This week’s speaker will be champion of clean energy Henk B. Rogers.

Perhaps best known to mainstream video game enthusiasts as the founder and CEO of Blue Planet Software, which manages the worldwide rights to Tetris, Rogers is also one of the world’s leading advocates and activists for reducing and eventually eliminating humankind’s dependence on fossil fuel.

His session will focus on why the world must commit to 100% renewable energy production by 2045 and the importance of entrepreneurial innovation in achieving a sustainable future.

Rogers is the founder, visionary, and chairman of the board of Blue Planet Foundation, an organization that helped pave the way for Hawaii’s policy that electric utilities throughout the state must rely on 100% renewable energy by 2045. He is also the founder and CEO of Blue Planet Energy, one of the leading providers of energy storage systems that power homes, businesses, and utility grids.

More sessions and speakers are scheduled over the next few weeks.

The first session on May 1 garnered more than 400 participants over the live video conference, representing 59 countries, states, and territories. The live broadcast and repeated viewing on the CIS Facebook page totaled more than 3,200 views. The total participants account for the most attended and actively engaged event in the history of the UOG Conference on Island Sustainability, now in its 11th year.

The first session featured a panel of members from the Local2030 Islands Network, a group of islands committed to the local implementation of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The panel discussed how to achieve a sustainable future in the context of green growth initiatives and noted their islands’ experience in disaster recovery and innovative efforts in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the need for and benefit of sustainable practices related to food security, clean water, education, and health.

 UOG President Thomas W. Krise and Governor of Guam Lou Leon Guerrero, who are co-chairing the conference, both shared the sentiment that the crisis is creating opportunities to improve the island’s agriculture and aquaculture industries, rebuild a diverse economy, and create a more sustainable future.

To watch the first session of the CIS Virtual Conference on Sustainability, visit https://youtu.be/pvzmR4Dd8N0.