* On behalf of all the student organizers I would like to thank all the speakers and participants who made this 12th annual Rice Environmental Club Conference such a success. The presentations are finally available online for your edification (please see the speakers page). I hope to see everyone at next year's conference.

* Pictures from the conference are also available now!

With the recent passing of the Metro Bond Issue and the opening of the Light Rail line, transportation issues have been at the forefront of Houstonian's minds. The Rice Environmental Club is focusing the annual student conference this year on this pertinent issue. We are bringing together national and local experts, policy makers and concerned citizens together for this one day conference. At first we will focus in on the current transportation situation in Houston and the myriad of problems that are associated with it. The conference is then going to focus in on potential solutions with ideas for building a sustainable future in Houston coming from many different participants. We hope to inform and promote discussion over our transportation future because the character of the city when our children are growing up is being decided now.

For twelve years, students of the Environmental Club have organized Rice’s annual Environmental Conference. Started by undergraduate David Greene in 1993, the conference began as a way for Rice students to share their environmental research with the community. While each conference since then has been bigger and better attended, the mission of this year’s conference remains the same as that of the first. The conference, which is run and organized entirely by Rice students, brings together citizens, business leaders, public officials, and students of all viewpoints and backgrounds and encourages debate about protecting the environment both in the community and around the world.