Greetings to you all!!! It is
indeed a pleasure and honor
to be your AEP President for
the next two-year term of
office. Our outgoing
President, Kent Norton, left big shoes to fill
and his leadership has guided AEP in a most
capable manner over the past four years.
This is the first of many letters I will be
addressing to you highlighting what is going
on with AEP and insights on where the
Association headed. I am proud to serve you
and AEP.
The Board of Directors will have a new
look for 2010. We had a number of new
people elected to their positions as well as
changes in chapter officers. Bill Halligan
will be the new Executive Vice President,
Devon Muto will be the Vice President for
Administration (and corporate Secretary)
and Mel Willis will be the Vice President for
Finance (and corporate Chief Financial
Officer). Roger Turner continues as the
NAEP Liaison. Kelly Koldus and Mary
Reents were re-elected and they will be
joined by Kent Norton as Directors at Large.
They will be joined by the chapter Directors
to form an effective management team to
tackle this year’s challenges for AEP. I
welcome them all to the team.
As I look around the room at any of our
meetings, conferences, or other gatherings I
see a lot to be proud of in our membership. I
see the dedication of the members, the
confidence of the Board, and service by others
willing to assume leadership positions as
officers in their individual chapters, or serving
on committees. All of these efforts contribute
to our Association’s accomplishments. Each
of us has rewarding careers in one or more of
the many facets of the environmental
profession. This gives us a common ground to
share ideas and inspirations with each other.
The wealth and breadth of our collective
experiences is inspiring.
I would like to hear from each of you
about your feelings and thoughts on how we
can make AEP even better and more vibrant.
I plan to visit each chapter to hear from you
as well as being present at many AEP
functions. Tied to this is keeping AEP on
target, relevant, and cutting edge. The
Board has adopted an aggressive, but doable,
Strategic Plan and budget that places focus
on five areas of interest: 1.) Provide Services
and Support to AEP Chapters; 2.) Provide
High Quality Services to AEP Members and
Other Environmental Professionals; 3.)
Effective Management of AEP Organization; 4.) Provide Financial Stability for AEP; and,
5.) Promote Growth in Membership in AEP.
The Goals associated with these areas of
interest provide us with a work plan to follow
measure our success. Much of our work is
accomplished through use of committees so I
encourage you to become involved with a
group that fits you interest (such as legislative
issues, climate change, emerging issues,
publications, CEQA workshops or
membership.) The key is for us all to keep
our lines of communications open and share
with others.
And speaking of communications, a
major AEP event is right around the corner.
This is the annual AEP Conference. It will
be held from March 15 to 17 at the Hotel
Zoso in Palm Springs. The opening
reception is on Sunday evening and the
many professional sessions, tours, paper
presentations, and panel discussions run
Monday through Wednesday at noon. So
mark your calendars! On-line registration,
hotel reservations and a tentative schedule is
now available on www.califaep.org.
Sponsorships and Exhibit space opportunities
are also available (individual or company
sponsors are welcome!). Please contact
Lynne Bynder at califaep@gmail.com for
more information. Register early as space is
limited! This is shaping up to be a wonderful
and very memorable conference for AEP and
its members. Please support the conference
with your attendance.
To steal some words from Kent’s last
email message to you all: “I am very proud of
this organization and what it has
accomplished, and for the wonderful people
with whom I have been so fortunate to have
worked…” These words ring so true for me as
well. Our strength is you, the members of
AEP. Together we can move the
organization to directions we need to ensure
the viability and relevance of AEP. I
certainly look forward to my term as
President and with your help and
involvement we can stay on the right path of
advancement.