General

In 2008, green purchasing training will again be offered at Symposium EAST for all government personnel. If you are planning on taking the training class, be sure to indicate so on your attendee registration form.

Note: The $125 conference registration fee still must be paid in order to attend the green purchasing training, even if you don't plan on attending any other session (DHHS employees are exempt however.)

Course Information

This year, we are offering a two-part green purchasing training program plus a special session on purchasing biobased products, and sessions on Federal agency case studies, tools for purchasing ENERGY STAR and energy-efficient products, and tools and resources for purchasing green meeting and conference services. The sessions will be presented all day on Tuesday, June 3, and during the morning of Wednesday, June 4, 2008.

The two-part training consists of the knowledge-based "What is Green Purchasing, Anyway?" and "Greening Government Contracts," which is a practical exercise. From the first session, you will learn the basics of the components of the Federal green purchasing program, FAR provisions, examples of how agencies are buying green products and services, and how to green contract solicitations. The second session provides multiple practical exercises in green contracts for products and services. As part of the second session, there also will be a presentation on "Greening Government Offices."

Training certificates for 3 hours credit will be presented at the end of the two-part training sessions. Check with your agency whether it will count towards acquisition training hours.

The special biobased products session, which will be presented on Wednesday, provides tools and resources for purchasing biobased products, including the products designated by USDA in its BioPreferred program, cleaning products, and biodegradable products for marine environments.

Registration Deadline

Training attendees are requested to register online at the earliest possible date so that presentation materials can be prepared. The last day that training participants can register is May 16, 2008.