Speakers and Presentations
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Indiana’s wildlife and habitats are suffering, thanks to excess nutrients – especially phosphorus – entering rivers, ponds, and lakes. These nutrients originate in commercial, agricultural, urban, and industrial areas, perhaps even in your own lawn!

The resulting overgrowth of algae depletes oxygen levels in the water, creating unsustainable living conditions for native fish species and other animals.  Wildlife biodiversity is thus decreased, and human health can even be threatened by the harmful toxins.

This session will provide practical tips for reducing nutrient overloading by using sustainable landscaping practices.  With your help, quality habitats and clean water can be restored in Indiana.

Marija Watson, project manager for the Indiana Wildlife Federation, has helped lead the Phosphorus-free Lawn Fertilizer Campaign. At Marian University, where she earned a degree in biology, Marija researched nutrient levels in the Upper White River and worked as a Wetland Restoration Intern in the Ecolab, a 55-acre wildlife habitat in downtown Indianapolis.

Lois Green is a Registered Interior Designer with Studio Three Architects in Muncie. She received her BA in Interior Environmental Design from Ball State and has served as President of the Indiana Chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers.  LEED-accredited, Lois has participated in several LEED and sustainable projects over the last 5 years.

.Allan Henderson is Chief Planner for the Madison County Council of Governments in Anderson. With degrees in landscape architecture and urban & regional planning, Allan has over 13 years of experience in all aspects of community design, development & planning, including rain barrel construction workshops and community rain gardens.

Tami Coleman has learned about the environment and gardening from coast-to-coast and points in between. She now enjoys helping others along this path as a Madison County Master Gardener and a graduate student in landscape architecture at Ball State University

If you’ve been thinking about taking the plunge into renewable energy for your home, Craig Porter will tell you how to make it happen.  He’ll explain the components required in residential wind and solar systems, and he’ll also tell you what to expect in both costs and energy production

Craig Porter has been working in the field of renewable energy since 2007.  He is a partner with ECI Wind and Solar, in Fairmount, where he installs photovoltaic, solar thermal, and wind energy systems.  Craig is also the Energy Technology Program Chair at Ivy Tech Community College, Lafayette campus, where he teaches renewable energy courses.

Flush your toilet or wash your clothes with rainwater??  It’s possible! 

For audience members who want to take rainwater collection and reuse to a new level, David Stanley will show them the Snyder Industries Rain Captor, a rainwater collection and harvesting system. When done correctly, rainwater harvesting provides a dependable water source for non-potable applications, such as landscape irrigation or use in washing machines and toilets, which account for 40% to 60% of all water used nationwide in residential settings. Harvested rainwater can even be used for commercial applications.

David will also cover some of the latest trends, tools, and tips for reducing water use in the home. 

David Stanley is Director of Sales & Marketing for Knapp Supply Company in Muncie. Through experience in his family’s draining and trenching business, education at Ball State University, and a career in the plumbing supply business, David has become the go-to guy for water systems and drainage issues.  He is also a steward in the USDA Conservation Reserve Program.

Tom Gordy will cover the essentials of organic gardening for beginners and offer plenty of tips for experienced gardeners, on these and other topics:
-- Plant requirements for healthy growth
-- Soil components needed for plant success, including soil amendments and fertilizers
-- Sustainable growing and composting methods
-- Manure vs. green manure
-- Methods for controlling weeds, insects, disease, and animals, including types of barriers (physical, mechanical, and chemical
-- Sources and resources for information, products, seeds, etc.

With degrees in both biology and education, Tom Gordy has been a high school biology teacher for more than 20 years.  He began growing organic fruits and vegetables in 1983 and has been a mainstay of the organic gardening community of Delaware County ever since.

Native plants and rainwater harvesting can go a long way toward a sustainable landscaping, but what about the environmental and human health impacts of the construction materials that your yard, deck, patio and driveway are constructed from? These impacts can be substantial. both on your site and in remote locations where the materials are extracted, processed and manufactured.

This presentation will address the environmental and human health impacts from common landscape construction materials and provide ways to reduce the impacts through use of reclaimed, recycled content and alternative materials and constructions.

Meg Calkins is an Associate Professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture at Ball State University and the author of two books, Materials for Sustainable Sites and The Sustainable Sites Handbook.  A LEED Accredited Professional, she is a frequent contributing editor to Landscape Architecture magazine, where she writes on green construction materials.

The Sustainable Living Demonstration Home is Cope Environmental Center’s proof that you don’t need to build a new home to gain energy efficiency.  Built in the early 1900s, the home now provides homeowners a wide range of strategies and products for decreasing their consumption of natural resources – from energy-efficient blinds and a composting toilet to environmentally friendly siding and geothermal heating/cooling.  

Tours of the Demonstration Home are offered the third Wednesday of each month, but Living Lightly Fair visitors will get to experience a virtual tour of the home without leaving Muncie.  Learn what you can do to make your own home or apartment more efficient!

Jeremy Mussoni is Facilities and Grounds Director for the Cope Environmental Center (CEC), in Centerville.  He helps CEC pursue sustainable practices and alternative energy, including the implementation of new sustainability demonstrations and projects.

Stephanie Hays-Mussoni has been with CEC since 1998, serving for the last several years as Executive Director. With degrees in natural resources and biology, Stephanie has focused much of her work at CEC on environmental education and curricula.