Leading Edge 2008 - Call for Papers

Leading Edge 2008, the NEC's 8th biosphere conference, takes place October 1st and 2nd at Monora Park in Orangeville, Ontario.

We invite research on the following themes:

• Sustainable community economic development, particularly sustainable tourism
• Demonstration projects involving community activationEco Cities
• Approaches to monitoring and reporting ecosystem health
• “State of the Niagara Escarpment” reporting
• Biosphere reserve-related research or projects

Five featured authors will each receive a $1,000 bursary.

Conference Overview

Leading Edge 2008 gets "back to the roots" of the conference series begun in 1994, with a focus on Niagara Escarpment research and "State of the Escarpment" reporting. The conference is presented by the Niagara Escarpment Commission in association with the Ontario Heritage Trust, Ontario's Ministry of Natural Resources and the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association.

Highlights include:

• Guest speakers Roy MacGregor and Margaret Wente
• Five award-winning research presentations
• Eco Cities
• Special panels featuring guests from Canadian Biosphere Reserves
• A series of interactive and informative sessions on sustainable tourism and economic development
• New insights into adaptation to climate change at the local level
• Practical presentations on ecosystem health and monitoring
• Unmatched opportunities for you to connect, share and learn!

Location
We are pleased to bring Leading Edge 2008 to the beautiful Headwaters region of the Escarpment in the Town of Mono. The conference venue, Monora Park Pavilion, is conveniently located in Orangeville, Ontario on Highway 10/124. The venue's surrounding forested parkland will be at its peak of autumn colours during the conference. Monora Park is approximately 15 km south of Mono Cliffs Provincial Park.

Accommodations
Delegates can arrange accommodations from a wide variety of options ranging from Bed & Breakfasts to resorts: view a list of accommodations in the area.

Public Transportation Options
GO Transit bus schedule for Orangeville.

Registration
Online registration will be available the week of July 21, 2008.

Conference Sessions & Speakers: Schedule at-a-glance

Wednesday, October 1:

Five research paper presentations (see the Call for Papers)
Guest speaker: Roy MacGregor
Adaptation to Climate Change
Economic Development and Biosphere Reserves
Description below

Five research presentations - selected papers tba

Guest speaker: Roy MacGregor
When Roy MacGregor was named an Officer in the Order of Canada in 2005, the citation read: "One of our most gifted storytellers, Roy MacGregor is renowned for evoking the subtle nuances of our Canadian identity in his columns and books." MacGregor is also a highly entertaining public speaker, a natural comic and passionate storyteller with a sense of this country that, from 30 years of travel, is second to none. He explores the powerful hold the wilderness, and the thought of our place in it, has on our imaginations. This acclaimed journalist and best-selling author has won numerous national and international awards. He is currently working on a book that, with luck, may finally explain Canada to Canadians.

Panel Discussion: Adapting to Climate Change at the Municipal Level
What is rapid risk assessment of climate change? Using a newly developed approach, rapid risk assessment will: link climate models to policy and decision-making; provide a rapid assessment of the risks of climate change to various economic sectors and the natural environment; and identify priorities for climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies at the municipal level.

In association with researchers Adam Fenech and Jim MacLellan and, the Niagara Escarpment Commission has encouraged a pilot study in Halton Region to improve municipal ability to plan and budget for climate change.

Adam Fenech is Associate Director of the Adaptation and Impacts Research Division at Environment Canada. Adam has worked on the Niagara Escarpment writing a study about the impacts of roads on the Niagara Escarpment 1935 to 1995 (Fenech et al., 2000); assisting in establishing biodiversity monitoring plots along the Escarpment using methods developed by the Smithsonian Institution; and conducting a climate data analysis (Hamilton et al., 2000) of the Escarpment Biosphere Reserves and five other Biosphere Reserves. Adam is completing a PhD at the University of Toronto in climatology, and his work centers on the developed of the rapid assessment of the impacts of climate change. Adam has worked in the climate change field for over 20 years and has recently shared in the Nobel Peace Prize awarded for his work with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Dr. James MacLellan has a solid background in resource management and ecologic\economic systems analysis.  Currently he is a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council visiting fellow with the Adaptation Impacts and Research Division of Environment Canada, at York University, where he is also an adjunct professor.  His research falls under two broad, contrasting yet related categories in urban and rural settings. With colleagues at the Boreal Integrative Group (BIG), he is developing an accessible, user-ready and friendly open-source modeling platform that will facilitate analysis of human behavioural responses and adaptation to climate change in a boreal forest context.  As well he is helping to develop and implement the Rapid Adaptation Assessment for Climate Change (RAACC) in urban and suburban settings.  This framework will identify climate change impacts, as well as provide a structure for adaptation options. 

