Brevard County 2021 Sustainability Setbacks

Come join us for a timely presentation on Two Local Topics at 7pm EST. First, Councilperson Koss from Cocoa will bring us up to date on the status of the Cocoa Sustainability Board. Second, we will hear about Brevard County’s WISER committee and the County’s dismissal of a plan for transitioning to clean energy.

Two of Brevard County's sustainability efforts have experienced setbacks in 2021. The city of Cocoa voted to disband the current sustainability board, and Brevard County voted against recognizing a plan to transition to clean energy. Our speakers will discuss these topics and our roadmap to a sustainable future.

Zoom Link here https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86440022334?pwd=c0dSeGYxN1pqQVZDaVhuMk5vK0ZaUT09

Our guest speakers will be Lorraine Koss, District 4 Council Person for the city of Cocoa, Florida, and Bill DeBusk, Chair, Sierra Club Turtle Coast Group.

Lorraine Koss was elected in 2018 as Cocoa Councilwoman for District 4. During her term, she has championed stormwater management, green infrastructure, parks, smart growth, traffic calming, and public engagement, to name a few. She retired as Deputy Director of the U.S. Water Alliance, a Washington D.C. non-profit dedicated to water management and policy.

Councilwoman Koss is an appointee of the Save Our Indian River Lagoon Citizen Oversight Committee. She is a Board Member of the Space Coast Economic Development Commission and governing board member for the Space Coast Transportation Planning Organization. Recently, she was invited to join the leadership circle for a new initiative called ELEVATE BREVARD.

Councilwoman Koss has a master’s degree in Environmental Management from Duke University. She is married to Lawrence Koss who works at Kennedy Space Center researching how to use water efficiently in space for growing food. They have two grown sons and one grandson.

Our second speaker, Bill DeBusk, is the current Chair of the Sierra Club Turtle Coast Group. Bill has been a member of the Turtle Coast Executive Committee since 2019. Bill was appointed to the Workgroup for Innovative Solar Energy Resources (WISER) board to represent District 3 in March of 2020.

Originally from Missouri, Bill graduated from the University of Missouri with a BS in Electrical Engineering. Bill moved to Florida in 1985 and began work in Orlando. In 1989, Bill moved to Melbourne to work at Northrop Grumman where he retired as an Engineering Manager in 2015. Bill is married to Joy DeBusk and they have two daughters and two sons.