Organizers of The Sustainability Coalition held their initial meeting on Friday, January 29th. Over 50 RV executives and local business leaders attended the launch held at the RV/MH Hall of Fame in Elkhart, IN.

“Last spring the Elkhart County Redevelopment Commission and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) began meeting to study options for 'Greening the RV Industry,'” explained Jon Helmuth, President of Genesis Products and leader of the new coalition. “In our discussions about ‘green jobs,’ the state of the economy, and the problems we all face in the future - the group felt we needed to take responsibility for our industry by providing a common framework to move forward in a sustainable way.”

In August, 2009, a steering team was formed by executives from within the RV industry to meet this goal. “We first involved RVIA, the certification agencies, manufacturers and suppliers, researched the issue, and then focused on how the coalition could help Elkhart County organizations in sustainability planning,” said Steve Martin, planning specialist and team member.

Speaking at the January event were steering team members Bruce Hopkins of RVIA, David Tompos of NTA, Mary Wetzel of TekModo, Wilbur Bontrager of Jayco, Jon Wenger of Genesis Products and RVIA spokesperson and green RVer Brian Brawdy. Helmuth and Martin presented the case for sustainability, explaining that sustainability practices add real value, as companies that use sustainable governance outperform peers and companies executing sustainability report increased profits.

“The Coalition has initial action plans to work with companies to pursue a documented sustainability plan,” said Helmuth. “We feel we can have a more substantial impact by working together and not in isolation.”

For more information, visit www.thesutainabilitycoaliton.com or email Jon Helmuth at [ e-mail ].