Economic Development in Biosphere Reserves
The Frontenac Arch is the broad and ancient granite ridge that joins the Canadian Shield to the Adirondack Mountains. It is the billion year old backbone of the eastern continent, and a vital north-south migration route for plants and animals. The central section of the Arch, in the Biosphere Reserve, is crossed east-west by the St. Lawrence Valley, a migration route from the Atlantic coast to the Great Lakes heartland of the continent.

This intersection of landforms and migration routes creates the greatest diversity of living things in eastern Canada. This Frontenac Arch has shaped the region’s history. The mosaic of lakes, rivers and tumbling streams were passageways for native peoples and settlers alike, and settlements sprang up where falls powered early mills. The lake and island-jeweled land drew, and continues to draw, summer visitors from around the nation, and around the world. The south half of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Rideau Canal, the Thousand Islands, and much of the Land ‘O Lakes are all outstanding regions within the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve.

Panel Discussion: Frontenac Sustainable Tourism Initiative
The Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve (FABR), in partnership with the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Recreation and in collaboration with numerous partners including Parks Canada, the Tourism Industry Association of Canada and regional Chambers of Commerce and marketing partnerships, is developing a national model for the promotion and identification of sustainable tourism opportunities.

A three year project began in 2006, to assess and develop the FABR area (which includes the Rideau Corridor and Thousand Islands regions) as a location and destination for sustainable tourism. It will integrate the economic, social, cultural and ecological attributes and needs of the region to create a sustainable and competitive tourism industry. The ultimate product will be a model that is within the capabilities of an average community, will support environmental and cultural integrity, and will be community led and inspired.

Don Ross has a degree in Natural Sciences; Botany and Zoology, University of Western Ontario. He was Chief Park Naturalist for National Parks, from 1973 to 1976 at Point Pelee National Park; and from 1976 to 1983 at St. Lawrence Islands National Park in the Thousand Islands.

Don left the National Park system in 1983, and owned and operated a successful retail business in Brockville, Ontario, for 19 years. He is a founding member of one of Ontario’s early Land Trusts, the Canadian Thousand Islands Heritage Conservancy. He was a lead author and science editor for the nomination papers which led to the 2002 designation of Canada’s 12th UNESCO Biosphere Reserve—the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve. Don is the Executive Director of the Biosphere Reserve, and has developed and carried out several of its successful programs working with a biosphere network of 45 partner members in areas of ecology and conservation, cultural heritage, and sustainable economy.

Panel Discussion: Community Collaboration and Product Branding
Situated along the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec, the Lac Saint-Pierre Biosphere Reserve is an unusual example in the world network of Biosphere Reserves since it includes a major waterway in an industrialized area.

Lac Saint-Pierre is also a unique ecosystem, important for migratory birds and essential for the protection of Quebec and Canada. For instance, the largest number of herons recorded in North America is found in protected habitats in this area, which is also recognized as a Ramsar site. Federal and Provincial governments have made considerable investments in monitoring and rehabilitating the Saint Lawrence River. Recent studies on water quality show a continuing improvement over the last 15 years. Due to declining fish stocks, fishing practices are now being questioned and fish stock maintenance is one of the challenges of the biosphere reserve. About 85,000 people live in the biosphere reserve, mostly in urban areas. Their main activities are agriculture, hunting, fishing, wildlife conservation activities, resorts, boating, commercial navigation as well as trade and industry.

The cooperative’s three staff and 50 volunteers are intensely involved in community outreach, focusing on conservation and the encouragement of sustainable community development. For the latter, the biosphere reserve is championing a program for branding sustainable products and services including culinary, nature-based products and services, marine resources, accommodations and tourism in general. They hope to increase the marketability of products from the region. The program may provide a model for other regions across Canada and the world for sustainable product development.

Christian Hart is co-founder and President of the Lac-Saint-Pierre Biosphere Reserve, Québec. He is coordinator for the Regional Municipality of Nicolet-Yamaska’s Centre for Local Development and is Development Agent for food promotion, tourism and social economy. For his work in culinary and sustainable tourism he has won both the Prix Donat Gregoire from the Order of Quebec Agronomists and more recently the Société St-Jean Baptiste’s Sustainable Development Award. Originally from Montreal, he has a Biology Degree from the University of Québec at Trois-Rivières. He has lectured internationally on tourism and cross-sectoral sustainable economic development.

