We are pleased to present the latest update from Canadian Water Network’s (CWN) Canadian Municipal Water Consortium, a national network of utility leaders who share a common goal of advancing municipal water management. Welcoming new members We’re thrilled to announce the addition of two new members: the City of Waterloo and the City of Winnipeg. These municipalities join our [...]

Welcome to the World Water Week edition of News Splash. This year, the United Nations (UN) is launching a 'Water for Peace' campaign as part of the World Water Day celebrations. The UN recognizes that access to safe water can bring peace and prosperity, whereas a lack of access can be the source of conflict, loss of livelihood and [...]

Canadian Water Network (CWN) and GHD invite you to a webinar that asks: how will the water sector in Canada adapt to a changing climate? The water sector faces many challenges with integrating climate adaptation into long-term planning and decision-making. Deep uncertainty associated with climate change or complex socio-political realities constrains decision-making, causing paralysis and inaction. Existing planning approaches [...]

Xylem, one of Canadian Water Network’s (CWN) Innovation Partners, recently hosted a panel discussion on digital roadmapping in water utilities. Industry leaders participated in a dialogue about what it means to “digitally transform” a utility. This includes presenting current definitions and frameworks, highlighting successful examples, and sharing a peek into the digital future. The panel members included Tim Braun [...]

Canadian Water Network (CWN) recently brought together 19 utilities for the second data Strategic Sharing Group meeting. This group brings together members of CWN’s Canadian Municipal Water Consortium to explore approaches to advancing digital transformation through a water lens. Building on conversations from the October kickoff meeting, members heard from Halifax Water about its ambitious five-year data roadmap. Members [...]

We are pleased to announce that the City of Waterloo and the City of Winnipeg have joined the Canadian Municipal Water Consortium's Leadership Group. The Canadian Municipal Water Consortium is a network of utility leaders who advance municipal water management across Canada. Its Leadership Group, composed of 26 large and progressive utilities, enables senior leaders to discuss key issues, [...]

We’re excited to share that Canadian Water Network is partnering with the Canadian Institute of Planners to deliver the Summer 2024 issue of Plan Canada, Canada’s national planning magazine. The Summer 2024 issue will focus on integrated planning in support of water management. Here is your opportunity to showcase the work you're doing in collaboration with your urban planning [...]

Canadian Water Network (CWN) brought together 18 leaders from nine progressive water utilities to kick off a Strategic Sharing Group focused on increasing climate resilience through stormwater management. CWN’s Strategic Sharing Groups convene thought leaders to share knowledge on emerging issues. As Canada experiences more frequent extreme weather events, municipalities and utilities are struggling to build and maintain infrastructure [...]

Hot off the press! We’re excited to share CWN’s 2023 annual report with you. The report’s theme, Moving Forward Together, captures the essence of CWN’s approach. The water-related challenges we currently face, and those on the horizon, are too complex to tackle alone. CWN creates and curates spaces for decision-makers to work collaboratively across disciplines, across sectors and across [...]

At CWN, our collaboration with the National Collaborating Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCCID) is instrumental in empowering public health practitioners through our Wastewater-based Surveillance (WBS) Program. This initiative supports peer learning and knowledge sharing for public health practitioners, particularly when it comes to communicating and interpreting WBS data. Webinar on wastewater-based surveillance In September, program participants and a wider [...]

We are pleased to present the latest update from CWN’s Canadian Municipal Water Consortium, a national network of utility leaders who share a common goal of advancing municipal water management.Fall Consortium Leadership Group meeting highlightsThe Consortium Leadership Group convened in Toronto ahead of Blue Cities in October. Close to 30 leaders representing 15 municipalities and utilities from across Canada gathered [...]

We had an opportunity to connect with Don Iveson, former mayor of Edmonton and co-chair of the Taskforce on Climate and Housing. He shares his thought leadership on Canada’s colliding crises, the housing crisis and the climate crisis, and shows a positive way forward. You co-chair the Taskforce on Climate and Housing with Lisa Raitt. Can you tell me [...]

