By SUZANNE ELSTON, Special to QMI Agency

February 20, 2010-This year will be remembered for bringing the eyes of the world to Whistler, B.C., but for local residents, 2020 has a much greater significance and focus. Whistler2020 is the name of the town’s long-term community sustainability plan.Traditional urban planning tends to focus more on isolated pieces of the planning puzzle, rather than on interconnected systems. What the town needed was an integrated approach that would address social, economic and environmental challenges...

Vancouver, B.C. :: November 4, 2009

Sustainability is confusing and can be totally overwhelming, especially when it comes to making daily decisions in your busy home. The Natural Step, the David Suzuki Foundation and the Light House Sustainable Building Centre have created a toolkit, Sustainability at Home, to make those decisions easier.  Come and celebrate the launch of this toolkit and welcome the Light House Sustainable Building Centre to their new home at 2060 Pine Street on Saturday, November 7th.  Welcome address at 11am. 

By Kelly Hawke Baxter and Chad Park

From Alternatives Magazine: Environment Ideas + Action | Full story here.

More than a set of scientifically based conditions for a sustainable society, the Natural Step Framework has been the foundation for hundreds of innovative sustainability programs around the world. After five years of applying its community-based approach in Canada, The Natural Step’s executive director Kelly Hawke Baxter and principal advisor Chad Park say the organization has learned a great deal about community sustainability. Here are seven hints to help your community move toward a more sustainable future.

Advancing Business Sustainability through Collaboration: 
CBSR and The Natural Step Canada Partner

Toronto, Vancouver & Ottawa, ON – August 5, 2009:  Canadian Business for Social Responsibility (CBSR) and The Natural Step Canada announce a new collaboration to further the strategic impact of both organizations. The groups both promote responsible business practices, which encompass social, environmental and economic considerations.

Sweden’s policies: a menu for Canada’s low-carbon diet?
by Melissa Shin

Corporate Knights explores Sweden's solutions for a changing world and compares their policies, actions and attitudes to those currently found in Canada.  Shin interviewed Natural Step Founder, Karl-Henrik Robert while in Stockholm.

A recent article by Thomas Friedman in the International Herald Tribune reminds us of the tremendous challenge and opportunity represented by our current economic situation.

“What if the crisis of 2008 represents something much more fundamental than a deep recession?” Friedman asks. “What if it’s telling us that the whole growth model we created over the last 50 years is simply unsustainable economically and ecologically and that 2008 was when we hit the wall – when Mother Nature and the market both said ‘No more.’”

In early January 2009, decision makers and sustainability champions convened in Markham, Ontario to hear Whistler, BC Mayor Ken Melamed share his lessons learned on the road to community sustainability and discuss Whistler’s plans to host the most sustainable Olympics in history.

The City of Airdrie, Alberta, recently completed a community-wide visioning process as part of its municipal sustainability plann

From February 3-13, 2009, I participated in the Hållbarhet Australia Learning Journey, along with 25 other sustainability practitioners who share a common Masters in Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability (MSLS) from the Blekinge Institute of Technology, Sweden. It was an absolutely extraordinary experience that clearly highlighted the invaluable roll a strong network can play in the personal and collective impact of sustainability change agents.

In February 2009, an inaugural gathering of emerging sustainability practitioners from around the world took place in Australia.

The Natural Step and the Whistler Centre for Sustainability will be offering two workshops between the Annual General Meetings of the Canadian Associatio

We regret to inform you that we are postponing the events planned to mark the launch of the TNS Network, Working Toward a Sustainable Future, in Whistler June 4 and 5th.

Corporate Knights Magazine unveiled the third-annual Corporate Knights Most Sustainable Cities in Canada list today.

climateandinsurance.org took five minutes to interview Barbara Turley-McIntyre, Director, Sustainability and Corporate Citizenship, The Co-operators Gro

by Kelly Hawke Baxter and Mike Purcell

Sustainability is the greatest challenge of our time. Human activity is now putting such a strain on social and ecological systems that the ability to sustain future generations can no longer be taken for granted. Sustainable literally means lasting, or standing the test of time. Sustainability means making sure that we live within the ability of the planet to support us so that future generations have the same opportunities as we do.