The Impact of Innovation: Building Resilient, Sustainable Economies -Part 6

Our Sustainable Future: Get Inspired, Get Informed, Get to Work! Part 6 of our 7-part online discussion series.

About this event

We believe that Southern Georgian Bay can meet today’s needs of the planet, its people, and economic vitality…without compromising the needs of future generations.

Part Six – The Impact of Innovation on Building Resilient, Sustainable Economies
November 17, 2021, 4:30-6:00pm

If the outcomes of Sustainable Development Goal #11 are what we want – including progress on housing, environmental challenges, transportation, integrated planning and protecting our cultural and natural heritage – Innovation offers a process to achieve them.

Moderator:

Gillian Fairley, General Manager, Community Futures South Georgian Bay

Panellists:

Tonya Kraan, Co-founder and COO of SHCG
Linda Swanston, Manager, Climate Change Initiatives, Grey County
Melissa Gerrard, National Expansion Director, Green Economy Canada

Event Details:

These innovators will discuss how we can nurture the new thinking required and build communities of innovation to act as catalysts for integrated planning and sustainable economic development. Speakers will share examples of how the transition to sustainable economies is happening in their sectors, highlighting successful examples of processes and projects, which are nurturing innovation, new enterprises, and new technologies.

We will learn more about the elements of innovation:

– Defining problems in a more robust way
– Engaging more than the “usual suspects”
– Acknowledging multi-dimensions and shifting variables affecting problems
– Taking experimental approaches
– Developing protoype concepts
– Testing ideas
– Investing in projects

Speakers and audience participants will discuss the elements of innovation and look at the culture of business, government, not-for-profit, and philanthropic sectors. Together, we will explore:

– How can we encourage the cross-sector dialogue that innovation requires?
– How can we enable innovation between sectors?
– How are you mobilizing innovation in your sector?
– How can economic development be integrated with social and environmental considerations?
– What do we still need in our region to be successful?

Lead Partners: The Municipalities of: Collingwood, The Blue Mountains, Meaford, Grey Highlands and Wasaga Beach; The Institute of Southern Georgian Bay