Through our water and climate program area, we’re undertaking a two-year project to understand the impact of climate change on water availability across the Canadian Prairies. This project is being undertaken in collaboration with our partners ClimateWest and Prairie Adaptation Research Collaborative (PARC), and support from the RBC Foundation through RBC Tech for Nature. Our project aims to provide [...]

At the recent Blue Cities conference in Toronto, which typically focuses on water utility concerns, Canadian Water Network extended invitations to individuals from the public health sphere. This infusion led to new health-related topics, such as increased wastewater surveillance as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The extensive spread of COVID-19 demanded immediate action from public health officials, scientists [...]

The Government of Canada is making the regulatory process for navigable waters easier and more efficient in response to requests made by local communities. More specifically, the process for asking the federal government to restrict the use of boats on lakes and rivers is being streamlined for all orders of government. The announcement was made by National Revenue Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, [...]

After a three-year hiatus, CWN's flagship Blue Cities 2023 conference was bigger and better than ever. Drawing 200 participants from across Canada, the event unfolded at the Chelsea Hotel in downtown Toronto. The conference focused on topics related to municipal water management and public health protection. Notably, 70 percent of Blue Cities attendees held pivotal decision-making roles. Half of [...]

Welcome to the December 2023 edition of Canadian Water Network’s (CWN) News Splash. What a quarter it has been – CWN is firing on all cylinders! Most exciting has been the return to our in-person Blue Cities conference, where we hosted 200 water and public health enthusiasts, held two national dialogues on pressing issues of the day, sang a [...]

Canadian Water Network (CWN) is delighted to announce that GHD, Stantec, and Xylem have become the first companies to join CWN’s new Innovation Partner Sponsorship program.  About the Innovation Partner Sponsorship program The Innovation Partner Sponsorship program bridges the gap between private-sector innovation and public-sector needs. More specifically, it:  Promotes the thought leadership of leading companies and [...]

Canadian Water Network (CWN) is thrilled to announce a new initiative as CWN joins forces with the Prairie Adaptation Research Collaborative (University of Regina) and Climate West. Thanks to the generous support of RBC's Tech for Nature program, we are embarking on a transformative journey aimed at enhancing our understanding of climate change impacts on water availability across the [...]

By Michele Samuels, strategic accounts manager at Xylem As utilities implement digital solutions, we often hear how technology helped ‘turn on the lights,’ allowing utility managers to see their operations more clearly, without the shadows of outdated systems, unconnected data and information silos. Technology provides an essential bridge between data and decision-making, delivering transformative outcomes for communities of all [...]

Over the past six months, an exciting and dynamic partnership has been flourishing between Canadian Water Network (CWN) and the National Collaborating Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCCID). This partnership has resulted in the development of the Wastewater-based Surveillance (WBS) program, an initiative that has been orchestrating captivating discussions aimed at helping our public health practitioners decipher the secrets concealed [...]

This thought leader interview features Dr. Monica Emelko, Canada Research Chair of Water Science, Technology and Policy and Scientific Director of the forWater Network at the University of Waterloo. She shares her expertise and experience in researching the impact of forest fires on drinking water source quality and treatability. Can you share some reflections on how you came to [...]

We are pleased to present the latest update from Canadian Water Network’s (CWN) Canadian Municipal Water Consortium, a national network of utility leaders who share a common goal of advancing municipal water management. Presence in the Canadian water industry The Canadian Municipal Water Consortium continues to maintain a strong presence in the Canadian water industry. In June, we participated [...]

Welcome to the Fall 2023 edition of Canadian Water Network’s (CWN) News Splash. It's been quite a summer, and let's start with the good news. The pandemic is finally receding, and people are embracing the return of travel and in-person events. For this reason, we're thrilled that CWN's flagship event, Blue Cities, is making a comeback after a three-year [...]

We are happy to share that Talia Glickman has joined the Canadian Water Network (CWN) team as an engagement and knowledge mobilization specialist for our Wastewater-Based Surveillance (WBS) Program. CWN is undertaking this program in collaboration with the National Collaborating Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCCID). “We are delighted to welcome Talia to the Wastewater-based Surveillance Program team at CWN,” [...]