Pete Pointer has focused his 49-year career on environmentally based planning and context-sensitive design. He has directed projects in 25 states and four foreign countries, and recently published a book entitled "Planning Connections: Human, Natural and Man Made." He currently is the president of Corporate Services, Inc., Wheaton, IL.

Jeff Jacobs, PhD., is a resident scholar at the National Research Council (NRC) in Washington, D.C. He has been with the NRC for 13 years and has directed 25 studies on national water planning and management issues including Upper Mississippi River navigation and restoration. Jeff has served as a faculty member at Texas A&M University and the National University of Singapore.

Conference attendees will participate in roundtable charrettes* addressing river communities' needs, facilitated by Ed Freer of JJR, Madison, WI, with assistance from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Special programs also will be offered on environmental education. The conference will be held August 26-27, 2010 at the i-wireless Center, Moline, Illinois.

All Upper Mississippi River stakeholders are invited to attend.