College Conference & AGM

2024 College Conference & AGM

The College’s 2024 Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Conference is on April 4-5, 2024 at the Vancouver Island Conference Centre in Nanaimo, BC on the Traditional Territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation. Read on for more information about the speakers and panels.

Registrants will have the opportunity to participate in both the AGM and Conference through a live web broadcast. Details on registration for the virtual broadcast are below. Registrants who attend the AGM will be eligible to claim up to 1 Continuing Professional Development point and participation in the Conference will be valued at 14 points. More information about CPD can be found here. Conference registration is non-refundable and non-transferable after April 1, 2024.

If you are travelling to the AGM & Conference, we recommend that you view the Travel section of the page to ensure you’re aware of all your travel options.

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Registration

Registering for the College’s 2024 AGM & Conference is easy. Simply navigate to the College’s portal, log-in, and select the 2024 Conference from the Events section.

You’ll be able to select your ticket, choose add-ons for additional opportunities to participate, and checkout — all within the portal! If you don’t have a profile on the College’s portal, that’s ok. You can quickly sign up with just your name and email and then access the event registration as normal.

Registration for the AGM — both in-person and virtual — is free of charge. If you want to participate in the 2024 AGM online, you will sign up separately through GoToWebinar. Click the button below to register. Please note that you must register for the AGM in order to receive the link to join the session. Please note that if you would like to attend both the conference and the AGM online, you will use both buttons below: register for the conference via the College registrant portal and for the AGM using the “REGISTER FOR 2024 AGM (ONLINE)” button. Please contact the College office if you have any questions about accessing the broadcasts.

Pricing Information

Pass	Price	Total Price (GST incl.)
Two-day pass	$375.00	$393.75
One-day pass (Thurs. or Fri.)	$260.00	$273.00
Online pass	$180.00	$189.00
Welcome reception ticket (Wed. April 3)	$25.00	$26.50
Soirée reception ticket (Thurs. April 4)	$50.00	$52.50

Please note Conference registration is non-refundable and non-transferable after April 1, 2024.

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2024 Annual General Meeting

The 2024 Annual General Meeting will occur on April 4, 2024 at 4pm. The AGM will be in-person at the Vancouver Island Conference Centre in Nanaimo, BC in the Mt. Benson Ballroom. To register for a free, online broadcast of the AGM, follow this link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/938273082221993052. To register to attend the AGM in person, use the College registrant portal.

The 2023 AGM minutes, Annual Report, Audited Financial Statements and other materials will be reviewed during the meeting.

AGM Materials

• 2024 Annual General Meeting agenda
• 2023 Annual General Meeting minutes (draft)
• 2023 audited financial statements
• 2023 annual report

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Keynote Speakers

For the 2024 conference, the College is very pleased to once again present two keynote addresses. Our keynotes will be delivered by accomplished professional figures who will provide their unique perspectives on collaboration, mindfulness and well-being.

Day 1 Keynote Speaker — Gwen Bridge

The keynote speaker on Thursday, Day 1 of the Conference will be Gwen Bridge, a professional consultant who brings 19 years of extensive knowledge in improving Indigenous organizations. Her specialties include effective governance, negotiations and consultation.

A member of the Saddle Lake Cree Nation, Gwen has over twenty years of experience in providing advice, developing strategies, and managing natural resource-related projects for First Nations and their partners, including in land and water planning, protected areas planning, and policy. Gwen has worked on watershed planning with the Mescalero Apache, the Makah Tribe (including collaborative Recovery Planning for the Ozette Sockeye with the US National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the State of Washington and the Makah Tribe), the Okanagan Nation Alliance, the Okanagan Indian Band, and the Lower Similkameen Indian Band. Gwen has led and facilitated land use planning and title and rights protection processes with those nations and others including the West Moberly First Nations. Gwen has been recently working on indigenous-led conservation including caribou habitat protection and old growth protection with the Okanagan Nation Alliance and negotiating and planning for the South Okanagan Similkameen National Park Reserve.

Day 2 Keynote Speaker — Dr. Erika Horwitz

The keynote speaker on Friday, Day 2 of the Conference will be Dr. Erika Horwitz, Ph.D, R.Psych, President, British Columbia Psychological Association.

Dr. Horwitz is a registered psychologist in private practice in the greater Metro Vancouver Area. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of British Columbia. She is the former Director of Counselling Services at Simon Fraser University. Dr. Horwitz is currently a lecturer at the University of British Columbia and has published the book: Through the Maze of Motherhood. Her upcoming book: Improbable and Extraordinary, focuses on the transformation from mental illness. She is a certified Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction teacher and Mindfulness meditation teacher. She has a passion for helping and encouraging others to find their inner peace and happiness. She lives with her husband and has two grown daughters and 3 grandchildren.