Thursday, October 2:

Five sessions on the Niagara Escarpment
Guest speaker: Margaret Wente
Presentation: Eco Cities
Panel Discussion: Approaches to Consensus and Community Involvement
Description below

State of the Escarpment Reporting: Ecology, Landscape & Keeping the Edge

1. How Effective is the Niagara Escarpment Plan in Protecting Provincial Life Science Areas of Natural and Scientific Interest?
This study evaluates the effectiveness of Niagara Escarpment Plan (NEP) policies in protecting Provincial Life Science Areas of Natural and Scientific Interest (PLS ANSIs). Historic and current PLS ANSI boundaries were overlaid and compared using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software. "Area loss" from development was used as an indicator that PLS ANSI protection was compromised.  PLS ANSIs inside and outside the Plan Area (within a defined boundary) were compared to assess whether the NEP appears to be making a difference on the landscape in terms of PLS ANSI protection. The NEC's Ecological Monitoring Specialist Anne Marie Laurence will share the report's findings.

2. Tracking and Monitoring Development Activity on the Niagara Escarpment
Nearly 14,000 property codes, representing NEC Development Permit file histories (relating to 26,598 records), now reside in a Geographic Information System (GIS) database and can be directly linked with the NEC's current Development Permit Access database. These records document more than 30 years of land use planning since the beginning of the Niagara Escarpment Program. The NEC's GIS Officer Daniel Ventresca relates how this interactive system can be used in applications to monitor the Escarpment's health and development patterns into the future.

3. Forest Cover on the Niagara Escarpment
Landscape-level studies of changes over time are a focus for the Niagara Escarpment Commission's Monitoring Program and will provide important data to a comprehensive review of the Ontario Greenbelt, schedule for 2015. Landscape-level GIS analysis was undertaken to examine the area and extent of Escarpment forests in the past using Canada Land Inventory data (CLI) and for present-day, using the Southern Ontario Land Information System (SOLRIS) data. The NEC's Environmental Planner Lisa Grbinicek will present results from this study and will discuss the future direction of the NEC’s Monitoring Program.

4. Visual Assessment Studies on the Niagara Escarpment
The Niagara Escarpment program is rooted in the preservation of the natural landscape and the scenic quality of the landform. The NEC's Visual Assessment Study process sets out to establish a baseline for existing conditions and then identify the physical changes in an accurate and objective manner. With a baseline and an accurate identification of the physical changes, an assessment of the impact of change on the Escarpment visual, landscape and scenic resources, in keeping with the NEPDA and NEP, can be conducted. The NEC's Landscape Architect Linda Laflamme discusses how the NEC's Visual Assessment Study will enhance landscape and scenic "viewshed" preservation.

5. Keeping the Edge
The Coalition on the Niagara Escarpment's (CONE) new Executive Director, Chris McLaughlin, shares CONE's vision of the future of the Niagara Escarpment as the program faces increasingly complex challenges and growing development pressures. The Coalition on the Niagara Escarpment (CONE), formed in 1978 to advocate for the Escarpment’s protection, is a coalition of 26 environmental non-profit organizations and hundreds of individual citizen members across Canada.

Chris McLaughlin holds a bachelor of environmental studies from the University of Waterloo, a master of science in ecology from the University of Guelph, and is continuing a part-time doctorate at McMaster University conducting research to test strategies for improving institutional decision-making in the Great Lakes policy regime.

Guest Speaker: Margaret Wente
Globe and Mail columnist Margaret Wente isn't afraid of controversy. In fact she's famous for her sharp opinions on everything from politics and Conrad Black to the relations between the sexes -- always delivered with wit and sharp observation. She's been called the best columnist in Canada -- and she inspires more irate letters to the editor than anybody else!

Margaret Wente was born in Chicago but has lived in Canada for most of her life. She joined the Globe and Mail in 1986, and has been writing her column three times a week since 1999. She has twice won a National Newspaper Award, and is the author of the popular book, An Accidental Canadian. Whether you agree with her or not, her views are always provocative and entertaining.

