Schedule at a Glance

 The conference schedule at a glance now includes links to educational tour descriptions.

2010 Main Streets Conference: Educational Opportunities

The 2010 National Main Streets Conference will showcase and celebrate innovative techniques and practices that make the Main Street Approach® one of the the most powerful economic development tools in the nation. Whether you hail from an urban business district, small rural downtown, or some place in between, you will find real solutions to not only survive this economic downturn, but also to find ways thrive long after these difficult times are gone and forgotten.

Check out the 2010 conference session tracks.

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2010 Main Streets Conference: Featured speakers

Chris Steiner: New York Times best-selling author of $20 per Gallon and senior writer for Forbes Magazine

Intrigued by rising gas prices in spring 2008, Christopher Steiner, a civil engineer and a staff writer at Forbes magazine, conceived of the concept for his book, $20 Per Gallon, when he wondered, simply, how will our lives change in a future of higher gas prices? Steiner’s examination roams from Manhattan tunnels to desert plain graveyards to organic farm fields. Before his first reporting job at the Chicago Tribune, Steiner practiced as an engineer in San Francisco and in Park City, Utah. He holds degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Northwestern University.

Steiner's message focuses on tighter energy supplies in the future and the impact that will have on how we live, which, of course, depends largely upon where we live. In the future, Steiner says, more communities will embrace walkable neighborhoods that bundle commerce, jobs, and schools within moderately dense stretches of population. Even small towns, once sprawling toward satellite outposts of big-box stores, will re-center toward Main Street as energy efficiency encourages more local products and denser living.

Steiner will be the keynnote speaker for the Opening Plenary on Monday, May 3, 2010.

Eric Corey Freed: Author of Green Buildings and Remodeling for Dummies

Author and green architect Eric Corey Freed will walk you through his creative and bizarre world of sustainable design. Experience the rapid advancements in green building and discover the latest systems to save energy, water, and resources. You will laugh, cry, and never look at your world quite the same way again. Part stand-up comedy, part Ph.D. lecture, this talk will present a side of the environment most never get to see.

Eric Corey Freed will be the keynote speaker at the Closing Plenary on Wednesday, May 5, 2010.