Preparing for Climate Change in the Fraser Basin: How Can our Water Management Systems Adapt?
On November 6, 2007 the Fraser Basin Council (FBC) hosted a workshop in Vancouver on adaptive decision-making, water management and climate 
change. The workshop explored links between climate change adaptation strategies and decision-making processes in the Fraser Basin.
To learn more about the issues, read the Workshop Backgrounder and Workshop Summary.
The workshop brought together approximately 40 participants currently active in climate change from diverse fields including four orders of government, industry and businesses, non-government organizations, professionals and academics.
Presentation Team:
The presenters for this thought-provoking session comprised:
- Climate Change in the Fraser Basin: Overview of Future Trends
Bob Peart, FBC Director, President, Nexus Learning Group - Visualizing Climate Change at the Community Level
Dr. Alison Shaw, UBC Collaborative for Advanced Landscape Planning - Approaches to Adaptation – Resolving a 2030 Scenario
John Anderson, Rancher
Bob Ransford, Counterpoint Communications
Mark Edwards, Teck Cominco
Kim Stephens, Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia
Copies of PowerPoint presentations can be obtained by contacting the Fraser Basin Council. Email requests to Elizabeth Henry: ehenry at fraserbasin.bc.ca
To read what Kim Stephens said when he presented his practitioner’s perspective, please click on this link to Dealing with Uncertainty ands Managing Risk: How we can adapt Water Management Systems.
Workshop Goal:
The workshop was organized by the Council's Climate Change Task Committee to increase awareness around climate change adaptation strategies. According to Jim Vanderwal, Program Manager for the Fraser Basin Council, “The goal of the workshop was to facilitate dialogue on climate change and adaptive planning / decision-making in water management. The workshop was also held in order to guide future FBC programs related to climate change and adaptation.”
Workshop Structure:
Workshop participants were presented with a hypothetical climate change / water crisis scenario set in 2030. Speakers representing diverse fields of thought presented four responses to the water crisis scenario. After the solutions were presented, participants broke into small, multi-sectored, working groups to further discuss adaptation strategies.
Posted December 2007