Distinguished leaders, including BC’s Lieutenant Governor, Dr. Bonnie Henry, and Ms. Kim Baird will come together in the plenary session of this year’s UBCM Convention to discuss the value of diverse approaches to leadership and resilience in the face of a society-altering pandemic. What lessons and best practices can be applied at the local level?
Moderated by UBCM President, Mayor Maja Tait, this important and engaging 90-minute session will focus on the rise of a renewed responsibility to the collective good and opportunities for different voices to emerge as leaders as we manage the current public health emergency together. There will be an opportunity at the end of the session for questions from our online delegates from across the province.
Her Honour, the Honourable Janet Austin, Lieutenant Governor of BC, was sworn-in as the 30th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia in April 2018. Prior to this appointment, she spent 15 years as Chief Executive Officer of YWCA Metro Vancouver, one of the province’s largest and most diversified non-profits. As part of her role as Lieutenant Governor, Her Honour travels extensively throughout British Columbia to celebrate, inspire, and connect the people of the province.
Dr. Bonnie Henry was appointed as BC’s Provincial Health Officer in February 2018. She is a specialist in public health and preventive medicine with advanced degrees and training from universities across North America. Her steady guidance through the COVID-19 pandemic, including what has become her catch-phrase “be kind, be calm, be safe,” has inspired public murals, t-shirts, as well as a profile in the New York Times which called her “one of the most effective public health officials in the world.”
Ms. Kim Baird is the former chief of the Tsawwassen First Nation, where she served as elected chief for six terms. She successfully negotiated and then saw the implementation of the first modern urban treaty in the BC Treaty Negotiation Process. Ms. Baird is a member of the Order of Canada and will soon be installed as the next Chancellor of Kwantlen Polytechnic University.
The plenary session is scheduled for Tuesday, September 22 from 1:00 - 2:30 p.m. and will be available to all registered delegates to the 2020 UBCM Convention. To register, visit the UBCM registration website.