Sustainable Waterloo Region, in partnership with the German Consulate, Canada’s Technology Triangle, and WalterFedy, welcome bestselling Canadian author Chris Turner to Waterloo Region, on his speaking tour profiling the latest innovations in German cleantech and sustainable design.

For more than a decade, Germany has been the global pacesetter in renewable energy and sustainable industrial development. From industrial boomtowns in Saxony’s “Solar Valley” to self-sufficient solar communities in the sunny south, Germany is a country reborn on sustainable foundations.

Turner’s tour provides a vibrant series of portraits of this German Leap to sustainability. His latest book, The Leap: How to Survive and Thrive in the Sustainable Economy, presents a field guide to making the jump to renewed prosperity based on sustainability, drawing on recent breakthroughs in state-of-the-art renewable energy, cleantech and urban design. He is also the author of the 2007 bestseller, The Geography of Hope: A Tour of the World We Need, a Globe & Mail Best Book of the Year, and a finalist for the Governor Generals’ Award for Nonfiction, the Alberta Literary Award for Nonfiction, and the National Business Book Award.

“Germany is at the forefront of the global transition to a more sustainable economy,” says Mike Morrice, Sustainable Waterloo Region’s Executive Director. “We are thrilled to host this event in partnership with the German Consulate. This evening with Chris is an exciting opportunity to showcase and learn from a model for what communities like ours can achieve when we integrate sustainability into our shared vision for the future.”

The event will be hosted on Tuesday, November 22 from 5:00 – 7:00pm at WalterFedy, located at 675 Queen Street South, Kitchener. Registration for this event is free. The public is encouraged to register by visiting www.sustainablewaterlooregion.ca/register.

About Sustainable Waterloo Region

Sustainable Waterloo Region advances the environmental sustainability of organizations across Waterloo Region through collaboration. The current work of Sustainable Waterloo Region is focused on the Regional Carbon Initiative, which facilitates voluntary target-setting and reductions of carbon emissions by organizations across Waterloo Region.