The title of the Dr. Horwitz’s keynote presentation is Workplace Stress, Overwhelm, and the Journey to Inner Contentment:

Life is unpredictable and at times stormy. In the Mindfulness circles, there is a saying: “We cannot control the waves, but we can learn to surf.” Life and the workplace are like the ocean, sometimes they can be calm and peaceful, and others, stormy. In this presentation, Dr. Horwitz will talk about stress and its connection to mental health. She will speak about the experience of emotional overwhelm and the path to workplace resilience and more inner peace (the learning to surf). She will provide an understanding of the intersection of mental, neurological, psychological, biological, social, and cultural factors in the emergence of the experience of stress both in the workplace and life in general. With the experience of mindful awareness and some cognitive and practical strategies, she will guide the participants to delve into their inner strength to improve their resilience, and the importance of cultivating these to enhance their experience in the workplace and beyond.

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2024 AGM & Conference Agenda

*Conference program subject to change closer to event dates

April 3rd, 2024

Welcome Reception

• 7-9pm: Welcome Reception

April 4th, 2024

Conference Day 1

• 8:00am-9:45am: Continental Breakfast and Opening Remarks
  • Opening Remarks from Nathan Cullen, Minister of Water, Land, and Resource Stewardship (virtual)
  • Welcome from Snuneymuxw First Nation
  • Welcome from Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog
• 10:00am-11:15am: Session 1 — Federal legislation round-up
  • Guy Gilron, M.Sc., RPBio, Senior Environmental Scientist, Principal, Borealis Environmental Consulting Inc.; Jesse Russell, Canada Wildlife Service, Environment and Climate Change Canada
• 11:15am-12:45pm: Lunch and Keynote speaker
  • Lunch sponsored by EDI Environmental Dynamics Inc.
  • Keynote, 12pm: Gwen Bridge, Principal, Gwen Bridge Consulting
• 1:00pm-2:15pm: Session 2 — How Climate Change is affecting our decision making
  • Steve Litke, Director, Water Programs, Fraser Basin Council; Meaghen McCord, Executive Director, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – British Columbia Chapter; Graham Nicholas, M.Sc., Senior Environmental Specialist – Field Programs, Tsleil-Waututh Nation
    • Networking Break (30 min.) — Sponsored by Associated Environmental
• 2:45-4pm: Session 3 — Steps on the road to Reconciliation
  • Brittany John, Consultation and Accommodation Manager, Tsleil-Waututh Nation; Anuradha Rao, M.Sc., R.P.Bio., Cert.RNS, Senior Environmental Specialist, Marine Ecosystems, Tsleil-Waututh Nation; Dallas Smith, Board President, Nanwakolas Council

Annual General Meeting

• 4-5pm: The College of Applied Biologists’ 21st Annual General Meeting

Soirée Reception

• 7-9pm: Soirée Reception — Sponsored by Dynamic Ocean Consulting Ltd.

April 5th, 2024

Conference Day 2

• 8:00-9:45am: Breakfast & Opening Remarks
  • Greeting from Lisa Beare, Minister of  Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills (recorded)
  • Networking Break (45 min.) — Sponsored by WSP Canada Inc.
• 10:30-11:45am: Session 4 — Emerging tools and applications (methodologies) in monitoring wildlife and habitat
  • Will Atlas, Ph.D, Senior Salmon Watershed Scientist, Wild Salmon Center; Chris Beirne, Ph.D. Senior Scientist, Osa Conservation; Victoria Burdett-Coutts, MSc. RPBio, Senior Marine Scientist, Dynamic Ocean Consulting Ltd.; Seán Sharpe, RPBio, Principal, Sean Sharpe Environmental Consulting Ltd
• 11:45am-12:45pm: Lunch and Keynote speaker
  • Keynote, 12:15pm: Dr. Erika Horwitz, Ph.D, R.Psych, President, British Columbia Psychological Association
• 1:00-2:15pm: Session 5 — Shared stewardship paradigms
  • Nancy Wilkin, Co-chair, Minister’s Wildlife Council, BC Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship; Wil Hilsen, PGeo, Principal, Northwest Hydraulic Consultants
    • Networking Break (30 min.) — Sponsored by EcoFish Research
• 2:45-4pm: Session 6 — How professionals stay out of trouble
  • Julia Hengstler, Chair, Centre for Education & CyberHumanity, Vancouver Island University; Lee Nikl, RPBio, Senior Environmental Scientist, WSP Canada Inc.; Michael Thain, BA, JD, Registrar & General Counsel, Applied Science Technologists & Technicians BC

