Building Strong Communities: A Circular Approach

Today’s leaders in government, business, and civil society are being called to respond at an accelerated pace to pressing challenges that were once thought far on the horizon.

From the COVID-19 pandemic, to extreme weather events, to the need to manage our water, waste and infrastructure in economical and environmentally sound ways, it has become clear that biding our time and taking a “wait and see” approach is leaving us ill prepared for what lies ahead. We see leaders in this conversation emerging at local, national and international levels and perhaps it is time to use this pause in business as usual to learn, understand and find a new path forward in Manitoba.

An event of the Collaborative Leadership Initiative – which began in 2017 when 12 Chiefs and 18 mayors and reeves of Southern Manitoba embarked on a formal process of reconciliation - this global online conference will aim to further the leaderships' capacity to continue working together on shared issues and opportunities around water protection, waste management, economic development and the exploration of a circular economy in Manitoba.

This event will include:

• Greetings from Minister of Municipal Relations for the Province of Manitoba, Derek Johnson

• Indigenous Perspectives on Circularity, Diane Roussin – Winnipeg Boldness Project

• Remarks from Deputy Consul-General of the Netherlands, Jorn Leeksma

• Keynote presentation on Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan, John Coyne – Unilever

• Circular Economy 101 from expert firm Metabolic based in Amsterdam, NL

• Panel conversation that includes circular economy in action with: Ken Friesen Reclay StewardEdge, Grand Chief Jerry Daniels – Southern Chiefs’ Organization, Tanis Osterman – CanSustain, and Shane Lapp – Okanagan Circular Society

In partnership between the Winnipeg Metropolitan Region, the Southern Chiefs' Organization, the Centre for Indigenous Environmental Resources and Reclay StewardEdge, this global online conference represents the first-ever partnership between the Dutch government and Manitoba municipalities.

We hope you will be able to join us for as we mobilize around circularity, move from talk to action and work collaboratively to build strong communities for all.