The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 13th Community Involvement Training Conference will be held at the Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts July 30-August 1, 2013. The EPA Office of Water, EPA Region 1, and the EPA Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response are leading the planning efforts for this conference.

This dynamic training conference seeks to both inform and train EPA staff as well as Agency stakeholders and community partners in best practices to enhance community involvement. In 2011, the training conference brought more than 450 community involvement practitioners together. This three-day training conference features plenary sessions with guest speakers, topical discussions, multiple 90-minute information sessions, engaging three, four, and seven hour training sessions, and field trips demonstrating effective community involvement and cooperative conservation efforts in the Boston area. Additionally, there will be a Tuesday evening reception that will highlight a poster presentation and technology demonstration session to showcase excellent community involvement projects as well as new tools, technologies, and software. Throughout the training conference there will be exhibits, a variety of networking opportunities and evening activities to add value and fun to the experience. Community involvement is a field that has changed significantly over the years and continues to evolve. As a result, this year’s training conference theme “The Next Generation of Community Involvement” seeks to explore best practices and innovative solutions for community involvement. On line registration and complete details may be found at www.epa.gov/ciconference/index.htm.