Themes:

#OpenGov - Early Trials

June 16, 2015

Guelph was practicing aspects of its digital age strategy (Open Government) long before a complete framework was built. In 2002, an innovative community engagement process was launched.  The community was invited to co-produce a set of sustainability principles to guide municipal planning.  These principles have since been integrated into the City’s growth plans. The public was asked to participate as...

#OpenGov - More than that

June 15, 2015

Open Government is what we have called Guelph’s strategy to adapt our local government to the digital age. We may need a new name before we are done. Too often it is mistaken for just more government transparency while open data enthusiasts see it as paving the way to new sources of government data. Open access to information, sharing rather...

#OpenGov - Let's Get Digital

June 14, 2015

I can take a picture of a cheque and deposit it instantly into my credit union account using my smart phone. The technology that permits this convenience is remarkable – and only a few years ago would have been inconceivable to most of us. More remarkable is the social transformation underway, which lies behind the technology, as we shift from the industrial...

Energiewende on the ground

June 6, 2015

A big learning to share in June from my participation in the Transatlantic Urban Climate Dialogue (TUCD) was getting to see how Germany’s national policy Energiewende (energy transition) was being implemented at the local level. Energiewende is the transition by Germany to an energy portfolio focussed on energy efficiency, thermal and renewable energy and sustainable development – the backbone of community energy planning.  Germany’s long-term goal is...

Opportunity for electric utilities

June 4, 2015

The electricity sector is recognizing opportunities to innovate in areas of demand response, the facilitation of distributed generation and electric cars, optimization of asset use, fault detection, mitigation and storage[1].  How can the provincial regulator support innovation and value creation in Ontario’s LDCs? LDCs should be encouraged to embrace the transition to a new energy future and extract value out...

Multi-service energy providers

June 3, 2015

The good news is that the transformation occurring in the energy sector is being driven by many benefits: increased system efficiency, lower system costs, reduced energy bills, increased clean vehicles, increased energy efficiency and competitiveness, reduced emissions, increased system resilience and reliability, and increased energy security. The question for municipal owners of electric utilities is whether their community is interested in...

The Future Electric Utility: Regulatory Change

June 2, 2015

The growing risk to a significant municipal asset – electric utilities – and the increasing localization of energy decision-making with draw more municipalities into provincial regulatory discussions. See earlier posts: The Future Electric Utility The Future Electric Utility: Local Implications Municipal owners of electric utilities have an interest in seeing proactive regulatory change that helps pave the way to a new energy...

The Future Electric Utility: Consolidation

June 1, 2015

Consolidation will be one of the topics discussed at this week’s conference on the future of Ontario’s electric utilities. After the regulatory reforms of the 1990s, some municipalities sold their LDCs as they were too small to operate efficiently under the new rules. Other LDCs sought efficiencies through mergers, maintaining the involvement of their respective municipalities in the electric utility, while others...

Creating markets for energy solutions

May 31, 2015

The programs that implement smart energy community strategies create markets for energy efficiency, renewable energy, thermal energy, and more.  They attract investment and business to serve emerging markets and catalyze innovation. This was just confirmed for me during my participation in the Transatlantic Urban Climate Dialogue. Canadian innovators providing energy solutions will also need access to international markets to excel.  Collaborations...

A reunion of collaborators

May 26, 2015

I am heading to Washington DC in a couple of weeks for a reunion of sorts – a reunion of some of the former and current elected officials who met during a multi-year Transatlantic Urban Climate Dialogue (TUCD). The reunion is being organized by the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies. The TUCD is great example of the kind of collaboration...

The Future Electric Utility: Local Implications

May 25, 2015

As I have been preparing for the conference in June on the future of electric utilities in Ontario, I have been considering the implications for local governments and communities and reflecting on the observations and questions raised by the conference organizers. There are several risks associated with the changing business environment for electric utilities that their owners should be aware of. LDCs...

Recipe for collaboration

May 24, 2015

The collaborations that I have seen to be the most effective in building sustainable and smart communities follow a similar, although always unique, path: Set the agenda. Champion the agenda far and wide. Convene a community conversation to understand what matters. Connect people and ideas from across the community to promote innovation. Provide resources to support change and measure results. In...

The Future Electric Utility

May 21, 2015

I am speaking at a conference in June – The LDC of the Future – hosted by the Centre for Urban Energy at Ryerson College.  The target audience is municipal elected officials. It is a timely conference. The backdrop is that several converging trends are reshaping the energy sector in Canada. As part of Ontario’s electricity system, this transformation will impact...

Sustainability and CSR start with values

May 17, 2015

There is a reason why corporate social responsibility (CSR) is discussed around board room tables – it is legitimately a governance matter.  CSR is about leadership and the values that inform how decisions are made in an organization.  Some governance structures – like co-operatives and B Corps – are built around a shared set of social values. Ensuring cities are...

Connection grows prosperity

May 13, 2015

On June 2, I am part of a panel on sustainable and smart cities at a corporate social responsibility (CSR) conference. So why a session on sustainable and smart cities at a conference focussed on improving business performance through CSR, you might ask? I believe businesses will become increasingly invested in the success of cities given the new role of...

Ethical leadership

May 6, 2015

I had a coffee with a young women entrepreneur a few days ago.  She is working to certify her retail business as a B Corp and meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency. She is moving on a new business venture and was looking for a few community contacts to help make it a success – for her business...

The tenacity of the status quo

April 29, 2015

The status quo is remarkably tenacious even in the face of overwhelming evidence that change is an imperative. Whether it is a complex global system that needs to change – as is the case with global warming – or a moribund institution that has lost its way, the actors that protect the status quo are incredibly resourceful and resilient. Some...

Engage to increase energy literacy

April 23, 2015

I have recently heard several people talk about how we must increase the energy literacy of Canadians. It got me thinking about what’s in a name? The name of the body overseeing Guelph’s municipally-owned electric utility up until the restructuring of the industry in 1998 sort of says it all – The Board of Light and Heat Commissioners.  Their first...

Changing role for electric utilities

April 17, 2015

Usually, local governments initiate and lead community energy planning initiatives in their communities. This was not quite how it happened in Guelph. In 2003, the Guelph Hydro Board of Directors engaged in a strategic planning exercise with its management team. A fundamental question was posed given all of the changes precipitated by The Electricity Act in 1998. What business were...

Electricity sector innovation needs capital

April 8, 2015

From my vantage point, and I grant it is limited, I am having trouble discerning the long-term strategy behind the proposed sale of parts of Hydro One. From media reports, it appears that the complete sale of Hydro One’s distribution business is not on the table. Rather a partial sale of some of its franchise to municipally-owned local distribution companies...