Presentation: Biosphere Eco-Cities
UNESCO is seeking ways to apply the MAB (Man and Biosphere) Program to the issues of Urban Areas and an innovative approach has been developed in Canada over the last several years.  Called Biosphere Eco-Cities, this suggested component of MAB would designate urban areas together with their surrounding rural areas as international demonstration areas for sustainability. With the participation of multiple sectors of the urban-centred areas, Eco-Cities would focus on supporting nature and improving quality of life, while sharing results with an evolving world network under MAB. Ten themes would be used to help organize and share projects, including: transportation, energy, design, habitat, food, natural capital, waste control, health, recreation and sense of place. The Canadian Committee for MAB has commissioned a pilot study for the City of Ottawa, to test the concept.

Jim Birtch works for Parks Canada where he coordinated regional integration of national parks for eight years.  He led a team that produced Parks Canada’s first sustainable development strategy, tabled in Parliament in 1997. Jim’s assignments have overlapped and for the past 21 years he has been Parks Canada’s coordinator for biosphere reserves and has been the Executive Secretary of the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association since its inception in 1997.  When UNESCO announced its intention to apply the MAB Program to urban issues in 2002, Jim produced the first of two proposals for an Urban Component that were discussed at EuroMAB (Europe & North America) and MAB International Coordinating Council meetings.  In 2008, he simplified his proposal in a Citizen’s Guide to Biosphere Eco-Cities, which has been received with interest by over 20 countries and some international organizations.

Panel Discussion: Approaches to Community and Sector Collaboration
Highlighting the experience of two Canadian Biosphere Reserves and another exploring options, this panel will present and discuss what it takes to engage broad ranges of partners to achieve objectives for environmental conservation and sustainable community development.

The Oak Ridges Moraine, part of the Ontario Greenbelt along with the Niagara Escarpment, is more than 90 percent privately owned, with a population of more than 100,000. It crosses 32 municipalities, supplies drinking water to more than 250,000 people, and supports related agricultural, industrial, commercial and recreational uses.

Debbe Crandall has been involved with Save the Oak Ridges Moraine Coalition (STORM) since 1990 and its Executive Director since 1999. She has represented STORM on a number of provincial initiatives concerned with landscape-scale conservation planning and regional growth management issues. Debbe has led STORM on a number of new initiatives including the Monitoring the Moraine project (MTM). MTM is a collaborative partnership to engage and sustain citizen volunteers in environmental and policy monitoring on the Oak Ridges Moraine.

The Fundy Biosphere Reserve is the first UNESCO designation in New Brunswick. The nomination and subsequent designation as a biosphere reserve occurred in 2007 and was supported by a regional stakeholders group for eight years leading up to the UNESCO designation. The area designated is comprised of the watersheds that flow into the upper Bay of Fundy as well as its coastal areas. Other than being known for its spectacular high tides and its rich marine environment, it also provides habitat for a great diversity of species, and it is located on the route for many species of migratory birds and marine species. The area represents some of the most natural coastline occurring on the eastern seaboard between Florida and Nova Scotia. The 4,000 km2 will help promote conservation and sustainable development through education, outreach, monitoring and research.  The area also includes sixteen coastal and inland communities, including the Greater Moncton area; it also is the home for two universities and benefits from the support of a wide variety of partners.

The Manicouagan-Uapishka Biosphere Reserve (MUBR) covers 54,800 km2, making it the largest among Canada’s 15 Biosphere Reserves in total. It represents the Boreal Shield Ecozone and focuses on economic diversification and stability in a resource-based economy. This biosphere reserve includes the crater-shaped Lake Manicouagan which can be seen from outer space. It includes whale feeding grounds along the St. Lawrence River and woodland caribou in its uplands.

The Manicouagan-Uapishka territory received its Biosphere Reserve designation in 2007. Success relies on close collaboration among local stakeholders, including large private companies in the forest, mining, energy and aluminium sectors. Getting these companies to sign agreements on where and how they do business was part of the challenge. Elected officials, environmental groups, economic development organizations, the tourism industry, educational institutions, interest groups, citizens and First Nations representatives worked together to have their region designated as a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO and an international model of sustainable development.

Jean-Philippe Messier is the Director of the MUBR which he helped to form starting in 2002 and culminating in 2007 with its designation as Canada’s 14th biosphere reserve. Mr. Messier is a biologist and wildlife technician. In 2004, he and five colleagues launched Odyssée Ungava, a 620 km canoe film expedition on the conservation of northern rivers from Labrador to the Bay of Ungava.  He was co-producer, screenwriter, narrator and screenwriter for the documentary Laisser couler le Nord on the link between energy efficiency and the preservation of our wild rivers, which led to a lecture tour to 10,000 people throughout Quebec.

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