Sunset Magazine chooses SLO for new food and wine event Insiders report that negotiations are in the final stages for bringing a major new event to SLO County next fall that could reinvigorate the lagging tourism industry and significantly strengthen SLO’s tourism brand. Thanks to a coordinated effort led by the SLO County Visitors and Conference Bureau, San Luis Obispo and several other county cities will likely host a four-day food and wine event that will be promoted throughout the West and co-produced by Sunset Magazine, one of the strongest lifestyle brands in the U.S. About 8,000 people from throughout the state are expected to attend what will likely become an annual event. A somewhat similar but much larger and older event hosted by Sunset at its Menlo Park offices attracts almost 50,000 people every year. The VCB will try to raise $150,000 to 200,000 from cities and sponsors in the next three months as seed money.   No, it’s not us!  PG&E quits U.S. Chamber of Commerce over climate change PG&E’s well publicized decision to quit the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has caused some concern among our members as to how this will affect our 105 year relationship with PG&E. The answer: not at all. PG&E’s differences with the U.S. Chamber stemmed from the national Chamber’s complete denial of man-caused global climate change, an issue that PG&E has taken very seriously. On the other hand, our Chamber, which has no affiliation with the U.S. Chamber, has been a leader in California by understanding both the need to reduce greenhouse gasses and the part business must play in any solution. PG&E has recognized our leadership and is a major sponsor of our Green Awards program which honors businesses that lead the way toward more sustainable practices. The unfortunate part of PG&E’s decision is that the exodus of moderate, forward-thinking companies like PG&E (and Nike) tends to harden the U.S. Chamber’s anti-environment position. Because the national media often designates the U.S. Chamber as a U.S. business representative, the national Chamber’s hard-line positions tend to strengthen the perception that business people do not care about the environment. Moving at the speed of business: Chamber newsletter goes electronic   After 105 years of continuous print publication, the Chamber’s member newsletter faded into history earlier this year. Its replacement, the new electronic version, makes its official debut on Monday. The online version has many advantages: updated daily, it will be timelier; there’s more space so there will be much more member news; and it’s better for the environment. In addition, all of the stories on www.slo-business.com will be sent to the hundreds of business people following the Chamber on Twitter. Click here to take a sneak peak of the new publication. Click here to follow us on Twitter. Or click here to send us news about your business so we can post it on www.slo-business.com.