Community, Sustainability and Money:

Colleges Investing for Change

REC's 8th National Conference  

October 22 and 23, 2011   

About  |  Student Registration  |  How can I get funding to attend?
Suggest a workshop  |  Agenda   |  Questions?  |  Sponsors

About

REC's National Conference is our biggest event of the year. This year was be bigger and better than ever! Join students and organizers past and present, friends of REC, allies, and industry professionals for 1.5 days of everything you need to know about responsible investment. Working on changing the way our universities invest their money can be incredibly powerful, but nobody ever said it was easy. Figuring out what research is necessary, assembling a group of dedicated volunteers, communicating why responsible investment is important to the community, negotiating with the administration. There's a lot to learn. It's easy to forget that there's a nationwide community of students tackling these same issues, and that you can learn a lot from each other! This is an opportunity for students to learn from successes, failures, and best practices from other campuses, initiatives, and campaigns. People from all different backgrounds join us, and no previous knowledge or experience is necessary to be a participant.

The conference will take place from 9:30AM on Saturday, October 22nd to 3:30pm on Sunday, October 23 at Pace University, located at One Pace Plaza, New York, NY (click for map). (We strongly encourage everyone to get here on Friday night, and will be offering housing Friday and Saturday nights to those who request it.)

We learned how to harness university money for causes such as:  

* Moving university money from Wall Street to the local community
* LGBT equality in the workplace                                                     
* Environmental justice issues                                                         
(such as mountaintop removal (MTR) cessation)                       
* Implementing strong corporate sustainability policy                      
* Workers' rights, anti-sweatshop standards, and fair trade            
* Removing conflict minerals from the supply chain                        
       * Divestment from oppressive regimes                                            

Student Registration

Registration is now closed. Thanks to everyone who attended!

A note on cost: We strive to make this conference as affordable as possible. The money for the conference fee will get you fed during the conference and housing for both Friday and Saturday while you're here. For a weekend in New York, you can't get much more affordable than that! The registration fee goes towards four meals, two nights of lodging, and the cost of the event space. The actual cost of this conference per attendee is approximately $150.00, so if you can get the funding from your school to attend, we ask that you request a higher rate if possible to help us defray our costs.  Financial assistance is available for those unable to find funding elsewhere; REC is committed to not turning anyone away! Email organize@endowmentethics.org with any questions about travel scholarships and/or fee reductions or waivers.

How can I get funding to attend?

Click here to download our guide on how to find funding to attend from your own school.

You are welcome to request a travel scholarship or registration fee waiver if you are concerned about your ability to attend, but due to limited resources, we ask that you please check with your school's available resources as well to get an idea of your funding options. There are a number of sources of funding at many colleges and universities, including:

• Active Citizenship, Global Leadership, Youth Leadership, or other special centers, institutes, colleges, or organizations affiliated with your school may be a good place to start.
• Student government: some schools offer funding for official student groups; others have special funds set aside to send students to conferences.
• Academic departments: economics, finance, political science, or business all may be good places to look. Department chairs may have resources.
• Your academic advisor(s) or professors may know of good funding sources - take advantage of their knowledge!
• If you're a member of your university's committee on investment responsibility, the committee may have dedicated funding which you could use. Ask the chairperson.
• Here's a couple good example resource lists from Smith College and Swarthmore College.

If these options aren't promising, it's ok - REC has funds available! But the sooner you apply for REC funding, the better chance you have of getting it. Just fill out the registration form and indicate that you're seeking funding, and we'll email you to figure out details. Don't hesitate to email us at organize@endowmentethics.org with any questions or concerns about funding, financial assistance, or registration rates. We'll help you make it work.

Agenda

Here is a brief outline of topics we covered:

Submit or suggest a workshop

Know someone who's great? Do YOU have skills to share? We encourage you to suggest a workshop, panel, or other content! We're looking for great workshops by students and others on campus doing responsible investment work. Please email organize@endowmentethics.org with suggestions or proposals.

Housing Details

The registration fee includes two nights' stay (Friday and Saturday) at Hosteling International - New York. The hostel is located in the safe and beautiful Upper West Side at 891 Amsterdam Ave. (at West 104th St.) New York, NY 10025. 

Comprehensive directions to the hostel are on its website.

The hostel is a simple 30 minute subway ride from the conference venue (click here for directions between the two) and will be the by far the most convenient housing option for most people not from the city. Click here for directions between the hostel and Pace University, where the conference will take place. Directions will also be made available at the conference.

Questions?

For any questions or concerns, about logistics, finances, funding, workshops, or anything else, don't hesitate to email us at organize@endowmentethics.org. See you in New York!

Sponsors

Conference Sponsorship Opportunities are available now at the following levels:

$10,000 – Annual Presenting Sponsor
– Firm profile, logo and link on REC website for one year (Partners & Event pages)
– Outside back cover full-page color advertisement in National Conference Program
– Color logo in Regional and Local workshops that fall within the 12 month period
– Attribution of support, logo and link in ten REC newsletters
– Acknowledgement in keynote address at all REC events across the country

$5,000 – Lead Sponsor
– Firm profile, logo and link on REC website for one year from date of sponsorship
– Inside cover full-page color advertisement in National Conference Program
– Color logo in Regional and Local workshops that fall within the 12 month period
– Attribution of support, logo and link in four REC newsletters
– Acknowledgement in keynote address at all REC events across the country

$1,500 – Activist
– Large firm logo and link on REC website for six months from date of sponsorship
– Quarter page color advertisement in National Conference Program
– Firm name in Regional and Local workshops that fall within the 12 month period
– Attribution of support, logo and link in two REC newsletters

$500 – Organizer
– Firm logo and link on REC website for the fall conference season (Sept. – Dec.)
– Color firm logo in National Conference Program