Past Programs for 2023-24
Monday, September 18, 2023 – In Person
– Inside West Vancouver by Rod Day
Rod Day has lived in the same house with his family on Sinclair Street for 59 years. He is professor emeritus in history at Simon Fraser University and has a B.A. from Stanford University and an M.A.-Ph.D. from Harvard University. He served as municipal councillor in West Vancouver from 1987 to 1996 and 2003 to 2008 and for over 30 years on various advisory boards and commissions, mainly in planning, design and parks.
A year ago he published a book Inside West Vancouver, People, Politics and Planning since 1912 based on his years of service to West Van and on his skills as an historian and researcher. He used his own collection of documents and those of the West Vancouver Archives, combining his personal experience and professional skills in a landmark history of West Vancouver.
Monday, October 16, 2023 – Zoom
– Serving North Shore Youth with Vulnerabilities by Lynn Green
Lynn will outline Hollyburn Community Services Society efforts to support youth, seniors, and families. The services include providing shelter to those at risk or experiencing homelessness, and supporting survivors of violence. Lynn will also provide an overview of the Take a Hike Foundation program which partners with B.C. school districts to offer a unique educational program to youth. Recently it opened a class at Inglewood Secondary School.
Monday, November 20, 2023 – Zoom
– Impact of AI / ChatGPT – Joseph Fall
Computational science defines the thread of Joseph Fall’s career. Fall’s primary research interests lie in ways to improve teaching and learning. He will provide a brief history of AI technologies discussing what it means for an algorithm to “learn” and anticipated uses of AI in our daily lives.
Monday, December 11, 2023 – In Person
– Christmas Celebrations
Monday, January 15, 2024 – Zoom
– Plains of Africa by Gina Goranson
Gina will discuss a bucket list trip to the Plains of Africa. The tour explored Kenya, home to incredible wildlife, from cheetahs to wildebeests was such a thrill including viewing elephants, lions, buffalo, rhinos, and leopards – collectively known as the “Big 5” The tour met members of the Samburu tribe and the group visited the beautiful Masai Mara Game Reserve. One special day ended with full day game drive, a traditional dinner in the bush and a Masai dance performance.
Tuesday, February 20, 2024 – Zoom
– Preserving our Unique Coastal Old Growth Urban Forest by Daphne Hales – Lighthouse Park Preservation Society
Daphne Hales is a Founding Member and Director of Lighthouse Park Preservation Society. She will speak about the establishment of the volunteer-run charitable society to preserve the environment of the park’s forest and describe highlights of its work.
Monday, March 18, 2024 – Zoom
– Resolutions Meeting
Monday, April 15, 2024 – In Person
– Youth and Climate Change
An opportunity, in advance of Earth Day Events in 2024, to explore with Youth how Climate Change has impacted their world and their community.
You will hear from a panel of local passionate young people about important issues in our world today. They will share why taking action is necessary, what the future might look like and how we all can be involved in the solutions.
Our Panelists: Ulwiana Mehta-Malhotra, Lia Che and Jin Chen, Eva Grdina and Isabel Rodriguez Rojas, are students at Mulgrave School and the University of British Columbia and will cover topics such as: Fast Fashion – a detrimental footprint but with positive industry innovation, Food Security and Waste, Environmental Change and its impact on wildlife species and Dietary Choices and the Health of the Planet.
Our Panel Moderator is Glenys Galloway, President of the Canadian Federation of University Women – West Vancouver Chapter.
Monday, May 13, 2024 – In Person – Annual General Meeting
– Reflections from a Judicial Dinosaur by Justice Randall Wong (Retired)
The Honourable Justice Randall (Bud) Wong is a pioneer in Canadian law. He served as the first Chinese Canadian provincial Crown Counsel, a BC Provincial Court judge, and was the first Chinese Canadian federally appointed judge to the British Columbia County Court. Bud’s talk begins with his early third-generation Chinese-Canadian Family roots in Vancouver. He will describe his experiences as a young lawyer during the 1960s and 70s. He will also tell courthouse stories about BC lawyers and judges, especially the emergence of feminist women in law. Finally, he will reveal his hope and predictions about the future of the legal profession.
