Tag:

intergenerational collaboration

    CONTEXT AND HISTORY REALLY DO MATTER: “In the moment, extreme events can be overwhelming. But the big picture situation is by no means hopeless. My key message is to view climate change as another variable, not a driver. Understand the system context because climate adaptation is about water, whereas climate mitigation is about carbon,” stated Kim Stephens, Executive Director, Partnership for Water Sustainability in BC (Sept 2021)


    “The risks are real. Droughts affect all of us. BC is on fire and streams are drying up. We do not have the luxury of time to implement solutions. And we certainly cannot afford to reinvent the wheel due to generational and/or corporate amnesia. Context and history really do matter because it takes a career to develop perspective and understanding of what works and what does not. Because there is no silver bullet, communities need to do many little things to adapt to the new climate reality,” stated Kim Stephens.

    Read Article

    DOWNLOAD A COPY OF: “Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Adapting to Climate Realities / Context and History Do Matter!” released by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in September 2021


    “Every generation is handed a world that has been shaped by their predecessors – and then seemingly forgets that fact. New generations have a habit of collectively forgetting how positive social change comes about through the dogged activism of minorities once shunned. But if the most recent generation is forgetful about the positive steps and changes handed to them by their forebears, then so too can they fail to notice how those predecessors have damaged the world too,” stated Richard Fisher.

    Read Article

    HIDDEN VALUE OF INTERGENERATIONAL COLLABORATION: “My experience is that collaboration between the generations is easier than most people think and the generational differences are not that wide. Also, intergenerational teams are much more innovative,” stated Kate Rushton, UK-based community strategist


    “Two years ago I attended my first intergenerational innovation challenge. It was not my last. Afterwards, I occasionally thought about this new way of working. It sparked my interest in intergenerational co-creation. Not only as a way to build bridges between generations but as a way to innovate in general. By using an older adult’s experience-based knowledge, which is known also known as deep smarts, and the younger generation’s fresh eyes and new perspectives intergenerational co-creation can help create more rounded solutions,” stated Kate Rushton.

    Read Article

    ENGAGE AND ALIGN ORGANIZATIONS WITHIN A NETWORK: “The Partnership brings individuals and organizations together to achieve a shared goal. Otherwise, they tend to become wrapped up within their own worlds and rarely venture beyond their boundaries,” stated Derek Richmond, a Founding Director of the Partnership for Water Sustainability


    “The Partnership defines success in terms of how our partners incrementally make progress in achieving the vision for Living Water Smart in British Columbia. By that, we mean reconnect people, land, water and fish in altered landscapes! Bringing this vision to fruition requires an inter-generational commitment. The Partnership has a primary goal, to build bridges of understanding and pass the baton from the past to the present and future. The role of elders is therefore a lynch-pin for inter-generational collaboration,” stated Derek Richmond.

    Read Article

    DOWNLOAD A COPY OF: “Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Power of Collaborative Leadership” – released by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in June 2021


    “The Partnership is a legal entity, yet operationally it functions as a network rather than as an organization in any conventional sense. The work of The Partnership is guided by a network way-of-thinking that reflects our genesis as a water-centric technical committee in the 1990s. We recognize that to be successful in facilitating changes in practice over the long-term, the groundwork has to be done by our partners. This means that the work of The Partnership must be aligned with and support their organizational objectives,” stated Mike Tanner.

    Read Article

    DOWNLOAD A COPY OF: “Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Short-Term Gratification versus Long-Term Legacy” – released by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in May 2021


    “In British Columbia at least, we know what we need to do to adapt to a changing water cycle. Whether and how we deal with uncertainty, manage risk, and adapt to droughts and floods will depend on how effective we are in encouraging a spirit of inter-generational collaboration among decision-makers at all levels within government and with community. The goal would be to build bridges of understanding and pass the baton from the past to the present and future,” stated Kim Stephens.

    Read Article

    SHORT-TERM GRATIFICATION VS INTER-GENERATIONAL LEGACY: “If we truly want our governments to shift from short-term to longer term thinking, as voters we must then be prepared to support – and re-elect – those politicians who bring in such policies and legislation, even if those initiatives negatively impact us personally today,” stated Joan Sawicki, a former Speaker of the BC Legislative Assembly and Minister of Environment, Lands and Parks during the period 1991 through 2001


    “Not many people understand the decision-making process that politicians and public employees go through in attempts to address ‘the public interest’. Voters often send mixed messages. While it is perfectly legitimate to hold politicians’ “feet to the fire”, there is some justification to do the reverse as well! It is sometimes too convenient to blame politicians for the short term thinking hole that we are in. In a representative democracy, politicians can only lead where people are prepared to follow,” stated Joan Sawicki.

    Read Article