FLASHBACK TO 2009: Convening for Action to advance Smart Planning & Living Water Smart in British Columbia – the “Penticton Forum” showcased partnerships, collaboration, innovation and integration in three regions (Vancouver Island, Metro Vancouver and Vancouver Island)
Note to Reader:
Held as an adjunct to the Annual BCWWA Conference in April 2009, the Penticton Forum showcased three regions where communities are ‘convening for action’ and embracing a ‘regional team approach’ to make a difference.
The Penticton Forum also showcased web-based provincial tools that have been developed to help communities achieve water sustainability through truly green development.
2009 Penticton Forum – a flagship event for “Convening for Action”
This flagship event addressed the following challenge: How do we align our efforts at three scales – provincial, regional and local – to do business differently, prepare communities for change, and choose to be water smart?
“The Province’s Living Water Smart and Green Communities initiatives provide a framework and direction for convening for action in the Okanagan, on Vancouver Island and in Metro Vancouver. Each regional initiative is developing a vision and road map for achieving settlement in balance with ecology,” stated Glen Brown.
At the time he was an Executive Director with the Ministry of Community Development; and was Chair of the Water Sustainability Committee.
The Summer 2009 issue of Watermark Magazine, published by the British Columbia Water & Waste Association, included an article about the Penticton Forum.
To Learn More:
Download The 2009 Penticton Forum: Showcasing partnerships, collaboration, innovation and integration, the article co-authored by Glen Brown and Kim Stephens.
Smart Planning & Living Water Smart in British Columbia
The Forum was designed to be of educational value to elected representatives. It was especially relevant to municipal administrators, municipal engineers, and municipal planners; water resource and land use planners; and water conservation, green infrastructure and drainage practitioners. The Forum was also be of value to those in the conservation and stewardship sector.
To Learn More:
For an overview of the Agenda and the four modules that comprised the program, click on Lesson Plan – Draft Outline of What We Want to Achieve.
The Story of the 2009 Penticton Forum
A series of weekly stories that progressively connected the dots, and foreshadowed what participants could expect in each module, was published on waterbucket.ca and are listed below.
Story #1 titled Smart Planning & Living Water Smart: Approaches & Tools for Doing Business Differently in BC described the scope of each module in order to foreshadow what to expect.
Story #2 titled Doing Business Differently – Convening for Action in the Georgia Basin elaborated on how a ‘regional team approach’ is being advanced on Vancouver Island and in Metro Vancouver to establish consistent expectations when making ‘green choices’.
Story #3 titled Doing Business Differently – Convening for Action in the Okanagan explained what it means to have a clear vision, what is possible when the vision is shared, and how ‘convening for action’ is taking place in the Okanagan.
Story #4 titled Creating Our Future: Sustainability by Design & The Natural City Vision foreshadowed the ‘book-end roles’ that Patrick Condon and Vic Derman will play in setting the context and providing a blueprint for action, respectively.
Story #5 titled Creating Our Future: Today’s Expectations are Tomorrow’s Standards for Living Water Smartprovided an overview of the provincial policy framework that enables local governments to design their communities in harmony with water.
Storey #6 titled on Town Hall Sharing: How Will Embracing the Living Water Smart Vision Help Your Community Do Business Differently?foreshadowed how audience interaction would be achieved, and how we can build commitment and motivate British Columbians to want to change.
The six stories are consolidated in a stand-alone document titled Convening for Action and Making Green Choices in British Columbia: The Story of the 2009 Pentiction Forum.