Archive for September, 2008
CSIN Learning Event on Sustainable Community Planning Tuesday September 30, 2008 11am CT
Sep 17th
One of CSIN’s most exciting knowledge transmission tools are our online Learning Events. Using web-conferencing technology, practitioners gather around the virtual meeting table to learn about each other’s initiatives and to get feedback on their own work. Learning Events are designed and presented by CSIN members themselves and are open to all members. The networks next Learning Event is planned for Tuesday September 30th 2008 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. central time. The event is hosted using a virtual meeting room power by Elluminate Live software. The use of this virtual meeting room has been generously donated to CSIN by Thompson Rivers University.
The 28th CSIN Learning Event will feature a presentation of the key findings of leading sustainability indicators research conducted in early 2008. The research was carried out at the Blekinge Institute of Technology by four Canadian Masters students enrolled in the Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability program. The review process was enriched with input from top Canadian experts in the field. Measuring Success – Indicators for Strategic Approaches to Sustainable Community Planning investigates how communities can identify and design indicators to measure and monitor the performance of their sustainability planning efforts. In summary, the research suggests process indicators provide the structure in which to monitor planning at every level and across disciplines so that appropriate socio-ecological indicators can then be derived, while simultaneously ensuring more effective governance. A brief overview of the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD) – the foundation upon which the research is built – will be provided to offer a science-based and principled definition of sustainability, as well as a method for structuring, evaluating and informing the design of indicators. The presentation will encourage participation and attempt to enable as much discussion as possible about the relevancy, applicability and utility of the research.
For information on becoming a CSIN member or to register for this Learning Event please contact csin@iisd.ca.
Future Leaders in Barcelona
Sep 12th
I have the pleasure of inviting everyone interested in the future of sustainable development to a workhop hosted by IISD at the 4th IUCN World Conservation Congress in Barcelona, October 5 to 14, 2008.
Our workshop “Supporting the Next Generation of Sustainable Development Leadership” will be held Thursday, October 9 from 14:30 – 16:00 in room 127 at the CCIB, the international convention centre in Barcleona. This session is for institutions, donors and young professionals who want to work together to shape training for the future.
The objective of the workshop is to establish a consortium of leading international sustainability organizations to co-ordinate next generation leadership training as a global endeavor. Our goal is to ensure that the sustainable development work being done today is continued into the future.
The workshop will begin with several short presentations by researchers and young professionals on the current status of leadership training, followed by facilitated breakout groups designed to develop a series of concrete steps to increase international investment in sustainable development leadership training. A paper on, “Supporting the Next Generation of Sustainable Development Leadership,” will also be released at the workshop.
Our partners for the workshop include, LEAD International, WWF International, International Institute for Environment and Development, World Business Council for Sustainable Development – Future Leaders Team, Ramsar International, IUCN World Commission on Parks and Protected Areas, and the IUCN Commission on Education and Communication.
There are also a number of planned activites for younger people taking place at Congress. These include the delivery of the following seven workshops:
- Turning the tide: A Pacific youth vision of leadership on climate change; Inspiring business to become Leaders for Nature;
- Ecosystem Scenarios: a fresh perspective on 2050 (Learning Opportunity);
- Intergenerational Partnership with the IUCN: Fostering ethical leadership for a just, sustainable, and peaceful world, A vote to future generations for safeguarding present resources;
- Investing in the future: young leaders and protected areas ;
- Sustaining our Future: shaping the role of youth in Europe ; and
- Supporting the Next Generation of Sustainable Development Leadership.
Each morning at 8:45 a.m., we are inviting young people and anyone interested in networking and sharing their thoughts on the previous day’s sessions to gather in front of the IUCN Commission on Education and Communication Stand.
The work above has been a result of a number of individuals within IUCN and its member organizations who believe building the capacity of the next generation of leaders is essential to ensuring a sustainable future.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Environmental Assessment and Saskatchewan First Nations
Sep 10th
IISD has just released an important new tool to help First Nations communities build capacity to better understand the process of environmental assessment (EA) during a time of great change in the development of natural resources in Saskatchewan.
The Environmental Assessment and Saskatchewan’s First Nations: A Resource Handbook is a first step in assisting Saskatchewan’s First Nations communities to build capacity and improve their understandings of EA. Tailored workshops and briefings are being prepared for communities and organizations wishing to develop their knowledge further.
Having previously worked as a Regulatory Affairs Coordinator with Mikisew Cree First Nation in the oil sands of Alberta, I know EA is not an easy process to understand; and with the increasing pace of development, trying to get up to speed is not getting any easier.
The development of this resource handbook began early in 2008, after I was contacted by the Prince Albert Model Forest (PAMF), in my role as project officer with IISD’s Measurement and Assessment team. The PAMF Aboriginal Caucus voiced a need to improve both capacity and understandings of EA for First Nations communities in Saskatchewan, as capacity building is the foundation of the caucus.
Since the level of understandings of EA differs from community to community, we decided that we needed to engage community leaders and resource managers to assess collective need and determine the most effective delivery of that information.
Based on the feedback we received, we developed the resource handbook as the first step in assisting Saskatchewan’s First Nations communities to build capacity and improve their understandings of EA.