Five Foundational Pillars for the Canada Water Agency

A Collective Vision

The Forum for Leadership on Water is an independent, non-partisan group of policy experts from across Canada.

RECENT ANALYSIS

October 2020

Protecting Environmental Flows for Fish Habitat

Environmental flows are critical to fish and all aquatic life, yet environmental flow protections across Canada are uneven, inconsistent, and often fall through the cracks of shared water management systems. Introducing new regulations under the Fisheries Act could help fill these gaps.

October 2020

A Framework for Watershed Organizations

Watershed organizations are generally considered ideal vehicles for promoting responsible local decision making. While they come in a wide range of shapes and sizes, building a framework based on the three pillars of science, policy, and service can help any watershed organization ensure it is best suited to the socio-hydrological system it is serving.

September 2020

A Throne Speech Commitment to Water

Alongside public health and economic stimulus measures, the federal government reaffirmed its commitment to establishing a Canada Water Agency in their Speech from the Throne. This is significant. A throne speech commitment demonstrates high priority under normal circumstances; in these extraordinary times, it is even more meaningful.

Bringing together past political leaders, former officials with federal and provincial governments, and senior staff of respected research institutes and non-governmental organizations, FLOW has been working for over a decade to secure the health of Canada’s fresh water.

We convene leading thinkers, provide critical analysis and commentary, and engage with governments to advance progressive public policies and inform important decisions about the future of our most precious resource.

MEMBERS & STAFF

Oliver Brandes
FLOW Chair

Norm Brandson

Jim Bruce

Murray Clamen

Marc Hudon

Brenda Lucas

Tony Maas

Michael Miltenberger

Ralph Pentland

Merrell-Ann Phare

Robert Sandford

Ted Yuzyk

Richard Farthing-Nichol

Director

WHAT WE DO

OUR WORK

FLOW works to ensure that legal, public policy and governance systems are in place to ensure the protection and sustainable management of Canada’s freshwater resources and ecosystems. Explore a decade of work that includes comprehensive reports, policy briefs and formal submissions to governments.

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FLOW MONITOR

The FLOW Monitor is a periodically published bulletin that provides analysis and perspective by FLOW members and guest commentators on key water issues and public policy solutions.