The City of Cranbrook is partnering with a pair of environmental organizations to host a public forum on climate change at the College of the Rockies in February.
Residents are invited to attend the event, which is being jointly hosted by the city, East Kootenay chapter of Citizen’s Climate Lobby (CCL) and the Climate Caucus.
It will be held inside the COTR Lecture Theatre on Feb. 11, from 7 - 9 p.m. Admission is free of charge.
“We are pleased to have been asked to be a part of this exciting discussion around climate change,” said Mike Peabody, the acting mayor for the city. “As a city, we have been active the past seven years in finding ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in our operations and undertaking changes to our processes to help conserve energy.”
The event will feature a few different areas of discussion.
The city will present a series of climate mitigation, adaptation and energy conservation projects that have either been completed or are in progress.
Further discussions will include the latest information on how climate is shifting within the Cranbrook area and what future projections look like.
Laura Sacks, who helps coordinate the CCL in the West Kootenays, will lead the main presentation centred around three questions — Must we change? Can we change? Will we change?
“We look forward to this evening for information and community dialogue,” said Sue Cairns, with the East Kootenay chapter of the CCL. “I’m excited to be hosting along with the city who has provided strong leadership. The challenges and opportunities we face require broader participation, which this event will support.”
Sacks, who has a background in hydrology with degrees in geology and environmental sciences, will speak about the global and local impacts to climate change, then transition into a group discussion about climate solutions, with participants invited to share ideas.
“Climate change is a topic often avoided because it can be divisive and depressing,” said Sacks. What many may not be aware of is that many climate solutions are also good for our health and local economy.”
trevor.crawley@cranbrooktownsman.com
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