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Watershed Moments

    WATERSHED MOMENTS 2023: “My experience with elected representatives is that it always comes down to the people and how they get along. And how they act, and how they lead. Staff can only carry things so far,” stated Brian Carruthers, former Chief Administrative Officer with the Cowichan Valley Regional District (January 2023)


    “The question was, and still is, how do we rekindle that energy and fire in the belly? How do we rekindle that support for this important work amongst our elected officials? How do we bring the Cowichan Tribes, Cowichan Watershed Board and CVRD, as well as the other groups back together again? You need to have that political will to say, this is important. Only when someone who is elected takes the lead, and is the champion, does something happen. With a new Board, I believe there is a real opportunity to strike early and bring CVRD and Cowichan Tribes together to re-start the water conversation,” stated Brian Carruthers.

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    REGISTRATION IS OPEN FOR WATERSHED MOMENTS 2023: “A Pathway to Water Reconciliation and Resilience at the Local Scale”- register now for the Blue Ecology Virtual Seminar on February 23, 2023


    “From 7PM until 9PM on February 23rd, the team of Michael Blackstock, Brian Carruthers and Richard Boase will seed the idea that hope lies within the sphere of local government, whether that be non-Indigenous or Indigenous That is the scale where actions do matter. In an interactive online broadcast via YouTube, Richard will moderate a free-flowing conversation between Michael and Brian. The goal is that this dynamic trio will light a spark with their enthusiasm and leave the audience with hope,” states Paul Chapman, Chair of the Watershed Moments Symposia Series.

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    BLUE ECOLOGY IS A PATHWAY TO WATER RECONCILIATION: A panel comprising Michael Blackstock, Brian Carruthers and Richard Boase is primed to deliver the virtual seminar in a free-flowing format broadcast live via YouTube on February 23, 2023


    Richard Boase will moderate a conversation between Michael Blackstock, creator of the Blue Ecology methodologhy, and Brian Carruthers, a respected and long-time Chief Administrative Officer in local government. Richard Boase brings passion, enthusiasm and a sense of humour to the moderator role. “In a preview story about the seminar, the Partnership has published reflections by Michael Blackstock and Brian Carruthers. These were recorded during a ‘proof of concept’ conversation and foreshadow the chemistry and candour that the audience can expect from a free-flowing conversation,” stated Richard Boase

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    BLUE ECOLOGY IS A PATHWAY TO WATER RECONCILIATION: “Blue Ecology will help remove some of the fear on the part of local government. Then, together, we can move towards the hope spectrum more easily and creatively,” says Michael Blackstock, independent Indigenous scholar and creator of the Blue Ecology methodology


    “My hope lies in local government because local people understand their local area. And at the local scale, we are able to self-organize better on specific execution of executable tasks. I have lived in many communities throughout BC and have learned that those towns each have their own culture. So, local knowledge is important, whether it is Indigenous or non-Indigenous. With the Blue Ecology bridging seminar, my hope lies in Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities working together, with a foundation that was designed to be jointly respectful of each other’s way of thinking,” stated Michael Blackstock.

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    BLUE ECOLOGY 101, A PATHWAY TO WATER RECONCILIATION: “Watershed Moments 2023, the Blue Ecology Virtual Seminar, is designed to inform local government elected representatives about Blue Ecology, which is about interweaving Indigenous and non-Indigenous ways of knowing,” stated Kim Stephens, Co-Chair of the Watershed Moments Symposia Series


    “Are you wondering what local government councillors and directors will learn by attending the Blue Ecology seminar on February 23rd? And are you curious as to how this learning might inform local decision processes for interweaving Indigenous and non-Indigenous perspectives? Communities have a once in a generation opportunity to get our relationships with both right, and then start back down the river of time – this time together. Blue Ecology is a water-first approach to interweaving Indigenous and Western perspectives. Oral history, land and water stewardship, and inter-generational baton. These are foundational pieces for water reconciliation,” stated Kim Stephens.

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    GEORGIA BASIN INTER-REGIONAL EDUCATION INITIATIVE: “In the IREI program, we focus attention on the 4Cs – communication, cooperation, coordination, collaboration. The 4Cs guide what we do. We live and breathe collaboration. Building trust and respect starts with a conversation,” stated Richard Boase, Founding Director and Vice-President of the Partnership for Water Sustainability


    Launched in 2012, the IREI facilitates peer-based learning among local governments located on the east coast of Vancouver Island and in the Lower Mainland. The IREI builds on the legacy of Erik Karlsen whose leadership inspired the original Georgia Basin Initiative in 1994. “The IREI is nested within the Water Sustainability Action Plan which, in turn, is nested within Living Water Smart. Cascading is the reverse way to think about this nesting concept. Each successive layer in the cascade adds depth and detail to enable the move from awareness to implementation – that is, action.,” stated Richard Boase.

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