Anderson

Reese Institute hosts inaugural conservation symposium
The Thomas W. Reese Institute for Conservation of Natural Resources will host its first symposium at 1:30 p.m. April 5 in the Belk Centrum. Designed as the first in a series, the symposium offers community members the opportunity to interact with experts in conservation-related fields, faculty and students.  

Four area conservancy groups—Catawba Valley Heritage Alliance, Catawba River Keeper, Foothills Conservancy and Catawba County Extension Services—will provide displays in the Centrum lobby. Student photos and posters will also be displayed. The public is invited. 

The featured speaker for the symposium is Ray Anderson, chairman of Interface, Inc. of Atlanta, an interior furnishings company internationally recognized for its modular carpet tile products and commitment to the environment. His presentation is titled “Mid-Course Correction—the Interface Journey to Sustainability.”  

After founding Interface in 1973, Anderson and his company revolutionized the commercial floor covering industry by producing America’s first free-lay carpet tiles. Now he leads a global effort to promote sustainable development.

Anderson said: “If we’re successful, we’ll spend the rest of our days harvesting yester year’s carpets and other petrochemically-derived products, and recycling them into new materials, and converting sunlight into energy, with zero scrap going to the landfill and zero emissions into the ecosystem. And we’ll be doing well, very well, by doing good. That’s the vision.”

Anderson is recognized as one of the world’s most environmentally progressive chief executives. He served as co-chair of the President’s Council on Sustainable Development during the Clinton administration and was recognized by Mikhail Gorbachev with Global Green’s Millennium Award in 1996.  Anderson received the 1996 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the Southeast Region, was named Georgia Conservancy’s Conservationist of the Year in 1997 and was honored with Southface Energy Institute’s Argon Award in 2000.

Anderson founded his business after working more than 14 years with carpets and textiles for Deering-Milliken and Callaway Mills. He formed a partnership with Britain’s Carpets International Plc. and set up operations in LaGrange, Ga., adapting European technology to produce free-lay carpet tiles.

Ten years later, Interface took over Carpets International and today is the international leader in the design, production and sales of modular carpet. Interface is also a leading producer of broadloom carpet and commercial sales. The company has sales in 110 countries and manufacturing facilities on four continents. 

Following Anderson’s presentation, a question and answer session is scheduled. He will also be signing copies of his books, available at the symposium through Barnes and Noble.

The goal of the series is to help raise awareness of the importance of conservation to the quality of life, ecosystems, economies and culture. For more information about the symposium, contact Dr. John Brzorad, director of the Reese Institute, at 828-328-7606.