COC in the Oregonian: Planner to present Portland’s green policies in Taiwan

Following is the write-up on Bob Wise’s sustainability efforts in Taiwan taken from the Oregonian‘s Web site. Enjoy!

Planner to present Portland’s green policies in Taiwan
by Dylan Rivera, The Oregonian
Thursday June 04, 2009, 10:37 AM

A leader of Portland planning firm Cogan Owens Cogan is traveling to a national conference in Taiwan to present the latest Oregon and Portland-area sustainability efforts.

Bob Wise, senior project manager for the firm, is helping draft the Taipei 2050 EcoCity Vision, a long-range planning document for Taiwan’s largest city. He’s been asked to make a presentation about Oregon sustainability efforts to the Taiwan National Council for Sustainable Development’s annual conference.

“We’ve worked in Taiwan off and on for 10 years,” Wise said. “They’re always interested in what Portland and Oregon are doing.”

The sustainable development conference includes business leaders and cabinet-level members of Taiwan’s federal government. Wise said he plans to explain how Portland became the No.1 city in the nation for sustainability in rankings by SustainLane. He also will discuss the Living Building Challenge, which is a new green building standard, and the eco-district concept, which would have buildings share water and energy infrastructure to achieve greater efficiencies.

Wise was chairman of the Portland/Multnomah County Sustainable Development Commission when green building policies and climate change plans were developed.

Cogan Owens Cogan’s Taiwan work is performed through Team Oregon, a joint venture with SERA Architects and Century West Engineering of Portland.

– Dylan Rivera; dylanrivera@news.oregonian.com

http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2009/06/portland_planner_to_present_gr.html

Bob Wise to Speak About Sustainable Business Opportunities in China

CHINA BUSINESS NETWORK PRESENTS:

“Sustainable Development Business Opportunities in China”
January 14, 2009

by Bob Wise, Team Oregon, LLC

This program is sponsored by:

PSU Master of International Management

ABOUT THE PRESENTATION:
This presentation will address major challenges facing China, China resource consumption tends, how China is addressing sustainable development, examples of successful projects, future opportunities for business development in China based on Oregon’s strengths, and lessons learned from past experience.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Bob Wise is Senior Project Manager with Cogan Owens Cogan, LLC and Director of Team Oregon, LLC, private firms focused on urban planning and sustainable development in its multiple dimensions. He works in state and local public policy, strategic planning, and sustainable development. A few examples include:

• Serving as Chair and Co-Chair of the Sustainable Development Commission for Portland and Multnomah County guiding the process of early adoption and evolution of sustainable development it Portland and Multnomah County.
• Produced a comprehensive review and summary of models for sustainable development used in North America and Europe.
• Developed green building and sustainable industry cluster strategy studies for the State of Oregon, City of Portland, and Clackamas County, Oregon.
• Advised and lectured the China-U.S. Center for Sustainable Development in Portland, Oregon training government professional from the People’s Republic of China in the fields of land use planning, green development, and sustainable development.
• Developed a Sustainable Development Action Plan for the Taiwan Council for Economic Development to guide agencies, local governments, business, academic, and non-governmental agencies in Taiwan. Now developing the Eco-City Vision for Taipei City.
• Teamed with SOM Asia for a vision and urban development plan for the Hangzhou segment of the Grand Canal.
• Advised the City of Taipei, Taiwan on the concept of an Eco-City and “green” library buildings.

WHEN: Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2009, 12:00-1:30 PM
WHERE: House of Louie Restaurant, in Chinatown (331 NW Davis St., Portland, OR  97209)
COST: Lunch & Talk: $20 members; $30 general; $15 for students with ID. Please add $5 handling charge to above for registration after 5pm Jan. 13, 2009
REGISTER: Register & Pay On-line, or Call 503-973-5451
PARKING: SmartPark on NW Davis, between NW Naito Parkway and NW 1st Ave.

COC and Team Oregon win Taipei EcoCity Vision Project

The Taipei City Government awarded the Taipei EcoCity Vision project to Team Oregon and its partners: Origin International and Chinese Culture University.

Team Oregon is led by Bob Wise at Cogan Owens Cogan, LLC and Tim Smith at SERA Architects.

The project will employ the Natural Step system conditions and Civic Ecology approaches for the visioning process. The team will provide the City with the vision context necessary for making decisions about capital investment, economic revitalization, business growth, neighborhood improvements, and mobilize the region to achieve the common good.

Well done, Team Oregon!

PSU Forums Spring Term 2008

Presented by Arnold Cogan, FAICP, Planner-in-Residence in the Nohad A. Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning

Three forums will be held in room 303 of the Urban Center from 10 to 11:30 am. Specific dates, topics and speakers are as follows:

April 4: How does sustainability complement the practice of planning?
Guest speakers: Tim Smith, Director of Urban Design and Planning for SERA Architects, and Bob Wise, Senior Manager at Cogan Owens Cogan, LLC, and Director of sustainability programs for Team Oregon, a multi-disciplinary consulting firm specializing in sustainability services overseas. They will explore how the principles of sustainability can be applied to the field of planning. To be discussed: the triple bottom line of sustainable development of economic opportunity, environmental quality and social equity and its potential for transforming traditional planning into a more effective discipline for the 21st Century.

April 25: Why infrastructure is an important element of regional planning.
Guest speakers: Robin McArthur, AICP, Metro Regional Planning Director, and Ted Kyle, Capacity Program Manager of Water Environment Services for Clackamas County. To be discussed: Advancing the state of the art of infrastructure planning from its current piecemeal approach to one that is more regionally based. While this applies to large, expensive facilities such as highways, water systems and sewer projects, it is also important for smaller facilities such as parks, schools, libraries and other public buildings. A possible model to consider is the current study underway at Metro.

May 30: Status of the Big Look.
Guest speaker: John Fregonese, President of Fregonese Associates. Mr. Fregonese is the manager of the consulting team working for the Big Look Task Force which is charged with identifying the most appropriate approach for land use planning in Oregon over the next several decades. He will describe the rationale and current status of his study, to be completed by the end of 2008.

All forums will be webcast live and archived for future viewing. Our expectation is that each event will stimulate spirited conversation, focus our expectations on the role of planning in the future and provide students, faculty and others with new insights.

For more information, please contact Arnold Cogan at: 503-225-0192 or at arnold.cogan@coganowens.com