Educating and informing our members is at the heart of our mission. That’s why Aim hosts webinars on relevant municipal topics such as current legislative issues and cybersecurity. Each of these webinars is designed to keep you up to date on the subject matter and give you takeaways that you can apply in your municipality.

Upcoming Webinars

Act Now: Solar Energy for Indiana Municipalities

Thursday, July 29, 10 a.m. Eastern
$25 Member / $55 Municipal Non-Member

Solar power has long been touted for its environmental impact. But with the latest advancements in technology and quicker return on investment, solar energy is the best way for municipalities to shine. Higher net metering rates are set to expire in July 2022. Now’s the time to take advantage of solar and get a great payback for your community. In this webinar you will learn from Performance Services National Solar Developer about what you need to know to move forward with solar today.

Presented by Ryan Stout, National Solar Developer, and Nick Allen, Business Development Manager, Performance Services

Public Access and Indiana’s New Electronic Meetings Law

Friday, July 30, 11:00 a.m. Eastern
$25 Member / $55 Municipal Non-Member

The legislature recently created a statewide framework granting additional flexibility for municipal officials who need to attend public meetings electronically outside times of emergency and during times of emergency. This welcomed change includes some nuances that every municipality must grasp to ensure you are implementing the law appropriately. In this webinar, Indiana’s Public Access Counselor Luke Britt will offer his office’s interpretation of the new statute and answer your most pressing questions regarding public and Indiana’s Open Door Law.

Presented by Luke Britt, Public Access Counselor

Mental Health in the Municipal Workplace

Tuesday, August 24, 10:00 a.m. Eastern
$25 Member / $55 Municipal Non-Member

Historically, 1 in 5 adults experience a mental illness in any given year. With the pandemic, it’s now estimated that nearly 2 in 5 adults are currently experiencing a mental illness. Only 40% of these adults will seek treatment. Join us for a meaningful discussion to break the stigma around behavioral health in the workplace. Leave with a deeper understanding on why it matters, what to look for and how you can offer resources and solutions to help those in need.

Presented by Andrea Hickle, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Apex Benefits; and Sarah Michaels, Registered Nurse, Apex Benefits

Municipal Roles in Real Estate Development: Adaptive Reuse

Tuesday, August 31, 10:00 a.m. Eastern
$25 Member / $55 Municipal Non-Member

Cities and towns are built around foundational building and amenities, and the ones that are culturally significant are often handed down through generations. However, as markets change and people change how they work in cities, often these pieces of civic pride fall into disuse. Across the state, municipalities struggle with having structures within their communities that once served as attractions or crucial meetings spaces, and how they can update them to keep them useful for modern live and future generations.

Presented by Erin Easter, Director of Development, City of West Lafayette; Marc Griffith, Vice President, Veridus Group; and Tim Jensen, Principal, Veridus Group

The Importance of Effective Benefits Education

Thursday, September 9, 2:00 p.m. Eastern
$25 Member / $55 Municipal Non-Member

This webinar is designed to help municipal leaders understand the importance and challenge of communicating benefits information to a multi-generational employee base. The presentation will include national insights regarding what employees expect from their employers and solutions to bridge the communications gap.

Presented by Aram Touloukian, Executive Account Manager, American Fidelity

Cyber Attacks & State Requirements for Incident Reporting

Tuesday, September 21, 2:00 p.m. Eastern
$25 Member / $55 Municipal Non-Member

Living in the electronic age has its benefits, as well as its downfalls. Unfortunately, there are computer hackers all over the world who want to cause damage and disruption to computer systems. Local government computers are a target for these attacks. Attend this webinar to learn why and what you can do to guard against cyber threats. You’ll also hear about new legislation passed in HEA 1169-2021 which requires all local units to report cyber incidents to the Indiana Office of Technology.

