Napa Thrives Kicks Off June 7: A Six-Event Sustainability Symposium

June 7-23, Napa, CA – This month Napa Green and community partners are hosting Napa THRIVES – a groundbreaking symposium with six half-day, tightly focused events organized around the six pillars of sustainable winegrowing leadership. Held live and in-person at Charles Krug Winery, the Napa THRIVES symposium is designed to accelerate sustainability and climate action in the wine industry. Guests will be encouraged to make commitments to action, and the THRIVES mentors and facilitators will follow-up and provide the resources and connections to turn these commitments to reality.

“It has never been a better time to be a wine drinker,” says Dan Petroski, Winemaker and owner of Napa Valley’s Massican. “The gradual change in climate over the last 30 years has propelled wine-growing regions from all corners of the globe to produce their best wines from a quality and critical perspective. As we revel in this momentum, we have to shift our energy and focus for the next 30 years, proactively tackling the challenges and disruptions of climate change so grape growing and winemaking can survive into the future. It’s time for the Napa Valley to leverage its platform and set the bar for sustainable wine-growing leadership. Tuesday, June 7th at the Napa THRIVES symposium, our community will take a critical step toward accelerating leadership.”

Tomorrow, the first of the events launches with a focus on Water Savings & Efficiency, an essential topic given California’s current 1200-year drought, and all of the costs of transporting, heating, and treating water. The lineup of experts includes Eric Asimov, Wine Critic with the New York Times, Tod Mostero, Director of Viticulture & Winemaking at Dominus Estate, and Nathalie Jure, Director of Viticulture at Opus One Winery. June 9 will move to Energy Savings & Efficiency, the quickest and most effective way to reduce the bottom line, and will include a marquee address from world-renowned climate expert Bill McKibben, co-founder of Third Act and 350.org.

During the June 14 event on Waste Prevention & Green Purchasing, Jancis Robinson MW, voted the world’s most influential wine critic in 2018, and founder of the wine knowledge platform JancisRobinson.com, will virtually share thoughts from London on the movement to “lighten-up” glass weight and the carbon footprint of glass and other packaging. “There are still so many – producers, marketers, consumers – who don’t realize that wine’s biggest contribution to carbon emissions is shipping unnecessarily heavy bottles,” observes Robinson. “I’m looking forward to presenting the evidence and trying to change purchasing decisions.”

As part of the June 21 event on Social Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, Napa THRIVES will welcome Marquee speaker Nikki Silvestri, Founder and CEO of Soil and Shadow. She has spoken at the White House, negotiated with the Environmental Protection Agency and received OxFam America’s “Act Local, Think Global” Award. Silvestri shares, “What I look forward to the most in my visit to speak at Napa THRIVES is being with all of the incredible practitioners that make the wine industry tick. It’s an ancient practice that gets to the root of who we are as a species – communion with the earth and one another. Vintners are keepers of our joy.”

“The Napa THRIVES symposium has been a year in the making,” says Anna Brittain, Executive Director of Napa Green and co-founder of Napa THRIVES. “You truly don’t want to miss this groundbreaking and action-oriented lineup of expert speakers and leaders. Each day ends with lunch and wine so you can genuinely connect with the speakers and other guests.”

Additional Marquee Speakers

Kayalin Akens-Irby, Chief of Staff at Planet FWD; Kelly Mulville, Vineyard Director at Paicines Ranch; Kimberly Nicholas, Sustainability Scientist, Lund University, and Author, Under the Sky We Make; Jonathan Foley, Executive Director, Project Drawdown; Birgit Cameron, Co-Founder and Head of Patagonia Provisions.

Six Industry Mentors

Tod Mostero, Director of Viticulture & Winemaking at Dominus Estate (Dry Farming), Juan Moreno, Facility Manager at Rutherford Hill Winery (Saving Energy and $$), Molly Sheppard, Educational Winemaker, Spottswoode Estates (TRUE Zero Waste); Erik Dodd, Vineyard Manager, Wight Vineyard Management (Sustainable Pest Management), Philana Bouvier, President, Demeine Estates (Growing Diversity & Social Impact); Jim Duane, Winemaker, Seavey Vineyard (Regenerative Carbon Farming).

Eight Leading Moderators

Esther Mobley, Senior Wine Critic, San Francisco Chronicle; Taylor Kate Brown, Newsletter Editor, San Francisco Chronicle; Andrea Robinson, MS; Katherine Cole, Wine Writer & The Four Top podcast; Dr. Liz Thach, MW, Wine Writer, Educator, and Consultant; Dr. Andrew Isaacs, UC Berkeley Climate Scientist; Peter Marks, MW, Napa Valley Wine Academy; Kelli White, Sommelier and author Napa Valley, Then & Now.

Napa THRIVES Co-Founders: Anna Brittain & Martin Reyes MW

Learn More and Get Your Tickets Now at https://napathrives.org/