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CURC Steering Committee
October 4, 2006
Conference Call Began at Noon EST

Present: Tracy Artley; Jack Debell; Dana Donatucci; Rob Gogan; Mary Jensen; Karyn Kaplan; Ed Newman; Mike Planton; Christine Von Kolnitz; Stacy Wheeler

Absent: Mark Darling; Judi Dunn; Judi Gard; Deb Hanson

1. Discussion of scholarships to the 2006 NRC Congress
Tracy inquired about the recipients of the students scholarships to the 2006 NRC Congress. Jack stated that they had been awarded. Five students from across the country and 7 from the Atlanta-area will be attending. Jack suggested asking recipients to draft a 2-5 page reflection paper on their thoughts on and impressions of the Congress. Mary and Dana offered to serve as mentors to the students. They will meet the students on Sunday in the lobby of the Omni.

2. CURC Workshop
Karyn reported that a large number of people have already registered to the CURC workshop. Jack recognized Christine for her efforts in getting the word out early to schools in the southeast.

3. 2006 NRC Congress
Christine requested that the time of the CURC Steering Committee meeting be clarified. The Steering Committee meeting will be held on Saturday, October 21st at 2:00 pm. Christine will double check with Rebecca on the room reservation for the meeting. Mary will send out an email to others not on the call that the Steering Committee meeting will be at 2:00 pm. Jack informed the group that since the NRC Board meeting is on the 21st at 1 pm, he may have to pop back and forth between the meetings. He stated that one of his goals for the Board meeting is to get the budget worked out.

Karyn reminded the group that the CURC breakfast is going to be very loud she requested NRC put their group in a corner. She suggested that an agenda and handout about CURC be brought and circulated during the meeting. Mary stated that one of her goals for the meeting is to find out what people want as member benefits. Jack suggested having a sign-up sheet available for people willing to staff the CURC booth.

4. RecycleMania
Rob stated that the EPA has funding to carry RecycleMania through 2007, but not beyond. The program costs $50,000 - $70,000 per year to administer. Ed mentioned that interested sponsors include Coca-Cola, Anheuser-Busch and Aramark. Karyn suggested that paper companies may also be interested in sponsoring. Rob continued that while RecycleMania has potential sponsors, it has no vessel to receive the money. Additionally, the NRC does not have formally approved guidelines regarding technical councils receiving corporate sponsorship. Potential new “homes” for RecycleMania include the NRC, Keep America Beautiful (KAB) and the National Wildlife Federation (NWF). The Steering Committee agreed that NRC seems like the natural home for the competition, but guidelines for sponsorship would be needed soon. The Board’s track record on timeliness makes it seem that this may not work. Rob stated that we shop not drop all efforts to house the program at NRC, but it’s wise to have some alternatives. He also stated that Coca-Cola has already established a relationship with a marketing company which has begun work on promotional items. Stacy reported that she has gotten a call about sponsorship from Anheuser-Busch.

Jack pointed out that the current draft of the Technical Council guidelines do not include anything on corporate sponsorships and would like to work towards an addendum to the guidelines to cover this. Rob discussed a transition document put together by the EPA that will help move the administration of RecycleMania to another organization. Ed stressed the importance of getting a timeline together and approaching the NRC about this so that if it isn’t possible through the NRC, other avenues may be pursued.

Jack made a motion that the CURC Steering Committee unanimously wants the NRC to be the administrator of RecycleMania and will therefore approach the NRC first with this opportunity; NRC staff will then have 30 days to respond after receiving the RFP to administer RecycleMania. Rob seconded the motion. Mary stressed the importance of CURC having an advisory role in the administration of RecycleMania. The motion was unanimously approved.

Mary stated that she planned on devoting part of the CURC Steering Committee meeting at the Congress to this topic. She stressed that the administration of RecycleMania should at least be presented at the Congress to the Board as CURC and EPA will need a response by mid-November. Rob stated that the RFP will be done on October 12. Jack, Rob and Mary will get on a call with Kate before the Congress. Rob will send a copy of the EPA draft to the CURC Steering Committee for approval and will then send it to Kate and arrange a pre-Congress phone call.

5. Adjourn
The meeting adjourned at 1:31 pm.

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