banner

Convening for Action in British Columbia

Latest Posts

CONVENING FOR ACTION: Okanagan Basin Water Board and BC Water & Waste Association co-presented “From Rain to Resource: Managing Stormwater in a Changing Climate” (October 2010)


“The overall objective is to move municipal governments beyond conventional stormwater management, and inspire them to use rainwater as an integrated resource. The Rain to Resource workshop will bring together a wide cross-section of interested and knowledgeable individuals and provide an opportunity for them to share their knowledge and experiences. BCWWA is pleased to partner with the OBWB in this initiative,” stated Daisy Foster.

Read Article

Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia will build on existing Action Plan foundation


“The Partnership will continue to evolve and deliver program elements developed under the umbrella of the Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia,” stated Kim Stephens, Executive Director. “Now, the Partnership provides a legal entity for building on the existing Action Plan foundation and creating a lasting legacy. The Partnership vision is that water sustainability will be achieved through implementation of green infrastructure policies and practice “

Read Article

OKANAGAN RAIN TO RESOURCE WORKSHOP: Links to downloadable versions of PowerPoint presentations


“The majority of the workshop presentations were delivered by members of the “convening for action” partnership network, and were about case studies that are featured in Beyond the Guidebook 2010,” reports Ted van der Gulik. “British Columbia made a conscious decision to follow an educational rather than prescriptive path to change the way that land is developed and water is used. A ‘design with nature’ policy framework enables local governments to build and/or rebuild communities in balance with ecology.”

Read Article

The District of North Vancouver’s Bold Vision for a Municipality-Wide Integrated Rainwater Management Plan


Through its Official Community Plan Update, the District is advancing a vision for restoring the rainfall absorption capacity of our watersheds, one property at a time, over time. “To draw attention to the urgent need for action on single-family residential properties, we have created a set of images to illustrate why and how watershed health is at risk,” stated Richard Boase.

Read Article

“Design with Nature” philosophy guides Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia


Since 2004, the Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia has championed the way-of-thinking and acting embodied in the phrase ‘design with nature’. This paradigm is borrowed from the seminal book by Ian McHarg because it captures the essence of climate change adaptation. Adaptation is about responding to the changes that will inevitably occur. Adaptation is at the community level and is therefore about collaboration. His premise is simple: “that the shaping of land for human use ought to be based on an understanding of natural process.”

Read Article

Beyond the Guidebook 2010: Leading Change in British Columbia


“Released in 2002, Stormwater Planning: A Guidebook for British Columbia is a pioneer application in North America of ‘adaptive management’ in a rainwater management setting. In fact, this is one of the five guiding principles for ISMPs. In the Guidebook, adaptive management means: We change direction when the science leads us to a better way,” stated Kim Stephens.

Read Article

Convening for Action in British Columbia: Water Balance Model and Water Bucket Website are the twin engines for Outreach & Continuing Education Program


“watebucket.ca is the key to the communications strategy for the Water Sustainability Action Plan. The website is designed to provide the complete story on integrated land and water management – why, what, where and how,” states Mike Tanner. “Water Bucket stories establish expectations about program curricula and event outcomes. To get the word out, we work with our partners to craft email-type news releases that are complete with embedded links. We are finding that these news releases are taking on a life of their own.”

Read Article

Water Sustainability Action Plan adds depth to Living Water Smart


“The Water Sustainability Action Plan has allowed the Province to leverage partnerships to greatly enhance the profile and resulting impact of Living Water Smart,” states Kim Stephens. “The Action Plan partners are playing a key delivery role in two of the five Living Water Smart theme areas, namely: community planning and development; and efficiency, outreach, public awareness. In effect, the Action Plan partners are functioning as the on-the-ground Living Water Smart implementation arm with local government. This means that the Living Water Smart team can focus their work effort on legislative reform.”

Read Article