Archive:

2025

LIVING WATER SMART IN BRITISH COLUMBIA: “I would like to say taxpayers are unhappy but that would be an understatement. They are angry! Everywhere there is distrust,” stated Arnold Schwabe, Executive Director with Asset Management BC


“Things are changing in local government and we need to get a better handle on what direction that change goes. And I believe that distrust results from failure to communicate the purposes of local government as defined in the Community Charter for municipalities and in the Local Government Act for regional districts. When elected officials get so far into the weeds that they tell staff how to do their job, that creates problems. So, what do we do? We reset. It is clearly a time of change. This isn’t about blame. It is about putting pieces together,” stated Arnold Schwabe.

Read Article

COUNTERBALANCE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE WITH NATURAL INTELLIGENCE! – “The promotion of AI as the greatest thing since sliced bread is constant and we really must counterbalance that. A consequence of the AI drumbeat is the loss of our connection to the natural world,” stated Michael Blackstock, co-founder of the Blue Ecology Institute, and ambassador of the Partnership for Water Sustainability in BC


“During the day I listen to the stock market channel on the radio. The talk is constant now about AI. Companies are embracing it because it is viewed as the greatest thing since sliced bread. My observation is that we are being firehosed. It just seems that humans are going down this artificial rabbit hole where business believes technology is going to solve everything; and it is happening with no apparent awareness of unintended consequences,” stated Michael Blackstock.

Read Article

LIVING WATER SMART IN BRITISH COLUMBIA: “Increasing awareness of Indigenous wisdom related to water and climate change supports the 10-year goals of the Cowichan Drinking Water and Watershed Protection program. Blue Ecology is a work plan element,” stated Kim Stephens of the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia


“The Partnership for Water Sustainability is all-in with our support for Michael Blackstock and Blue Ecology. In fact, our collaboration with Michael is living proof of what it means to walk the talk and lead by example when it comes to interweaving Indigenous and Western views of water. Leading by example is playing out in the Cowichan Valley Regional District. The umbrella for our current collaboration with the regional district is the Blue Ecology in the Cowichan initiative. Building bridges between two cultures is about a mind-set change,” stated Kim Stephens.

Read Article

LIVING WATER SMART IN BRITISH COLUMBIA: Barry Janyk, former 4-term mayor of Gibsons on the Sunshine Coast, had a vision for what a community is and what makes the community a great place to live –– that set him apart from most mayors and most municipal elected officials


No shrinking violet, Barry Janyk brought a larger-than-life personality to preserving the Town of Gibsons’ small-town charm during his 12 years as mayor of the Sunshine Coast community. He had a witty and irreverent sense of humour and believed politics should be fun. Barry Janyk was also known provincially –– he served as chair of the Island Coastal Economic Trust, chair of the Association of Vancouver Island Communities, and a director of the Union of BC Municipalities. In the final chapter of his left, he served as Executive Director of the BC Rural Centre.

Read Article

LIVING WATER SMART IN BRITISH COLUMBIA: “Deep knowledge is rapidly being lost. Organizational amnesia is the consequence, and this creates risks and liabilities for communities,” stated Kim Stephens, Executive Director with the Partnership for Water Sustainability


“In our current ‘interesting’ times, deep knowledge is needed more than ever to chart the way forward through mine fields,” stated Kim Stephens. “Loss of continuity is happening just when continuity of understanding is needed most. Knowing what we know, the Partnership believes the moment is right to brand 2025 as THE YEAR OF THE RE-SET. This means implement a course correction so that governments would maintain and manage engineered and natural assets as interconnected components within a system that includes the people who live there.”

Read Article