Convening for Action in British Columbia

“Here in the Okanagan we are facing our own water issues as a result of unsustainable forms of development that are now leading to unprecedented levels of habitat and species extinction. Equity of access to water is also an issue that is becoming more problematic as water becomes an increasingly scarce resource,” stated John Wagner.

The Policy Research Initiative held a 3-day conference on the future of freshwater policies in Gatineau, Quebec. “Instead of looking at water as a product, alternative approaches to water management consider water as one Gatineau conference – cate soroczanmeans for providing a service – and not always the only or even the best one. This session explored various perspectives on water management,” stated Cate Soroczan, chair of a panel that included two BC perspectives.

“We build capacity through a 3-step process. First, we challenge practitioners and others to step back from their existing paradigms. Then we inform our audiences regarding alternatives. Finally, we provide the tools and experience to do things differently. The desired outcome is to turn ideas into action on-the-ground,” explained Ray Fung.

“The summit model was used because it focused on issues and responses and has resulted in an outline for action that follows from presentations on key water management themes in the South Okanagan and dialogue between presenters, panelists and participants,” stated Erik Karlsen.

“Poster content is developed by water experts for specific communities in close collaboration with community representatives and educators through an iterative process of face-to-face discussion and focus groups. As a result, Waterscape posters reflect water issues that are most relevant to the local community, and have a sound scientific and technical underpinning,” stated Bob Turner.

The Gaining Ground conference program was designed to foster a convergence of ideas and people, approaches and professions, to ensure the conference ‘conversation’ is rich and charged with potential for new thought and collaboration. World class speakers included Paul Hawken.

The “Celebrating Green Infrastructure Program” was launched in May 2006 when the first event in the 'Showcasing Innovation Series'was hosted by the District of North Vancouver. The Greater Vancouver program was a provincial pilot.

“The decision to focus on the Town was a logical one because the Oliver region is the focal point for a Smart Growth on the Ground community planning initiative; as well, numerous provincial and federal agencies are concentrating their program efforts in the South Okanagan”, reports Kim Stephens.

“Convening for Action in the South Okanagan is playing a role by bringing together people who have knowledge and expertise with those who seek ways to meet present and future water sustainability challenges in their communities,” stated Kim Stephens. “Our goal is to deliver a highly transparent process where everyone gets a voice, everyone sees their interests recorded and considered, and everyone is proactively engaged to focus on results.”

“In 2005, we created the beneficial balance graphic to help Okanagan communities visualize how to address challenging priorities for land and water. The three circles represent core concepts emerging from the discussion of settlement, economic growth and water supply pressures. We define the intersection of these circles as the beneficial balance,” stated Tim Pringle.