Planning for Truth and Reconciliation day
The Province recently declared September 30th as Truth and Reconciliation Day to commemorate the history and ongoing trauma caused by residential schools. This article presents some considerations and resources for local governments working towards marking the day and supporting reconciliation more broadly, and incorporates guidance from panelists at UBCM’s 2021 Convention plenary. Read more
Prize draw for Convention evaluation survey
Delegates who complete the Convention Evaluation Survey by 4:00 pm on Friday, September 24 will be entered into a draw for a Premium Emergency Survival Kit. Your feedback helps improve future UBCM Conventions and other virtual events. Tell us what sessions you liked, what areas need work, and how we can best direct our efforts to keep delivering value and useful content.
Emergency Management legislation expected in Fall 2022
The provincial government has extended the timeline for introducing new emergency management legislation to Fall 2022. This comes after a summer of extreme weather, devastating wildfires, and increased drought conditions, requiring considerable attention and response efforts. Read more
Grants for community evacuation routes
Funding is available to help identify physical routes to safely and successfully evacuate communities in the event of emergencies. A new intake for the Evacuation Route Planning grant stream is now open with an application deadline of November 19, 2021. BC local governments and First Nations are eligible to apply for grants of up to $25,000. Read more
Additional provincial responses to 2020 UBCM Resolutions
In April, the BC government provided responses to some resolutions from the 2020 UBCM Convention. They have now provided an additional package of responses. UBCM will send letters to local governments that sponsored resolutions in 2020 to share the relevant provincial response to each resolution. Read more
FireSmart BC Conference: May 2022
The BC FireSmart Committee is holding a Collaboration and Community Conference in Kamloops on May 11 and 12, 2022. The conference will focus on community-led initiatives, wildfire management, prevention, ecology, and wildfire resiliency research in British Columbia. Read more
Wood WORKS! BC awards and funding intake
Leadership in structural and architectural wood use by local governments was recognized at the UBCM Convention in Vancouver last week. Five local governments were presented with 2021 Community Recognition Awards for use of wood in their community projects by Wood WORKS! BC.