The Ridge Meadows Chamber of Commerce was excited to participate in the first session of the Maple Ridge Leadership Summit Series on Climate Action for 2023. 

Held at the beautiful and local Albion Community Centre, panelists and speakers discussed the urgency and local responsibility when addressing Climate Change. Panelist Mayor Dan Ruimy touched on building a strong partnership with all levels of government for key action and strategy to "move the dial" on Climate Change. Mayor Ruimy presented several concrete initiatives that they would like to see start taking place over the next year for the municipality. 

Panelists for the event included Mayor Dan Ruimy, BC Minister George Heyman, Former Mayor of Edmonton Don Iveson, Dr. Alison Shaw of SFU, and Dave Bennet, Director of Renewable Gas and Low Carbon Fuels at Fortis BC. 

The Summit mainly focused on presentations brought forth by Mayor Ruimy, BC Minister Heyman, and Dr. Shaw - who were all able to address public concerns on Climate Change and the actions that local and provincial governments will be taking to work towards a Zero Carbon Emissions by 2030. 

Dr. Shaw, who is the Executive Director of the Action on Climate Team at Simon Fraser University, discussed how her team develops practical and effective approaches to accelerate resilience, promote decarbonization, and advance multi-solving across equity, biodiversity, and other sustainable goals. 

The panelists also addressed questions and concerns to with the City's Bylaws and Policy changes. Mayor Ruimy spoke in regard to updating the City's bylaws and policies that could affect both residents and businesses. 

The Chamber's Executive Director, Kristi Maier, was in attendance and is "looking forward to working closely with the City and Council on their Climate Action Initiatives in ways that ensure our businesses are successful with the possible policy and bylaw changes". 

The Ridge Meadows Chamber is looking forward to further participation in the upcoming sessions in the Leadership Series:  Affordable Housing in Maple Ridge, and the final session discussing Economic Development in the City of Maple Ridge. 

For more information, check out the City's Information Page HERE!