Press Release
Phoenix's Mayor Stanton Proclaims Sustainability Solutions Week

PHOENIX, Feb. 16, 2015 -- Today, a Mayoral Proclamation kicked off the second annual Sustainability Solutions Festival, which will position the Valley of the Sun as the epicenter of the sustainability universe as business leaders, students, families and creative thinkers gather to celebrate and honor solutions to the world's toughest issues.

The Mayoral Proclamation delivered by Councilwoman Kate Gallego and presented to Rob and Melani Walton, who represented the weeklong Festival's host, the Walton Sustainability Solutions Initiatives at Arizona State University.

"The city of Phoenix is proud to partner with ASU and the Walton Initiatives to help the city reach its goals to become a global sustainability leader," Councilwoman Gallego said in her remarks, "our work together to develop the Resource Innovation and Solutions Network – a global network of public and private partners that will create economic value and drive a sustainable economy – demonstrates our mutual commitment to make our great city and the world a better place for all of its citizens."

The Mayoral Proclamation cited the generous investment by the Rob and Melani Walton Fund of the Walton Family Foundation that established the Sustainability Solutions Initiatives at ASU in March 2012. "Rob and I are proud to be a part of reimagining our future. We seek to support the growth and balance for environmental, social and economic value," said Melani Walton, "our vision for this is happening through the global work of ASU and Arizona Science Center. They have the global platform to take this message to the public and begin to implement meaningful change."

This impact goes beyond the walls of the Arizona Science Center, and translates into meaningful partnerships affecting the city ofPhoenix and beyond. Two years ago, Phoenix City Council set a goal to achieve a 40 percent diversion rate by 2020 through an effort called Reimagine Phoenix. Reimagine Phoenix partnered with the ASU Walton Initiatives to create the Resource Innovation and Solutions Network (RISN). RISN is creating an incubation hub to connect businesses with the city's waste resources to develop new technologies, products and practices that will further establish Phoenix as a global sustainability leader.

These solutions, and others are being celebrated throughout the week at events across Phoenix and Tempe, culminating on Saturday with The Sustival, a community celebration at Civic Space Park that will ask attendees to reimagine how one person, one community or one organization can positively impact our future.

The Sustival begins at 4:00 p.m. at Civic Space Park, 424 N Central Ave. Admission is free, but clothing, electronics and shoe donations for Goodwill of Central Arizona are welcome. Visit sustainabilitysolutions.asu.edu/sustival for more information.

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The Rob and Melani Walton Sustainability Solutions Initiatives are the result of an investment in Arizona State University's Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability by the Walton Family Foundation. Within the Walton Sustainability Solutions Initiatives, diverse teams of faculty, students, entrepreneurs, researchers and innovators collaborate to deliver sustainability solutions throughout the globe, provide learning opportunities for future and current sustainability leaders, and engage audiences of all ages to take action and celebrate sustainability solutions. For more information, visit sustainabilitysolutions.asu.edu.