Events

Love Your Streets: Hamilton's Changing Transportation Network

The demand for this session has been overwhelming. As a result, the event is now taking place at the Art Gallery of Hamilton.

By Matthew Sweet
Published November 14, 2014

Hamilton's Sustainability Professionals Network is collaborating with McMaster University's Academic Sustainability Programs Office to present a series of educational and networking events over the next few months, collectively known as the Community-Based Leadership in Sustainability, or CLS Initiative.

The first of these events is taking place on Wednesday, November 26 at 7:00 PM, entitled "Love Your Streets - Hamilton's Changing Transportation Network". Due to overwhelming demand, the event location has moved to increase capacity!

More information is available on the HamiltonSPN.ca website.

This promises to be an informative and inspiring evening, highlighting what is happening in the city to make walking, cycling and transit better in Hamilton and how the changing relationship between City Hall and the residents of Hamilton is providing a better opportunity than ever to engage in positive, meaningful change.

When the Sustainability Professionals Network first launched in the spring of 2013, we asked people what they thought were the most important sustainability-related issues facing Hamilton. Overwhelmingly, the responses mentioned transportation.

Whether due to the ongoing debate over light rail transit, or due to more concrete day-to-day experiences of the people we spoke to, transportation is being prioritized and being seen from a different perspective. It is more and more about sustainability - environmentally, socially and economically.

So when planning began for the CLS series, it was obvious that an evening focused on transportation issues was both timely and in demand. Four speakers who have all been involved in the evolving conversation about transportation in Hamilton will provide their insights:

The formal presentations will be followed by an interactive panel discussion between the four speakers and the audience. The evening will conclude with an hour of informal networking where speakers and attendees are encouraged to continue the conversation. This opportunity for open discussion between engaged citizens is the heart of the evening and the portion I am most looking forward to.

The demand for this session has been overwhelming. As a result, the event is now taking place at the Art Gallery of Hamilton. Please navigate to the Eventbrite page to register.

The event will be documented for those who are unable to attend, or who would like to review the discussion post-event. Be sure to follow the conversation on Twitter @hamiltonSPN!

Ultimately, this event isn't about a series of experts presenting the facts and figures to make the case for changes in our transportation system. The mandate of the event series is to provide the opportunity for citizens to come together to build on the momentum within the community, encourage further collaboration towards common goals, and inspire others to get involved.

Hopefully with this and future CLS sessions, that mandate can be realized.

Matthew Sweet is a graduate of Mohawk's Transportation Engineering Technology program and is also a McMaster alumnus. He currently works in Cambridge and lives in Hamilton. If you run into him in public at various transportation related events, please don't bring up his ramblings on RTH comment threads, everyone knows such things don't count in real life.

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