Future Oxford Community Sustainability Plan Begins Transition

Thursday, 29 October 2015 07:46

It's time for the Future Oxford Transition Board to take the year of research and consultation and put those words into action.

WOODSTOCK - The Future Oxford Community Sustainability Plan enjoyed a soft launch ahead of the regular County council meeting.

Plenty of people from the community were in attendance to get an update on the plan and to talk about how they will implement it with the Future Oxford Transition Board. Chair of the board Chris Friesen says 15 community members spent over a year of research and consultation to put this thing together and many of them are staying on with the transition board.

"Well we care on a simple level, almost a selfish level, because we put so much time into this - we want to see it through. I think we realized we weren't just going to be happy with developing the plan, we're only going to be happy when the plan is working and is being implemented.

Friesen talks about what they will be doing now as a transition board.

"So the plan is done; now the real work starts as we say how do we bring this plan to life? So what we will present tonight is what the transition board is doing; so that's kind of what we are now as I introduce myself we move from being a community sustainability plan to being a transition board, because what we are transitioning into is going to be called the Future Oxford Partnership. What were doing as a transition board is almost establishing the ground rules, the perimeters for what the partnership will look like - what's our goals and how are we going to get our work done.

They will be having their official launch at a Future Oxford Expo on January 28th. The Future Oxford Expo will feature speaker Bryan Smale, director of the Canadian Index of Wellbeing at the University of Waterloo, an organization that is a global pioneer in developing a holistic and integrated approach to measuring wellbeing. It promotes dialogue on how improvement can happen through progressive policies that are responsive to the needs and values of Canadians.

The Future Oxford Expo will also feature an address by Dr. José Etcheverry, who has supported Oxford County in launching Smart Energy Oxford, a sub-group of Future Oxford focusing on achieving 100% renewable energy by 2050, and Dr. Josipa Petrunic, executive director and chief executive officer of the Canadian Urban Transit Research & Innovation Consortium, who will speak about the future of electric and low-emissions mobility and the effects on both the automotive and transit industries.

Future Oxford looks at how we can sustain our future community, environmental and economic resources by outlining clear goals for the future. You can check it out online at www.futureoxford.com