LAKE PLACID – In the middle of his keynote presentation at Thursday’s state Conference on Sustainable Development and Collaborative Government, Mike Richter projected a black-and-white cartoon for the more than 300 people in attendance to see.

It was humorous yet grim, in which a man asked himself, “How many species do I need?” Sitting beside him was a chicken labeled “nugget” and a cow labeled “burger.”

Moments later, the NHL legend showed a picture of an elephant rescue and rehabilitation center in Kenya, a country with an elephant population that was ravaged decades ago.

In recent years, the species has seen a resurgence in that area thanks to the efforts of the Nairobi-based wildlife trust Richter spoke of.

Not only have elephants seen a resurgence there, but Richter explained how re-generating the elephant population was crucial in restoring Nairobi’s environment, economy, infrastructure and national security.

“They learned you cannot take a tusk for long-term gain,” Richter said.

Then Richter said something that caught the attention of many in attendance as he compared what was accomplished in Kenya to a similar place more than 7,000 miles away: the Adirondack Park.

“Basically what you have here,” Richter said looking up at the photos of smiling Kenyans alongside elephants, “is the Adirondack Park. A lot of ecotourism.”

In giving his keynote speech at Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s sustainability conference, Richter complimented state officials and local proprietors on their efforts to cultivate more sustainability within the Adirondack Park.

The hockey goalie-turned-environmental businessman also didn’t pull punches when it came to his thoughts on everyone recognizing that human society is dependent upon the natural world to function properly. It’s how, as he put it, “you start to see where the society frays when the natural systems aren’t working properly.”

Thirteen years after the three-time All Star and Stanley Cup champion played his final game with the New York Rangers, Richter now works as an environmental leader in New York and around the globe. The company he helped to found, Healthy Planet Partners, offers solutions to reducing carbon footprints through the application of renewable energy technologies. Richter also serves as the president of Brightcore Energy.

Richter was the governor’s choice to kick off a day of panel discussions that examined case studies, shared best practices and discussed examples of how the state is striving to create sustainable, integrated communities and boost “bottom-up” economic development efforts.

“Nobody does not have an interest in getting this right,” Richter said. “That’s what I think we all have to understand. We are all environmentalists.”

Seated in the last of the 12 rows of chairs set up in the Conference Center, Richter’s speech especially hit home with one of the Adirondack Park’s founders of a wildlife rehabilitation center, Wendy Hall, who founded the Adirondack Wildlife Refuge in Wilmington several years ago with her family.

One of hundreds of North Country proprietors at Thursday’s conference, Hall said she was expecting a conference where North Country and state officials patted themselves on the back for their successes. Instead, she was pleasantly surprised with what Richter had to say.

“How he specifically pointed out water scarcity, he was pinpointing environmental disasters and the massive extinction. I mean, he said what needed to be said,” Hall said. “Because I really thought it was going to be all about how great everything is in the Adirondacks economically and how ecotourism is booming and it was all going to be this positive thing. But I was really pleasantly surprised.”

Richter said what has been accomplished in Nairobi could be “a bit of a model for the world,” including the Adirondacks. But he added that solutions to sustainability must be figured out, as living “in a bubble” is not an option. On a day when many in attendance were asking what exactly “sustainability” means, he equated it to one simple thing: “Bettering.”

“Even if you only care about the bottom line,” he said, “the practical thing to do is to make sure you have a functioning ecosystem because it’s just going to be more economically efficient to do it. The quality-of-life issues and the national security issues, when it comes down to it, really start to add up.”

Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul represented Gov. Cuomo at the conference.

“He’s made that great connection – the intersection of the environment and the economy,” Hochul said. “And that’s exactly what we have here in the North Country.”

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Other speakers and panels

Following Richter’s speech, two panels occurred simultaneously. “Addressing Energy and Climate Change in the North Country” was moderated by state Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos and featured a discussion about how the North Country could use a clean energy model to revitalize its economy, especially in struggling places in the region that were once both economic hotbeds and environmentally harmful places.

The panelists included Sherman Craig of the Adirondack Park Agency, former APA Chairman Ross Whaley (now of the Common Ground Alliance), Kate Fish of the Adirondack North Country Association, John Warneck of the Jefferson/Lewis BOCES Tri-County Energy Consortium and Stephanie Ratcliffe of The Wild Center in Tupper Lake.

The other morning panel was about how downtown redevelopment could be used as a regional economic catalyst. It was moderated by state Olympic Regional Development Authority President Ted Blazer and featured Plattsburgh Mayor James Calnon, Clayton Mayor Norma Zimmer, Bill Farber of the Hamilton County Board of Supervisors, Lake Placid Pub and Brewery Owner Chris Ericson and Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism CEO Jim McKenna.

The afternoon featured a keynote speech by Quentin Wheeler, president of the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

The afternoon also featured a panel discussion about using local tools for sustainable best practices and adaptive re-use. It was moderated by John Rhodes, the president of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. Its panelists included Watertown Mayor Joseph Butler Jr., Matthew Nelson of Community Preservation Corporation, Donna Wadsworth of International Paper and Sharon Reynolds of Pride of Ticonderoga.

The other afternoon panel was about linking infrastructure and community development. It was moderated by Phil Eng, the executive deputy commissioner of the state Department of Transportation. Its panelists include town of Keene Supervisor and Essex County Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Ferebee, David Wolf of the Development Authority of the North Country, Bill Jemison of Clarkson University, and Randy Douglas, the former town of Jay supervisor.

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Grants awarded

At the beginning of the conference, Hochul announced $231,000 worth of “Smart Growth” grants for North Country communities through the state Environmental Protection Fund and administered by the DEC.

The town of Ticonderoga received $50,752 for construction drawings for the reconstruction of its 18th century French sawmill.

The town of AuSable, in partnership with Adirondack Architectural Heritage, received $75,000 for Keeseville Hamlet Riverside Park to transform its “Red Mill” industrial site.

The Biodiversity Research Institute, in partnership with the BRI’s Adirondack Center for Loon Conservation, Leading EDGE’s Adirondack Community Trails & Lodging System and the village of Saranac Lake received $50,000 for Adirondack Community-Based Trails Connecting Loons, Lakes and Lodging.

The Indian Lake Theater, Inc., in partnership with the town of Indian Lake, received $15,000 for the Indian Lake Theater Energy Efficiency and Sustainability Project.

And the town of Wilmington received $40,000 for its alternative wastewater system for economic development.