By Jesse Wilson

TheStatehouseFile.com

INDIANAPOLIS – The Hoosier Environmental Council’s sixth annual Greening the Statehouse Forum is set for 9 a.m. Saturday at IUPUI.

John Tuma, known for his fight for more sustainable agriculture in the Midwest, will be guest speaker at the event. Tuma, an attorney, also served as a legislator in his home state of Minnesota where he made a large impact on the environmental state of Minnesota.

“Agriculture is an integral part of Indiana – instrumental to our economy, employment, and quality of life. It’s critical, however, that Indiana’s local and state elected officials continue to have the ability to balance the need to sustain agriculture with the need to safeguard Indiana’s environment and quality of life,” said Jesse Kharbanda, executive director of the Hoosier Environmental Council.  “Our forum will focus on ensuring this balance is preserved — and the health and well-being of Hoosiers remains protected.”

During the 2013 legislative session, the Hoosier Environmental Council and its partners successfully protected Indiana’s natural resource and rural quality by helping defeat several proposed policy measures that – had they been implemented – would have given special privileges to the corporate livestock industry.

This year’s Greening the Statehouse forum will address topics such as how proposed public policies would significantly weaken protections from polluting industrial livestock operations, as well as clean energy and mass transit. A partnership with IndyTalks will offer participants an opportunity to learn how to safeguard a cleaner and healthier environment for future generations, and a partnership with the Student Sustainability Coalition will allow college students to convene and decide the priorities and goals that are important for the upcoming legislation session.

Registration for Greening the Statehouse is $20 for general admission and $10 for students. To register, visit www.hecweb.org/annualforum.

Jesse Wilson is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.