Presented by Tracy Barnes, Chief Information Officer, Indiana Office of Technology; Graig Lubsen, Director of Communications and External Affairs, Indiana Office of Technology; and Guillermo S. Christensen, Partner, Ice Miller LLP

Monitoring your Community Water System for Forever Chemicals (PFAS)

Tuesday, October 19, 10:00 a.m. Eastern
$25 Member / $55 Municipal Non-Member

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of nearly 5,000 synthetic chemicals that have been in use since the 1940s and are found in a wide range of consumer and industrial products ranging from microwave popcorn bags to firefighting foam. PFAS chemicals have been dubbed “forever chemicals” because they and their breakdown products are extremely persistent in the environment, lasting thousands of years or more. These man-made chemicals are currently in the state and national spotlight as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) has added PFAS chemicals to the Toxics Release Inventory and is also developing rules to regulate exposures of certain PFAS.

In February 2021, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) facilitated PFAS monitoring at all Community Water Systems (CWSs) throughout the state. IDEM is first sampling CWSs serving a population of less than 10,000 because most of these smaller systems were not sampled for PFAS during U.S. EPA’s Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule sampling, completed in 2014 and 2015. Join this webinar to understand the regulatory climate in Indiana surrounding these chemicals, existing technologies to address PFAS contamination, funding sources available to communities for PFAS treatment, and current projects removing PFAS from drinking water supplies.

Presented by Robert Pfendler, Senior Vice President, T&M Associates; James Peeples, PE, Vice President, T&M Associates; and Scott Blanchard, PG, Senior Technical Environmental Geologist

Renewable Energy for Indiana Municipalities: From Soup to Nuts

Tuesday, October 26, 10:00 a.m. Eastern
$25 Member / $55 Municipal Non-Member

This webinar will provide an overview of the development and growth of renewable energy and its benefits to Indiana municipalities. The presenters will discuss the tools and practical considerations for a city or town interested in renewable energy – whether as end use consumers trying to reduce energy costs or looking to install or procure large amounts of renewable energy. The webinar will end with the potential barriers to the renewable market, the status of net metering in Indiana, and other key issues such as advanced metering, electric vehicles and energy storage.

Presented by Anne Becker, Director, Lewis Kappes, P.C. and Joseph Rompala, Director, Lewis Kappes, P.C.

Accessibility 101: The History and Key Compliance Issues

Tuesday, November 30, 10:00 a.m. Eastern
$25 Member / $55 Municipal Non-Member

Have you had a family member with a physical disability that needed assistance to maintain a quality, active lifestyle? A few years ago, a presenter’s family member was diagnosed with dementia, which eventually affected physical movements requiring the use of a walker and wheelchair at times. The challenges that were often faced opened the eyes to many accessibility problems in public spaces that can create barriers for many individuals. In many cases, the facilities met minimal accessibility requirements. Are we doing enough to make our facilities accessible? What happens when a facility does not meet the codes at all? Our public facilities have improved significantly since the Americans With Disabilities Act was enacted in 1990.To comply with the law, means that we must work to improve our facilities and remove barriers for those with physical challenges. This webinar will outline the history some of the key problems in facilities and how they may be overcome by thoughtful and elegant design solutions.

Presented by Toby Winiger, Director of Architecture, The Etica Group, Inc. and Don Higgins, Senior Project Manager, The Etica Group, Inc.

Registration & Cancellation

Registration is available until 5 p.m. the day before the webinar; registrations after this time cannot be guaranteed. All webinars begin at the scheduled Eastern Standard time. You will receive email confirmations and reminders from Erin Jamison-Koenig or [email protected] Your confirmation email provides you with webinar access information.

You cannot cancel if you have signed up to attend a webinar. You’ll be invoiced and sent the recording and materials regardless of whether you attend the live webinar.

Looking for a previous webinar? 

The recording and materials from every Aim webinar is available.

MMI Credit for Webinars & Workshops

Participation in Aim webinars and workshops is eligible for Municipal Management Institute credit. The Municipal Management Institute (MMI) provides educational opportunities to Aim members, enabling them to sharpen their leadership skills, learn new techniques for tackling common local issues and improve services to citizens, while working towards their Certified Municipal Official status.

Thank you to our 2021 MMI Sponsors!