Green Summit Wrap-up: Day 2

The Newark's Green Future Summit ended with a speech only Mayor Booker can deliver. It even brought a super-charged, Super Neighborhood Chairperson and jovial moderator to tears. While a few others were moved, and I myself wanted to jump out of my seat and shout "Yea, this is our time!" I found myself leaving the summit pondering a question that my fellow Newarkers not in attendance, nevertheless informed will be asking:

"How will this begin?"

Although a huge, huge success, because hundreds of action items, commitments, resources, and facts were exchanged and promised to the cause, there is room for skepticism, which residents will not be afraid to express.

The breakout sessions, convened after panel discussions, were the primary opportunity to offer individual feasibility suggestions from ones own area of expertise. It was here that professionals and non spewed out ideas that will certainly turn Bricks green. At the end of an allotted time, all parties returned to the Atrium to discuss their findings.

"But how will we stay connected?"

Perhaps Van Jones, keynote speaker day-2, expressed the issue best when he raised the question, "How do you keep the hope without letting the hope turn into hype?"