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“In February 2003, a staff report to the Board crystallized the Action for Water vision,” recalled John Finnie. “The 2003 report is a valuable historical document, and built on what the RDN initiated through participation in the Guidebook development process. Not only did it consolidate various directives, it identified a strategy (and associated implications) for moving forward incrementally with the regional service area.”

Feedback on the Nanaimo Water Symposium is represented by this testimonial from Craig Wightman, Living Rivers: “I want to congratulate and thank the members of the Organizing Committee for their sterling efforts in organizing and staging the joint NALT/Partnership Symposium on Wednesday-Thursday. I thought it was very professional and well-received by a large audience of VI water stewardship leaders. I know there was no formal feedback form for attendees, but also think you’ll be receiving many kudos either personally or by email over the next few days.”

The term ‘restorative development’ was coined by the writer Storm Cunningham in his first book ;The Restoration Economy’, published in 2002. Because he has made multiple presentations to British Columbia audiences over the years, and has a particular affinity for Vancouver Island, the Symposium program caught his long-distance attention. On the eve of the Symposium, Storm Cunningham shared his reflections in an interview. His insights provide useful context regarding the challenge of moving from awareness to implementation.

Anecdotal evidence suggests a groundswell of heightened awareness of the watershed context for ‘the creek that flows through my backyard’. “Within our growing urban areas, as our community becomes more diverse, being able to reconnect through nature offers the chance to reconnect with each other. By working to restore our urban watercourses, new and old neighbours are building connections between our natural spaces that will lead to a stronger sense of stewardship in future,” stated Rob Lawrance.

In April 2017, staff from the three mid-Vancouver Island regional districts met in Duncan. Their primary purpose in meeting was to inform and educate the Cowichan Valley Regional Board about a range of approaches to watershed management functions and watershed protection plans on Vancouver Island. “The Regional District of Nanaimo (RDN) and Comox Valley presentations to our Regional Board were of high quality and relevant,” stated Brian Carruthers. A year later, options for a potential establishment bylaw were presented to Board members.

“Communication, cooperation, coordination and collaboration – have you thought about the power of the 4Cs? When all four are in play, good things happen,” states Derek Richmond. “Are you also aware of the beneficial outcomes that are flowing from collaboration between local government and the stewardship sector in the Nanaimo region? A groundswell of heightened awareness is translating into involvement and empowerment to make a difference. Join us on April 11-12 to learn more.”

“The program is structured as three modules to enable the audience to have an informed conversation,” stated John Finnie. “Context is everything. Hence, two co-keynote presentations in Module A will set the context and prime participants for a town-hall sharing and learning session in Module B about restorative development. In the afternoon, a set of four reflective presentations will introduce building blocks for achieving Sustainable Watershed Systems.”

“Until we stabilize the composition of the Earth’s atmosphere, phenomena such as atmospheric rivers are likely to cause greater flooding and related economic damage widely – forever making sustainability and adaptive resilience a moving target. So what will we do?” asks Bob Sandford. Adapting to climate change requires a paradigm-shift in how we perceive watershed worth and service land. The audience will be asked to reflect on this question: How will communities ‘get it right’ through collaboration as land develops and redevelops?

Over the past decade, Richard Boase has been a key member of the Partnership for Water Sustainability team for training workshops and “sharing and learning” sessions in Metro Vancouver, Capital Region, Cowichan Valley, Comox Valley and Nanaimo Region. “The time has come to assertively push our politicians to make the hard decisions now for the benefit of our future generations; and to follow through with policy, regulations and bylaws that require simple, landscape-based, outcome-driven solutions so that we can start watershed restoration now,” said Richard Boase in 2010.

“All one need do is reflect on what British Columbia has experienced in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Impacts are magnified by human interventions. We have arrived at a fork in the road,” says Kim Stephens. “The situation calls for a whole-systems approach to managing the water balance distribution where people live. The risks are too high, and the margins for error too small, to view water and watersheds only through narrow technical lenses. Adapting to changes in the water cycle and restoring the water balance starts with rethinking our relationship with nature.”