Wanted: Ideas For Sustainability
By Gord Ball – Special to SUNonline/Orillia
About 80 area residents assembled at the Quality Inn on April 28 as former mayor Steve Clarke opened a series of three public workshops designed to help shape Orillia’s future.
This was followed by hearing Sarah Patterson introduce lessons and patterns from the natural world in her presentation, Introduction to Nature’s Patterns and Biomimicry Examples, to guide efforts shaping our common future in the Orillia area.
Next, nine small groups explored various themes including, food security and community gardens; natural environment and conservation; renewable energy and conservation; zero emission transportation; energy efficiency buildings; land and water use/urban planning and urban design; integrated community; beyond 2030; and circular economy.
A second workshop is being held from 1-3 p.m. at the Quality Inn (formerly The Highwayman) on May 26.
Similar to the first, this event will be interactive, this time a foal of defining and implementing projects and practices that everyone can apply to build a happy, mutually supportive and sustainable community.
Participants at the event will hear and see the community vision created at the first workshop, and develop principles and priorities to guide continuing conversation. Participants will then generate individual and collective projects and practices that local residents can undertake– to prepare the Orillia area for a pleasant and bountiful future.
The workshop will address questions such as: How should we be feeding ourselves? Where and how should we be living? How should we be moving ourselves around? How should we be heating and cooling our homes and work places? Where should our electricity come from? How should we be protecting our natural environment?
All citizens who wish to contribute to the process are invited. There’s no need to have attended the first workshop to contribute to the second on May 26.
A third workshop on June 9 will focus on how Sustainable Orillia can best support and promote the actions and projects defined in workshop #2.
(Images Supplied) Main: Some of the attendees at Sustainable Orillia’s Community Engagement Workshop.