Event starts at 6:30 for social period and light refreshments.
Past Programs for 2022-23
Monday, September 19, 2022 – Health Impacts arising from Climate Crisis
Craig Brown is a Climate Change and Health Lead at Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH). As a planner, he supports climate change adaptation projects in the health sector, with a strong emphasis on community collaboration. Craig is also an author on national and international climate assessments, including the IPCC Sixth Assessment report, and an associate faculty member at Royal Roads University in the Master of Arts in Climate Action Leadership program. In today’s presentation Craig will focus on climate change in BC and its importance to community health and the health system. He will cover topics such as the Heat Dome and Atmospheric River events of 2021, the HealthADAPT project and VCH’s continued work and strategic planning on health adaptation. He will conclude his presentation with an outline of best and promising practices in the field.
Monday, October 17, 2022 – Highlights of Climate Change Research
Sara Muir will update us on research projects sponsored by the Pacific Institute of Climate Solutions. She will share information about projects she helps to advance at PICS including climate change adaptation and mitigation in multifamily residential buildings; safer solid state batteries for electric vehicles; climate change education resources. As UBC Program Manager Sara works closely with the Pacific Institute of Climate Solutions to manage these research partnerships and others at UBC. Sara Muir holds a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture and a Master of Landscape Architecture from UBC. She has years of experience in sustainable community planning in Canada and the US.
Monday, November 21, 2022 – Beyond Consumerism to Well-being— Or Beyond the Circular Economy
Dr. Kimberley Naqvi is an instructor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops. She has lectured extensively in human geography, including urban, cultural, social, economic, environment, energy, regional and world geography, and has published on development geography and place-based teaching and learning.
Monday, December 12, 2022 – Christmas holiday celebration.
Monday, January 16, 2023 – Local Environmental Protection Plans
Heather Keith is Senior Manager, Climate Action and Environment for the District of West Vancouver. She will tell us how West Vancouver’s plans connect to the Greater Vancouver area, and within BC’s Climate Action Plan. Heather Keith (M.Sc., R.P.Bio) will also refer to work being done locally to mitigate the effects of climate change on coastal marine and foreshore areas and on wildfire protection issues.
Tuesday, February 21, 2023 – Transformative Change In Forest Dynamics
Dr Lori Daniels is professor of Forest Ecology in the Faculty of Forestry, Forest and Conservation Science Department at UBC. She refers to herself as an “outdoor” ecologist who is interested in forest dynamics, disturbances caused by wildfires, and human interactions with climate change. With her research team at UBC, Dr. Daniels researches wildfires and forest resilience to climate change in the interior of BC, Rocky Mountain National Parks and the foothills of Alberta.
Monday, March 20, 2023 – Resolutions Meeting
Monday, April 17, 2023 – Fracking the Peace
Kiki Wood is Senior Oil and Gas Campaigner with the activist group, Stand Earth, in Vancouver. She has assisted in filming the devastating effects on the ecology and the inhabitants of BC due to thousands of fracking wells for LNG in the Peace region. Fracking for gas is BC’s major climate problem. Extraction poisons air, land and water, but BC plans to double the number of wells and pipelines for export to Alberta and the US. North Americans are already the worst emitters of carbon per person in the world and fail to abide by commitments to reduce it.
Monday, May 15, 2023 –Un-Trashy Talk
Tara McKenna, a Social Influencer and Blogger will help us learn to reduce waste, and find inspiration to live with less while saving money and eating healthier. Creator of The Zero Waste Collective and the author of Don’t be Trashy: A Practical Guide to Living With Less Waste and More Joy, Tara has been interviewed extensively on these topics by radio and television including CBC NewsNetwork, The Social and Telus Talks. Look for her interviews on YouTube. Although always environmentally conscious, Tara’s travels were the biggest eye-opener to our global trash problem. From snorkelling with trash in Bali, Indonesia, to picking up litter on trails in Southern Ontario, Canada, it became obvious that waste is a worldwide issue.
For current programs see Programs