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Committed Speakers

• Guy Gilron, M.Sc., RPBio, Senior Environmental Scientist, Principal, Borealis Environmental Consulting Inc.
• Dallas Smith, Board President, Nanwakolas Council
• Will Atlas, Ph.D, Senior Salmon Watershed Scientist, Wild Salmon Center
• Seán Sharpe, RPBio, Principal, Sean Sharpe Environmental Consulting Ltd
• Nancy Wilkin, Co-chair, Minister’s Wildlife Advisory Council
• Lee Nikl, RPBio, Senior Environmental Scientist, WSP Canada Inc.
• Brittany John, Consultation and Accommodation Manager, Tsleil-Waututh Nation
• Michael Thain, BA, JD, Registrar & General Counsel, Applied Science Technologists & Technicians BC
• Julia Hengstler, Chair, Centre for Education & CyberHumanity, Vancouver Island University
• Meaghen McCord, Executive Director, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – British Columbia Chapter
• Steve Litke, Director, Water Programs, Fraser Basin Council
• Victoria Burdett-Coutts, MSc. RPBio, Senior Marine Scientist, Dynamic Ocean Consulting Ltd.
• Anuradha Rao, M.Sc., R.P.Bio., Cert.RNS, Senior Environmental Specialist, Marine Ecosystems, Tsleil-Waututh Nation
• Chris Beirne, Ph.D. Senior Scientist, Osa Conservation
• Jesse Russell, Canada Wildlife Service, Environment and Climate Change Canada
• Graham Nicholas, M.Sc., Senior Environmental Specialist – Field Programs, Tsleil-Waututh Nation
• Wil Hilsen, PGeo, Principal, Northwest Hydraulic Consultants

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Tradeshow

Returning in 2024 is the College of Applied Biologists’ Conference Tradeshow. Within the pre-conference area of the Vancouver Island Conference Centre you will find a number of exhibitors with useful information, products and services.

Stay tuned as more vendors are added. If you would like to be an exhibitor, contact Tory Davis, Communications Officer to see the 2024 sponsorship catalogue, or call the College Office at 1-250-383-3306.

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Sponsors

PREMIER SPONSORS

SELECT SPONSORS

FRIENDSHIP SPONSORS

The College is grateful for the support of its event sponsors. Are you interested in sponsoring the 2024 Conference or participating in the tradeshow? Contact Tory Davis, Communications Officer to see the 2024 sponsorship catalogue, or call the College Office at 1-250-383-3306.

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Venue & Reception Information

The Vancouver Island Conference Centre is the venue for the 2024 AGM and Conference. Note the areas and rooms below for each conference program element:

• Conference plenary, April 4 & 5: Mt. Benson Ballroom A
• Welcome reception, April 3: Newcastle Lobby
• Tradeshow, April 3, 4, & 5: Newcastle Lobby
• Soirée reception, April 4: Shaw Auditorium Lobby

More information about the two conference receptions is below:

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Accommodation & Travel

Accommodation

The Courtyard by Marriott Nanaimo is the event accommodation partner and is conveniently located across the laneway from the Conference Centre. The College’s group rate with the Marriott has expired, so rooms are subject to availability. 

To make reservations guests can book online or via phone.
Phone: 250-824-2705

Travel

There are a variety of ways to travel to Nanaimo, BC. The area is served by two ferry services and three air travel services. The biggest thing to note is that the Nanaimo Regional Airport (YCD) is 18km south of the downtown area and will require secondary ground transportation to connect.

Travelling by air

The Nanaimo Regional Airport has arrivals daily from WestJet and Air Canada as well as select service from Pacific Coastal Airlines:

• Morning flights on April 3, 4 and 5 from Vancouver, Prince George, Kelowna, Calgary and Kamloops
• Midday flights on April 3 and 4 from Vancouver, Prince George, Kelowna, Calgary and Kamloops
• Evening flights on April 3 and 4 from Vancouver, Prince George, Kelowna, Calgary and Kamloops and Williams Lake
• Additional evening service on April 4 from WestJet flight WS3153 from Calgary with connecting service via Prince George, Kelowna and Kamloops

The College is exploring the viability of offering a shuttle service from Nanaimo Airport (YCD) to downtown. If you are planning to fly to YCD on Wednesday or Thursday and are interested in shuttle service, please email ea-comm@cab-bc.org with your scheduled arrival time.

Travelling by ferry