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“We now realize that our current risk assessments with respect to climate disruption are built on confidence in relative hydrologic stability that no longer exists. This changes everything. We had no idea until recently of how much influence the hydrological cycle has on our day to day lives or on the broader conditions that define the distribution and diversity of life on this planet,” states Bob Sandford.

“The Irrigation Industry Association of BC and the Partnership for Water Sustainability are again partnering to co-host and jointly organize a workshop about water management. This is the fourth consecutive year that our organizations have collaborated,” states Kim Kim Schaefer. This year the workshop moves to the Okanagan after being held in the Lower Mainland (2013, 2015) and on Vancouver Island (2014). The workshop will address both immediate and long term water security issues.

The REFBC has been making grants in support of the health and resilience of natural freshwater systems for many years. “Freshwater sustainability is making choices that protect freshwater resources now and in the future,” states Jack Wong. “In a 2014 public opinion poll we commissioned, we found that 93% of British Columbians view water as our most precious natural resource. Water connects us to prosperity, quality of life and a sense of ‘home’.”

Loved by audiences across Canada for making complex scientific issues understandable, meaningful, and fun, Bob McDonald has been a fixture in radio and television broadcasting for more than 30 years. “A global perspective reminds us of the limited availability of fresh water on the planet, a vital life sustaining resource that demands a raised level of consciousness and commitment,” says Bob McDonald.

The workshop program is structured as four modules and is cascading – from high-level visioning to ground-level applications. Adaptation to a changing climate is a unifying theme. Both the urban and agricultural perspectives are represented. “The workshop will explore the role of water from the global to the local. The particular journey facing the Okanagan Basin includes the impact of climate change, water security, population demand and food security issues,” states Ted van der Gulik.