CHRONICLE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INNOVATION IN METRO VANCOUVER – PART E: When Carol Mason was Metro Vancouver CAO, her support was instrumental in helping to secure commitments from five regional boards to each provide seed funding that then triggered senior government grants and launched full-scale implementation of the Georgia Basin Inter-Regional Education Initiative in 2012
Note to Reader:
Published by the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, Waterbucket eNews celebrates the leadership of individuals and organizations who are guided by the Living Water Smart vision. Stories are structured in three parts: One-Minute Takeaway, Editor’s Perspective (reproduced below), and the Story Behind the Story.
The edition published on April 21, 2026 featured the fifth installment of the Chronicle of Green Infrastructure Innovation in Metro Vancouver. Part E covers the period 2012 through 2017. This sweeping narrative weaves quotable quotes to provide the reader with a perspective on Metro Vancouver collaboration with four other regional districts bordering the Salish Sea.
While it was a defining period for inter-regional collaboration, something happened in Metro Vancouver to change the trajectory. After 2017, the gap between understanding and implementation widened rather than being bridged.
EDITOR’S PERSPECTIVE / CONTEXT FOR BUSY READER – by Kim Stephens
“Why is knowing this history important?” stated Kim Stephens, Waterbucket eNews Editor and Partnership Executive Director.
“What can we learn from the period 2012 through 2017?”
“What takeaways and insights should we apply in 2026? Will we?”
Context is everything. Polarization, COVID and AI. This harmful combination impacted the trajectory for what might otherwise have been achieved through peer-based learning and collaboration across boundaries.
A decade later, restoration of urban watershed health is an “unfulfilled promise.” Why? Because inertia stymies universal, consistent implementation of effective standards of development practice.
Vision for settlement, economy and ecology in balance is still our Mission Possible
“It matters how we share information to ensure concepts are conveyed to, and understood by, the people who need to know. Solutions to the issues of our time lie in WHAT stories we tell and HOW we tell those stories. That is the value of the Green Infrastructure Chronicle as legacy resource.”
“Coming out of the 2006 through 2011 “golden period”, peer-based learning and collaboration had demonstrated what could be. When all the players know their role in relation to the goal, together we can create the future we all want. We continue to remind our audiences that is how they can achieve mission impact.”
Open minds, overcome inertia, implement effective standards of practice
“Ten guiding principles flow from local government experience gained through the Convening for Action in British Columbia program. These principles are actionable, essential ingredients for achieving Mission Possible which is settlement, economy and ecology in balance.”
To Learn More:
Waterbucket eNews stories are structured in three parts: One-Minute Takeaway, Editor’s Perspective and Context for Busy Reader, and the Story Behind the Story. To read the complete 3-part storyline, download a PDF copy of Living Water Smart in British Columbia: Open Minds, Overcome Inertia, Implement Effective Standards of Practice for Urban Watershed Health in British Columbia.
DOWNLOAD A COPY: https://waterbucket.ca/gi/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2026/04/PWSBC_Living-Water-Smart_Kim-Stephens-on-Overcoming-Inertia_2026_with-Part-E.pdf