Resources

Webinars and Presentations

As a part of many of its programs, the Cities Initiative offers webinars and online presentations. Find an archive of these sessions here.

Webinar Series 2019/20

Rising Water Levels in the Great Lakes – Great Lakes St. Lawrence Cities Initiative

May 7, 2020
Water levels in the Great Lakes and St Lawrence. Presented by the International Joint Commission(IJC).

This webinar has already passed, watch the video recording.

 

Action Plan 2030

May 21, 2020
The result of 18 months of consultations, the action plan makes recommendations to the Federal and Provincial Governments that support local action to improve water quality, stop erosion, and reduce pollution in your community.

This webinar has already passed, watch the video recording.

 

EROSION AND FLOODING (ENGLISH)

June 4, 2020 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
Participation by Stantec
View Webinar

Erosion and Flooding mitigation best practices and lessons learned from shoreline communities along the Great Lakes and St Lawrence.

 

 

STIMULUS WATER RESTORATION INITIATIVE: A CAMPAIGN TO BRING STIMULUS FUNDING TO YOUR MUNICIPALITY

June 25, 2020 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
View Webinar

As a result of the COVID-19 crisis, the U.S. government is contemplating stimulus packages to restart our economies and to put citizens back to work.

The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative will be launching a Stimulus Water Restoration Initiative to advocate for financial resources to address water infrastructure needs and ensure your city can receive stimulus funds to put your citizens back to work and to improve your community and the water basin. Please attend this lunchtime webinar to learn about how you can participate in this effort.

 

WATER INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS – HOW TO FUND YOUR PROJECTS AND OPTIMIZE YOUR DEBT STRUCTURE (English)

July 23, 2020 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
Participation by Stantec
View Webinar

Providing clean water is the most important service you provide to your citizens.  Your community is in need of important water infrastructure improvements.  Hear from the experts and your colleagues on how you can get your water infrastructure off the ground in today’s difficult economic environment.

 

MICROPLASTICS:  A GREAT LAKES AND ST. LAWRENCE UPDATE (ENGLISH)

September 24, 2020 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
View Webinar

Microplastics are created when larger plastic pieces enter the marine environment and are subsequently broken into particles of less than 5mm in diameter by wind, waves and solar radiation. Microplastics are endangering the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence and the animals that inhabit these waters. Please attend this lunchtime webinar to get an update on this effort and find out how your municipality can help eliminate this pollutant.

 

A NEW FUNDING OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS COAST EROSION, FLOODING, AND OTHER HAZARDS

October 2, 2020 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
Participation by Stantec
View Webinar
FEMA Fact Sheet

This webinar will review funding available under the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) pre-disaster mitigation program. FEMA has released a funding announcement for $500 million for mitigation projects and capability and capacity-building activities, with applications due Jan. 29, 2021.

Technical experts will review requirements under the BRIC program and how to develop strong proposals. The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative will discuss options for supporting its member cities in developing proposals to submit for funding under the BRIC program.

 

Asian Carp – A Danger to the Great Lakes (English)


October 22, 2020 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
View Webinar
View Presentations

Four species of Asian Carp threaten the health of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence ecosystem and its fisheries. Asian Carp were imported to North America for aquaculture and have since escaped into the Mississippi, Illinois, and other rivers due to flooding. For 20 years the Asian Carp have made their way to the edge of the Great Lakes, destroying habitats and denuding our fish population threatening a $5.8 trillion regional economy, including the $7 billion commercial, recreational and tribal fisheries.

The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative has consistently emphasized the danger of Asian Carp and called for urgent action to address the threat. Delays in taking action have allowed for the threat to consistently increase the dangers to our region. Come to our lunchtime webinar to find out the status of our efforts.

 

That Green Stuff on the Great Lakes: Algae (Cladophora) Bloom  (English)

November 19, 2020 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
Participation by TruGreen
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View Presentations

The Great Lakes are battling an algae outbreak. Algae have always existed in the Lakes but there has recently been a resurgence of nuisance species (Cladophora). The growth of Cladophora increases significantly during the summer months suggesting that warmer temperatures encourage its growth. Come to our lunchtime webinar and get an update on the situation facing our water basin.

Resilient Municipalities Webinar Series 2018/19

PRIMED PLACES = PRIME PLACES

September 26, 2018 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
Presented by GEI Consultants

Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative members have to do more with less in an age of increased flooding, budget cuts, and pressure to attract jobs while reinvesting in open space and other assets for a vibrant quality of life. The first webinar in the Cities Initiative’s 2018-2019 series will be
Primed Places = Prime Places, presented by experts at GEI Consultants Ltd, to provide municipal leaders with a method for tackling these and other stresses by building community resilience through green infrastructure and similar approaches.

This webinar has already passed, watch the video recording.

 

ADDRESSING GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE POLICY BARRIERS IN CANADA AND THE US

October 24, 2018 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
Presented by the Great Lakes Commission and Credit Valley Conservation Authority

Local communities are generally at the forefront of stormwater management, challenges, and innovation, but municipalities’ capacity to develop green infrastructure (GI) is heavily influenced by federal, state, and provincial policy. This webinar will summarize federal, state, and provincial policies in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence basin that promote or hinder GI and provide recommendations to create enabling conditions for communities to implement GI.

This webinar has already passed, watch the video recording.

 

RESILIENCY FOR RESOURCE-STRAPPED COMMUNITIES

November 14, 2018 @ 11:00 am central/noon eastern
Presented by the Delta Institute

Experts at the Delta Institute, a nonprofit aimed at collaborating with communities to address environmental issues, will speak on green infrastructure related resources and tools that can be used in resource-strapped communities interested in taking steps on adaptation. Delta Institute will provide examples from their work in Gary, Hobart and Michigan City.

