Our Sustainability Commitments

At the VLA Conference we believe in walking the talk when it comes to environmental responsibility. Below are the practices we’re implementing with the Richmond Marriott — to reduce our ecological footprint and promote sustainability across all aspects of the event:

• We’re using a mobile app / digital platform for the full conference program, schedule, maps, speaker bios, venue details, etc., in order to avoid printing and distributing paper guides.
• We are minimizing printed signage. No single-use banners or directional signs will be used where digital or reusable alternatives are available.
• All conference communications (pre-conference, onsite, post-conference) will be digital (email, app push notifications) rather than printed materials whenever possible.
• Badges and name tags will be designed with sustainable materials, and wherever possible reusable or recyclable badge components will be used.
• Marriott’s Richmond property follows Marriott’s “Serve 360” sustainability and social impact goals, which include reducing energy and water use, minimizing waste and single-use plastics, and sourcing responsibly.
• Marriott also has a robust sustainability policy that includes compliance with environmental laws, mitigation of negative environmental impacts (waste, carbon emissions, water, pollution), operating sustainable buildings, and measuring and reporting progress.  
• Recycling and waste-sorting stations will be clearly marked and available throughout the venue.
• Marriott’s cleaning, lighting, HVAC and other building operations will use energy‐saving technologies and practices (LED lighting, efficient systems, etc.).
• Attendees are encouraged to bring reusable water bottles; water refill stations will be made available rather than providing single-use bottles.
• Where possible, we will choose supplies, decor, and materials based on sustainable, recycled, or low-impact sources.

  ---

Thursday Closing Keynote with Sustainable Libraries Initiative

We invite you to partake in two sessions with a focus on sustainability.

Thursday Closing Keynote
4 - 5:15 p.m. (Regular 4 p.m. sessions and VIVA meeting running concurrently) Thursday, October 2
Featuring Dr. Mary Finley-Brook with an introduction by Sustainable Libraries Initiative
Dr. Mary Finley-Brook is a Professor of Geography and Global Studies at the University of Richmond, where she has taught since 2006. Finley-Brook has decades of experience conducting participatory action research and collaborates regularly with community-based organizations and frontline populations to advance climate justice in energy sector transformation. She has earned multiple awards from the University of Richmond, the Sierra Club, and the EPA Environmental Justice Video Competition.

She will be speaking about her book, Climate Crisis, Energy Violence: Mapping fossil energy’s enduring grasp on our precarious future, and be available for signing after the keynote.

From Anxiety to Action: How the Sustainable Libraries Certification Program Builds Stronger Communities
9 - 9:45 a.m. Friday, October 3
Featuring Lisa Kropp, Sustainable Libraries Initiative Advisory Board Member, Lindenhurst Memorial Library, NY and Jen Ferriss, Saratoga Springs Public Library, NY
Learn how the public library serves as the community catalyst for systemic changes in social, financial, and environmental practices that help build stronger and more connected communities that combat loneliness and isolation. Participants will leave this session armed with knowledge on how to support their communities by advancing social connections, utilizing the Sustainable Libraries Initiative's Certification action items and the six pillars of loneliness framework as outlined in the 2023 US Surgeon General's report, Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation.

Visit Sustainable Libraries Initiative in the Exhibit Hall at booth 105!