If someone offers you the chance to attend a conference where you can hear from Tori Murden McClure, Susan Szenasy, and Carey Smith in a 24 hour period, I highly suggest you get on board. A group of regional advocates for sustainable building practices held a leadership summit which included encouraging words from a variety of speakers.
McClure is quite remarkable for a variety of reasons and is best known as the first woman and first American to row solo and unassisted across the Atlantic Ocean.
http://www.apearlinthestorm.
Szenasy has been leading METROPOLIS magazine since 1986 and her experience and wisdom are truly impressive.
http://www.metropolismag.com/
Smith is the CEO of Big Ass Fans. He prefers the title Chief Big Ass. He is a straight talking capitalist who is not ashamed of making a profit by selling a quality product to a willing buyer. His company has a fascinating story and his products are very well engineered and built for high efficiency.
http://m.fastcompany.com/
