The Summits Come Together

We set the date for September 29, 2001. Launching the Summits was a daunting task especially for someone like myself, who never organized anything more a hometown event and certainly never had done something that required technological links. When faced with this massive ignorance, all I know to do is just plunge in! 

I still remember the afternoon Kathleen Koller, who had just moved to Tampa from Silicon Valley, walked into my living room to see how she could volunteer.  She wanted “to do something”.  She began with putting together the Summit Resource Directory that listed 100 organizations that were fulfilling Earth Charter principles.  To the point, detail oriented, highly energized and astute, she could see I was slowly drowning in the details of organizing this event. Kathleen later stepped in to bring all the details together prior and on the day of the event.  She worked with the University of Tampa staff almost daily, lobbied Tampa Electric Company to put in a needed pole on campus for the satellite broadcast hook-up, and much, much more.  It would not have happened without her.

I was making some headway but there was a long way to go. Jeff Klepfer, Dean of Arts & Sciences at the University of Tampa, was moved by the Earth Charter and opened up the campus and Pepin Rood Stadium to us for our launch.  Speakers like David Korten, author of Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community, Steven Rockefeller, Hazel Henderson, author Building a Win-Win World, and actor and activist Danny Glover had all graciously agreed to come for no fee. The publicity co-chairs, Judy Tarantino and Nancy Dalence, were making headway with the press conference and media campaign. The Flyer, a weekly sales flyer, stepped to the plate to print the program brochures and the resource directory for free. Thanks to former Florida State Senator Helen Gordon Davis, we had free wine available for our Post-Summit Celebration for all participants, which was being held on the banks of the Hillsborough River at the University of Tampa.  A food vendor supplied the refreshments free.

Our organizers across the country were: Kat Gjovik, Seattle; Bruce Novak, Chicago; Susan Curry, Philadelphia; Anne Zill, Portland, Maine; Peter Hendrix, Santa Rosa; Al Albergate, San Francisco; Andy Robson, Oshkosh; John Gibson, Indianapolis; Joshua Cooper, Honolulu; Philip Thompson, Austin; Stanley Ingman, Denton, TX; and Bob Kochtitzky, Jackson, MS. They included college faculty or students, artists, professionals, retirees and others who all were just drawn to the Earth Charter and wanted to make it a reality in their towns.  Most had no previous organizing experience.  We were the blind leading the blind and immensely supportive of one another.   We held monthly conference calls giving one another guidance, advice and share our experiences. (“Earth Charter Organizers: Ordinary People” DVD of interviews with organizers available, $5.)

I turned my attention to raising the funds for the satellite broadcast.