This webinar has already passed, watch the video recording.

 

FINANCING CLIMATE RESILIENT WATER INFRASTRUCTURE

Thursday, February 21 2019 @11:00 am central/noon eastern
In partnership with the Mayors Innovation Project

The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative and the Mayors Innovation Project are hosting a webinar to provide an overview of financing needs and existing/emerging options for water and stormwater infrastructure for municipalities. Over the last four decades, financing of water infrastructure has drastically changed so far as the source of the money: from primarily federal funding to primarily local and state funding. Especially in light of climate related meteorological changes, the investment gap between what is needed and what is available, continues to grow. To find out more and view the presenters, click register now.

This webinar has already passed, watch the video recording. See below for the panelist presentations.

  1. Sanjiv Sinha, VP – ECT and Director – P3GreatLakes.org
    Presentation: Financing Climate Resilient Water Infrastructure
  2. Eric Letsinger, CEO – Quantified Ventures
    Environmental Impact Bonds
  3. Cherian George, Managing Director – Fitch Ratings and Member – Forbes’ National Infrastructure Council
    Financing Infrastructure in the 21st Century
Annual Meeting & Conference 2018

Keynote Speaker 1: Dan Egan

Dan Egan, Fellow, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, School of Freshwater Sciences
Watch here the video of Dan Egan in conversation with Dave Ullrich.

Panel 1: Resilience Solutions for Flooding and Extreme Weather

John Dickert, Former Mayor of Racine and President/CEO of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative.
1. John Dickert Presentation

Bill Schleizer, President and CEO of Delta Institute
2. Bill Schleizer Presentation

Claudia Verno, Director of Policy, Insurance Bureau of Canada
3. Claudia Verno Presentation

Panel 2: Municipal Liability Related to Extreme Weather

Teresa Chan, Senior Attorney, Environmental Law Institute
1. Teresa Chan Presentation

Brian Kelly, Manager of Sustainability, Region of Durham
2. Brian Kelly Presentation

Panel 3: Coastal Resilience Solutions for Shoreline Municipalities

Mayor Marc Parent, Mayor of Rimouski
1. Marc Parent Presentation

Julie Kinzelman, Research Scientist, City of Racine
2. Julie Kinzelman Presentation

Mike Donahue, Vice President of Water Resources and Environmental Services, AECOM
3. Mike Donahue Presentation

Cameron Davis and Peter Ventin

Cameron Davis and Peter Ventin, Vice Presidents, GEI Consultants

To view this presentation, please contact Jane Eagleton at jane.eagleton@glslcities.org.

Panel 4: Tech Solutions for Climate Resilience

Lance Watkins, Science Systems and Applications, Inc. NASA DEVELOP Center Lead
1. Lance Watkins Presentation

Loch McCabe, Founder, Energy Emissions Intelligence, LLC, and project team member of the American Water Works Association Water Utility for Energy Change
2. Loch McCabe Presentation

 

Annual Meeting & Conference 2017

City to City Partnerships Panel

Public Private Partnerships Panel

Keynote: Pierre Beland

Special Session: Great Lakes Restoration Initiative

Partnerships to Address Climate Change Panel

Special Presentation: Sustainable Municipal Water Management in Montreal, Burough Mayor Chantal Rouleau

Intergovernmental Partnerships Panel

Special Presentation: NASA-DEVELOP Program

Webinar: Great Lakes & St. Lawrence Budget in U.S. and Canada

Click here for webinar slide deck.

View recording of webinar below:

Webinar: Public-Private Partnerships, Green Infrastructure, and Private Delivery/Financing

Click here for webinar slide deck.

View recording of webinar below:

Annual Meeting & Conference 2016

Playlist: All 2016 Keynotes and Panels

Panel 1: Safe Drinking Water in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Basin

Special Presentation: Climate Change and Coral Reefs, Doon McColl, Churchill Fellow

Panel 2: Climate Change Adaptation, Mitigation and Innovation

Panel 3: Lake Erie Algae Updates, Programs and Impacts on Municipalities

Panel 4: Municipal Green Urbanism and Sustainability Initiatives

Special Presentation: NASA-DEVELOP Program

Great Lakes Ecological Forecasting – Phragmites Habitat: Sean McCartney, NASA Develop National Program

Panel 5: Control Solutions for Phragmites

Integrated Water Management Webinar Series

 

Annual Meeting & Conference 2015

Panels

Nutrient Action Collaborative: Solutions to Protect Drinking Water

Oil Transportation in the Great Lakes Region

Shoreline Restoration and Economic Activity: Challenges and Opportunities

Cities Initiative in the Community: Pilot Projects

Cities Initiative in the Community: Student Project Presentations

 

Presentations

Annual Meeting & Conference 2014
Annual Meeting & Conference 2013
Annual Meeting & Conference 2012
Annual Meeting & Conference 2011
Annual Meeting & Conference 2010
Infrastructure

Frozen Pipes Teleconference: Thursday, May 27th, 2015

  • Kerri Marshall, City of Thunder Bay, and Paul Clements, City of Toronto, provided information about how their cities responded to the increase in calls about frozen water pipes during Winter 2015. A discussion among attendees followed.
  • Presentations begin at 5:22

Additional Frozen Pipes Resources:

Pharmaceuticals
Water Conservation Framework
Stormwater Management
Municipal Adaptation and Resiliency Service (MARS)