Capital Regional District Board endorses Vancouver Island Inter-Regional Education Initiative
Coordinated Inter-Regional Information Sharing Process
Vancouver Island is a hot-bed of progressive ideas and provincially significant initiatives. Under the umbrella of CAVI-Convening for Action on Vancouver Island, four regional districts and municipal members are aligning their efforts to advance an Inter-Regional Education Initiative. The initiative supports implementation of watershed-based strategies and programs in these four regions: Comox Valley, Nanaimo Region, Cowichan Valley and Capital Region.
CAVI began as a grass-roots initiative, now falls under the umbrella of the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia, and is a provincial demonstration application for moving from talk (awareness) to action (practice).
“The Capital Regional District (CRD) and partner municipalities have been leaders within the CAVI initiative since 2008 – initially through participation in the Vancouver Island Showcasing Green Infrastructure Innovation Series; and subsequently through hosting of the Bowker Creek Forum as an inter-regional “sharing and learning” event in February 2010. More recently, the CRD was an integral part of the provincial pilot Course on the ISMP Course Correction, held in November 2011,” states Kim Stephens, Partnership Executive Director.
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The Capital Regional District is currently implementing a two-year Integrated Watershed Management Strategy in the region’s core area; and also provides watershed protection and/or monitoring services to four other municipalities and the three electoral areas. Partnering under the CAVI umbrella will provide opportunities to better deliver on our commitments,” states Glenn Harris, Senior Manager, Environmental Protection Division, Environmental Sustainability Department.
“Our staff has worked collaboratively with the CAVI team since 2008. The region’s precedent-setting Bowker Creek Blueprint, for example, is part of the curriculum for a CAVI course on developing Integrated Rainwater Management Plans that achieve watershed sustainability outcomes.”
“Board support for the Inter-Regional Education Initiative enables CRD staff participation in a coordinated inter-regional information sharing process. Local governments will benefit from the information sharing between four Vancouver Island regional districts, learn from the experiences of the other regional districts, and be able to participate in workshops delivered locally and elsewhere on Vancouver Island,” concludes Glenn Harris.
To Learn More:
To download a copy of the staff report endorsing the Inter-Regional Education Initiative, click here. And click here to download a copy of the Board Resolution.
