In this lecture hosted by SFU, explore policy options for sea level rise. Featuring Henk Ovink, Special Envoy for International Water Affairs, for the Kinds of the Netherlands
Date/Time: Oct 5 2017, 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm
Vancouver, SFU Harbour CentreCost: Free
Find tickets: here
Who will be tending your garden when the ocean rises? An octopus? A sea star?
SFU's Adaptation to Climate Change Team (ACT), the Pacific Water Research Centre in Faculty of Environment and Dialogue Programs in partnership with the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions, the City of Vancouver, Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation and the Vancouver Aquarium are pleased to invite you to the third talk in the Octopus’s Garden Series featuring Special Envoy on Water for the Kingdom of the Netherlands Henk Ovink and flood consultant Tamsin Lyle (Ebbwater Consulting) and Lawyer Deborah Carlson (West Coast Enviornmental Law) who will explore policy options at the international level and local implications followed by discussion.
This talk is free and open to the public.
Bios:
Henk Ovink was appointed Special Envoy for International Water Affairs, for the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 2015. He is also the Principal of ‘Rebuild by Design’ and was Senior Advisor to the US Presidential Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the White House Director of the Office of Management and Budget. He leads long term innovation, resilience and rebuilding efforts, and created and leads the ‘Rebuild by Design’ competition (RBD), which was developed to ignite innovation for a new standard of regional resilience in design and development, in building and rebuilding in the light of climate change, sea level rise and future economic, ecological and cultural demands. RBD was named #1 in CNN’s 2013 top 10 of most innovative ideas.
Tamsin Lyle is the Principal of Ebbwater Consulting and a well-known thought leader on flood management having invested her academic and professional careers in the exploration of various aspects of this field. She is particularly interested in exploring the nexus of science, engineering, policy and planning – disciplines that often work apart when best practice suggests they should work together. Over her 18-year career, she has worked on numerous high-profile flood and risk projects across Canada both as an engineer and as a policy analyst and planner. She is well regarded for her numerical modelling skills, which have been applied to the major river systems of the Red River in Manitoba, and the Fraser River in BC, as well as to smaller river systems in Canada and abroad.
Deborah Carlson joined West Coast Environmental Law in 2010 as Staff Counsel for the Green Communities Program. She works with communities to develop legal frameworks supporting healthy, low-impact urban areas, and community-based planning processes that start from our connection to the natural environment. Deborah focuses on climate change challenges, and how communities can adapt and thrive with ecosystem-based responses. She is author of Preparing for Climate Change, An Implementation Guide for Local Governments in British Columbia (2014), a resource that explains the legal tools available for implementing climate change adaptation strategies. She also produced the Green Waterfront Design Charrette Report (2016), which documents new, multidisciplinary visions for waterfront communities and highlights legal opportunities and needed reform.
About the Octopus’s Garden Series:
Regions around the world are experiencing climate change impacts such as droughts, floods, wildfires, and heat waves, while planning for the long-term effects of sea level rise and coastal storms. These stressors are driving damages and increased costs for communities, and increasing the risk of mass migration. Building on the success of the Resiliency and YOU talk, this series, runs from June-November 2017, and features experts on sea level rise from a variety of backgrounds who will address ways we can adapt and build resilience, with a focus on local to global challenges and solutions. Topics to be addressed include the science and physical challenges to sea level rise, local, provincial and international preparations and initiatives, climate refugees, traditional knowledge and indigenous responses to sea level rise, and finally what to expect globally - and what we can do about it locally. We hope you will join us!
This event is free, but you must register to attend.
More info