation will provide context and foundational knowledge of energy affordability, address electricity affordability drivers, and review policies and programs that are in place to improving affordability.

It is recommended that the audience bring at least one electric bill to reference. Having this year's and last year's worth of electric bills would allow the individual audience members to look back to last year's high winter electric bills.


Land Use - Room 205

2:00 -3:00 Understanding Invasive Eurasian Water Milfoil Growth & Control - Dr. Diana White, Dr. Stefanie Kring,Tirzah Ramsay, and Colden Damour , Clarkson University

Methodology for studying water quality and characteristics to aid in understanding invasive Eurasian Watermifoil growth and control.

3:00 -4:00 Family Forest Carbon Program - Dan Zajac, American Forest Foundation

Overview of the Family Forest Carbon Program and Q&A

4:00 -6:00 Local  Food /Farm Producers Roundtable – Waste Not Permaculture

Meet and interact with local food producers, find out the advantages of eating locally grown food


Pot Pourri/Experiential - Room 202/The Fireside Lounge

2:00 -2:30 Echoes of the Landscapes – a lecture-recital - Dr. Marie-Elaine Gagnon and Dr. Risa Okina, SUNY Potsdam Crane School of Music

Echoes of the Landscapes: highlighting works for cello and piano, in an informal lecture recital of composers deeply attuned with their natural and cultural environments, including Dvořák, Casals, Ivette Herryman-Rodriguez, and Ginastera. 

3:00 -4:00 Saving Energy the Ecovillage Way: Playing the Ecovillage Game to Explore Cooperative Resilience – Dr. Heather Sullivan-Catlin, SUNY Potsdam

4:00 -5:00 Citizen Disaster Preparedness - Patrick O'Brien, SUNY Potsdam

5:00-6:00 100% Renewables + Storage vs Nuclear – Ann Heidenreich, NoCoPEACS 

It is argued that the only way to eliminate carbon emission from fossil fuels is with nuclear power. The workshop will show that ghg emissions can be eliminated with a combination of energy savings, renewables, battery storage and grid management. Nuclear power is more expensive, unsafe, slow to deploy and not needed. 



6:00-7:30 - KEYNOTE ADDRESS Multipurpose Room

Welcome - Dr. Suzanne Smith, President, SUNY Potsdam

Transition, Not Collision: Cautious Optimism in Energy - Dr. Stephen Bird, Director, University of New Hampshire Carsey School of Public Policy