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“When CAVI began, we established a goal that Vancouver Island would be well on its way to water sustainability by 2010. CAVI has moved forward significantly and successfully promoted the message of water sustainability by engaging governments, developers and the community in water-centric thinking, planning and development activities,” states John Finnie. “There is much yet to be done but I believe we have succeeded in our goal and in fact exceeded our program expectations.  Water sustainability is now a common thread in discussions and decisions about land development, water use and water conservation.”

“For me, the watershed moment for the CAVI-Comox Valley Leadership Team occurred in 2010. The ‘ah-ah’ moment for all parties lay in recognizing the importance of getting things done right at the front-end; and that by aligning collective efforts on a watershed scale, a regional response to (minimizing) infrastructure liability could be achieved,” stated Derek Richmond. “The first four years had seen significant progress towards developing, understanding and sharing water-centric principles and ideas through cooperation and collaboration.”

The genesis for the Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia dates back to March 2003 when the vision and partnership concept first took shape for doing a 5-year update on A Water Conservation Strategy for British Columbia, released in 1998. “Sustainable communities are all about choices – choices that become reality very quickly, with lasting consequences. In the years ahead, much will depend on getting the choices right in British Columbia, especially in those communities that are experiencing growth and/or renewal,” states Lynn Kriwoken.

“Major breakthroughs happen when decision-makers in government work with grass-roots visionaries in the community to create the future desired by all. Collaboration grows from a shared vision about the future and commitment to action. This is the ‘top down and bottom up’ approach,” states Eric Bonham. “It is about turning the whole game around to ‘design with nature’ as a consistent approach to development and redevelopment, urban infrastructure practices, and protection/restoration of stream and watershed health.”

Beyond the Guidebook 2010 is a ‘telling of the stories’ of how change is being implemented on the ground in British Columbia. The practitioner and community culture is changing as an outcome of collaboration, partnerships and alignment. Changing the culture requires a process. This takes time to complete. “It is a great resource, well written. Down to earth, and in line with what the Water Sustainability Action Plan speaks about – connecting the dots and giving useful tools and road maps for success. It is an easy read, and captivating with the stories, quotes and pictures,” states Kathy Bishop.

“Over the last 10 years, the Partnership has accomplished much. Through a strategic partnership with the Ministry of Environment, we developed the Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia, which provided the framework for our work.Yet, much still remains to be accomplished,” states Raymond Fung. “By 2010, the aspirations of the group were exceeding the support that BCWWA was able to provide. So by mutual consent, the original Water Sustainability Committee transformed itself into an independent, non-profit Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia.”

“The Partnership embraces shared responsibility and is committed to advancing water sustainability planning and implementation in British Columbia. We are in for the long haul.  Watersheds are fundamental to our settlements. By working to balance watershed health with settlement prosperity, communities can sustain their well-being,” stated Tim Pringle. “The Partnership for Water Sustainability established its Convening for Action initiative to support communities to understand this equation and move to implementation.”