SEATTLE, Wash. Gov. Chris Gregoire will join University of Washington President Mark Emmert and Washington State University President V. Lane Rawlins at a reception Tuesday (Oct. 10) to launch the William D. Ruckelshaus Center, a joint UW-WSU center for addressing hard to resolve social, economic and environmental issues.
The reception will be held from 3:45 until 6 pm, Tuesday, Oct. 10, in the Meany Hall Theatre lobby on the
Ruckelshaus was twice director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and is highly respected for his public service and corporate leadership. He has been leading state salmon recovery efforts, and chairing the center’s board known during its pilot phase as the
He is a former senior vice president at Weyerhaeuser and chairman/CEO of Browning Ferris Industries, and currently is a partner and principal in Madrona Venture Partners.
The center draws on the resources of the two universities to support collaborative problem solving around contentious public policy issues and bring together significantly affected parties to address them.
It has already contributed to the dialogue on some contentious workers compensation and water issues. Currently the center is bringing together farming interests, environmental advocates, community leaders and tribes to identify approaches to addressing issues in ways that will mutually benefit agriculture and the environment.
The governor, both university presidents and Ruckelshaus will be among those making brief comments at the reception.
