MODULE D – DAY TWO – PARKSVILLE 2019 SYMPOSIUM: “In the late ’90s, I began noticing a miraculous new trend: a number of places – both ecosystems and communities – were actually getting better, some spectacularly so,” stated Storm Cunningham, author & global thought leader
Note to Reader:
Click on PARKSVILLE SYMPOSIUM AGENDA to download a package that elaborates on the presentation topics in each of the four modules that comprise the program on each symposium day. Parksville 2019 is a call to action. Read together, the set of abstracts create a seamless storyline that is designed to inform delegates so that they will know what to expect on April 3-4 when they convene in Parksville.
MODULE D: We Can Create the Future We Want
Storm Cunningham is a global thought leader. In The Restoration Economy, 2002, he showed how “restorative development” would drive economies in the 21st century.
In the concluding module, Storm Cunningham will reflect on what he heard throughout the 2-day symposium. He will connect dots when he relates Vancouver Island initiatives to this perspective on the complete solution:
“Visionaries, designers, planners, policy makers, and project managers abound. Strategists are rare. As a result, resilience and revitalization efforts often fail due to 1) bad strategy, and 2) no strategy. Strategies are our path to success. They become our primary interface with the world. Thus, what we restore, restores us. What we revitalize, revitalizes us,” states Storm Cunningham.
At the conclusion of Storm Cunningham’s concluding observations, it is hoped that delegates will understand that essential ingredients for restorative land development encompass: vision, strategy to deliver the vision, and commitment to implement an ongoing program.
Why it is happening
“In the late ’90s, I began noticing a miraculous new trend: a number of places – both ecosystems and communities – were actually getting better, some spectacularly so,” states Storm Cunningham.
“During the last two decades of the twentieth century, we failed to notice a turning point of immense significance. New development – the development mode that has dominated the past three centuries – lost significant ‘market share’ to another mode: restorative development. How could we miss a story like that?
“More importantly, why is it happening? Primarily, it’s because we’ve now developed most of the world that can be developed without destroying some other inherent value or vital function of that property. The major driver of economic growth in the twenty-first century will thus be redeveloping our nations, revitalizing our cities, and rehabilitating and expanding our ecosystems.
“Maturing civilizations stand on three legs: new development (adaptive conquest); maintenance/conservation; and restorative development (adaptive renewal). Dominance periodically shifts from one leg to another, fundamentally altering technology, culture, and commerce. We are now in such a transition.”
TO LEARN MORE:
Download PARKSVILLE SYMPOSIUM AGENDA.
To read the consolidated story of all four modules on Day Two, click on RESTORATIVE LAND DEVELOPMENT: Parksville 2019 Symposium organizing committee releases the Detailed Agenda for Day Two (April 4) – “Getting It Right by Making Better Land Use Decisions”.