CGC ONTARIO CAUCUS LAUNCHED TO ACCLAIM
Vaughan (Ontario), December 14th, 2009
GeoExchange Coalition (CGC) congratulated members in Ontario today on the official launch of a first-ever Ontario members Caucus. The event, attended by more than 50 CGC members, began with a half day of presentations by:
Ontario Ministry of Environment on the 2009 groundwater consultations;
Ontario Conservation Authority’s perspective on hydro-geological issues;
Toronto’s Energy Efficiency Office on current incentives and successes;
Toronto District School Board describing four new geothermal school bid processes; and
CGC staff on preliminary results of the 2009 national codes and standards consultation; and
CGC’s CEO on the first statistical results from its comprehensive ‘State of the Industry’ analysis.
Caucus members then moved in to an assessment exercise, identifying stakeholders and prioritizing issues for the group to address systematically in the coming months. The results of these activities will be taken forward by the caucus to a province-wide consultation. “This meeting emphasizes how the CGC continues to enhance and strengthen the GeoExchange industry” said CGC Chair Stacey Bernier. “As such this is the culmination of efforts supported at national and provincial levels towards aligning professional, reliable, and credible representation in each province” he added. “These efforts are based on CGC member and stakeholder interests, reflecting both national and provincial messages and priorities. These priorities and the caucus structure will be a key part of our industry’s next successes.” “This is a positive step forward for the industry in Ontario, and a very positive step from the national organisation” stated Jane Kearns of Clean Energy Developments.
In order to build member participation in CGC’s daily life, and to increase the member value of association, CGC provincial caucuses were unanimously approved by the Board of Directors at its September 24, 2009 meeting. Formation of the caucuses began in early October.
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Backgrounder
The Role of CGC’s Caucuses
Currently, CGC members:
- act collectively as the ultimate governing body and as such, elect representatives on the Board of Directors (BOD);
- are automatically members of their provincial caucus;
- can participate, on a voluntary basis, in CGC committees;
- can participate, on a voluntary basis, on ad-hoc committees as needed.
Caucuses and CGC-National Caucus Council
Provincial caucuses are the bridging point between the CGC and provincial stakeholders. More specifically, provincial caucuses:
- act as sounding boards on policy / regulatory / legislative issues at the provincial level;
- facilitate discussions between the CGC and associations and other interest groups in provinces including municipal and provincial governments;
- organize workshops and other events with the logistical and financial support of the CGC national office;
- elect one (1) liaison officer per province to serve on the CGC National Caucus Council (CGC-NCC);
- formulate recommendations to the BOD and staff through their participation in the CGC-NCC;
- increase links and especially communication between BOD, national discussions, and regional or provincial discussions.
CGC members have the ability to participate more fully in the CGC decision making process by formulating recommendations to the BOD and staff through their participation in their caucuses and in the CGC-National Caucus Council. Provincial caucuses are created by the board of directors and therefore, there was no need to amend the CGC By-Laws. The structure is meant to be flexible and adaptable to the changing needs of the CGC and / or the caucuses.
The caucuses’ liaison officers will meet regularly with the CGC Executive Committee and the CGC BOD at a frequency to be determined. CGC-NCC and CGC staff maintain a working relationship and a facilitation role with provincial caucuses and the CGC-NCC. Each caucus will have a personalized website maintained by the national office.
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