The Alliance for Resilient Cities Eva Ligeti, Executive Director Clean Air Partnership ARC Webinar, November 27, 2007

What is ARC?  Network of local governments and other decision-makers concerned about responding effectively to the impacts of climate change  Why “resilient cities”? Resilience is the ability of a system to withstand stress and to adapt to changing conditions  Climate change is creating a great deal of stress for cities and this will continue for the foreseeable future

2007 IPPC Report: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability  Observational evidence from all continents shows that natural systems are already being affected by regional climate changes  Impacts of climate change will vary by:  Rate of temperature change  Adaptive measures put into place  Socio-economic group impacted by change

Power of Worldwide Network  UKCIP – Climate Impacts Program  US Urban Leaders Forum  Supports dialogue among partners, with tools and expertise to sustain local climate adaptation efforts  Alliance for Resilient Cities  Will provide similar collaborative network for Canadian cities  Promote dialogue among urban decision makers on climate change impacts and adaptation strategies  Provide information and tools from outside experts  One-on-one work with partners

Resiliency ≠ Emergency Reponses  While responding to emergencies is very important, our focus is not on emergency planning  FOCUS : to reduce the impacts of climate extremes on our communities by building our resiliency, reducing our emissions, understanding our vulnerabilities and taking action

Importance of Learning and Dialogue Our intent:  To allow plenty of time for dialogue and collaboration among all the participants, rather than simply listening to information  To focus on urban impacts and strategies  To link with the expertise of leading researchers  To facilitate information sharing  To showcase best practices  (and, lessons learned…..)

The Role of the Clean Air Partnership  Convene the Alliance for Resilient Cities  Manage webinar meetings, recruit speakers  Keep abreast of and communicate the latest developments and strategies  Respond to member requests  Provide one on one consultations

Who will participate in ARC?  Representatives of local governments in Canada  Other levels of government  Businesses concerned about climate impacts  Research institutions and non-governmental experts

Membership Fees To cover costs of:  Staff time  Webinar technical services  Teleconference costs  Website management For Fiscal Year 2008 Regional Governments $4000 Municipalities > 1 million$4000 Municipalities 500,000 – 1 million$3000 Municipalities 250,000 – 500,000$2500 Municipalities 100,000 – 250,000$2000 Municipalities 50,000 – 100,000$1500 Municipalities < 50,000$1000 Industry Associations & Professional Organizations TBD

Webinar Schedule  First two webinars scheduled for:  Tuesday November 27th, 1:00 – 3:00 p.m.  Tuesday January 15th, 1:30 – 3:30 p.m.  These webinars will be free of charge  From March 2008, only ARC members and invited guests will participate in the webinars

 Climate Change Strategy Manager, Greater London Authority, UK  Key Note Speaker - Lessons from London’s Climate Change Adaptation Process and Strategy Alex Nickson  London has been working on climate change adaptation since 2001 and has recently prepared a comprehensive climate change adaptation plan  Alex Nickson has participated in this process since the beginning and led the development of the adaptation plan

Registered Webinar Participants OrganizationParticipant BC Ministry of EnvironmentVarious Cement Association of CanadaWayne Dawson Center for Clean Air PolicyVarious City of BurlingtonVarious City of CoquitlamJennifer Wilkie City of Hamilton & Clean Air HamiltonVarious City of LondonShawna Milanovic City of OshawaSuzanne Elston City of OttawaVarious City of TorontoVarious City of VancouverVarious City of VaughanRebekah McGurran EnbridgeTim Adamson Federation of Canadian MunicipalitiesDevin Causley Fraser Valley Regional DistrictBob Smith Halton Region Health DepartmentVarious OrganizationParticipant Health CanadaKaila-Lea Clarke Insurance Bureau of CanadaRobert Tremblay Metro VancouverBrent Burton Natural Resources CanadaVarious Ontario Ministry of the EnvironmentCarol Salisbury Peel Region - Peel Public HealthVarious Regional District of Central OkanaganLeah Hartley The Regional Municipality of DurhamNestor Chornobay The Regional Municipality of York Dr. Erica Weir Town of AjaxStev Andis Town of OakvilleCindy Toth Township of KingJane Underhill University of TorontoBlake Poland Ville de MontrealHerve Loge Adaptation ExpertIan Burton Adaptation ExpertMichelle Laurie