Common Ground Conference III
From Common Energy UVic
Common Ground III is the third conference in Common Energy UVic's Common Ground process.
[edit] Coordinates
- Time: 2:00PM to 5:00PM, followed by a pot luck meal.
- Place: Small Side Michele Pujol Room, Student Union Building.
[edit] Agenda
- 2:00 to 4:00PM - building on the Going Beyond Climate-Neutral Progress Report - April 2007 - a Open Space session focussed on the following question: How do we organize over the summer to create the Going Beyond Climate-Neutral plan for UVic by September?
To answer this question we will focus on the following sub-questions:
- How do we engage experts, researchers and planners to help us develop the plan?
- How do we identify joint or overlapping actions and proposals in the Working Groups and how do we coordinate their development?
- What form should the Working Groups take to develop the sections, actions, and proposals into the beyond climate-neutral plan?
- How do we identify questions to be answered through curriculum on either a one time or recurring basis?
More context on these questions is provided in the section below.
- 4:00 to 5:00PM - Decision on the Summer Working Structure for Common Energy, the goal is to establish an interim structure before the governance retreat on the first weekend of June. Sharing about people's plans for the summer, and how they would like to be involved. Investigate if it is necessary for the teams and Working Groups to meet as often as we do.
To obtain a brief description of where common energy is at and has accomplished, we have brought together pieces of the wiki CE Update-Common Ground 3
[edit] Questions for the Day and Context
The Developing the Planning Partnership page has a concise time line for the drafting process this summer that is necessary reading for the context for these questions.
[edit] How do we engage experts, researchers, and planners to help us develop the beyond climate-neutral plan?
To create a good plan that will be implemented we have to get a wide range of perspectives. We also have to recruit people that will become productive members of the network to do the deep thinking and researching necessary to produce an implementable beyond climate-neutral plan.
So, what's the best way to get out there and get working with these various people?
Group Discussion
Maeve: What does your shirt mean? Continued discussion around metal heads.
Maeve: It is very important to focus on all cultures.
Matt: For the metal head crowd, they like negative messaging.
Rita: Need to tailor our message to our different audiences.
Rita: experts on campus: faculty, staff and grad students at UVic.
Maeve: Lets do an inventory of resources on campus.
Maeve: CBR currently creating an inventory to all people interested in CBR. Perhaps CE could use this data/process.
Maeve: Maeve to give CE the template on how to create an inventory of people working on a broad topic.
Rita: Need to ensure there is a system to ensure we do not bother experts more than once.
Matt: need to place higher emphasis on the communicator role.
Maeve: How can we involve all people?
Tony: As so many students make presentations, how can we share this knowledge.
Maeve: the current and former education deans are trying to find how to incorporate CC into the high schools. What programs could we develop to put in the high schools?
Maeve: everyone has a different reach and expertise, how do we involve them all in CE?
Matt: Emphasized the importance of networking.
Maeve: Teachers do not like it when they are only given one option; need to present options.
Rita: Use the report to help leverage meetings.
Matt: Asked for a recap of Rita's and maeve's experience.
Maeve: Putting CRD and deans in the same room.
Maeve: Want feedback on a plan. Have a lunch meeting, and ask for an endorsement.
Maeve: Advisory board for feedback.
Rita: After May 18th, set up a meeting/press conference.
Maeve: Have a list of supportors/endorsors.
Rita: people have different degrees of interest, so we have to allow them to engage in different ways.
Maeve: We want a list of names of people who are endorsing it.
Maeve: Ask Peter Keller and Bud Hall the best way to engage professionals.
SUMMARY: ASAP we will create a UVic Climate Change inventory of all interested parties, using the process that Maeve and Community Based Research are using. Tiers of engagement: 1) on May 17th students, similar to November CG event. 2) Key university decision makers (deans, VP research, VP academics, Presidents, CRD, municipal leaders.
Maeve emphasized the importance of putting weight behind the report by getting groups to sponsor it before the public release.
Rita suggested having a communications strategy before the 17th with Bud Hall, Bruce Kilpatrick, Rita Fromholt.
[edit] How do we identify joint or overlapping actions and proposals in the Working Groups and how do we coordinate their development?
Climate change is a complex problem with many interdependent factors and interconnected systems. As a result, the way that we have broken the problem apart into Working Groups is, in some ways, artificial. Generally, we are seeing various areas of overlap between the work that has been done where synergies need to be explored collaboratively.
What's the best way for us to go about finding and developing those synergies?
Task to coordinations to facilitate through coordinators.
[edit] What form should the Working Groups take to develop the sections, actions, and proposals into the beyond climate-neutral plan?
After the release of the Going Beyond Climate-Neutral Progress Report - April 2007 the most effective way of drafting the beyond climate-neutral plan is not necessarily the weekly Working Group format that we have used so far. There are various options for organizing the research past this point. Individuals could take on actions and proposals or even whole sections, people could spear-head teams around these things and take responsibility for recruiting new people in, Working Groups could still hold regular meetings for people to check in and collaborate.
The best path forward will likely be different for each group - and be sorted out toward the middle to end of May. The goal of this question is to start thinking this through.
[edit] How do we identify questions to be answered through curriculum on either a one time or recurring basis?
One of the greatest untapped resources at this university is the enormous amount of student research and writing. Creating opportunities for students to learn by contributing to the region's responses to climate change is good for everyone involved. As part of the beyond climate-neutral plan we can include large questions that we would like to see an entire class take on. Here's an example:
"How can we optimize the development of the region's energy supply given the need for energy that is affordable, the current political and regulatory framework, and sustainable both in terms of its impact on climate change and all other social and ecological impacts?"
That's a particularly large question. The research that Working Groups have been doing provides fertile ground for coming up with more questions, both large and small, that can be integrated into curricula as part of the university's contribution to the solutions to climate change.
