5th Annual Summit for Urban Animal Strategies leaves delegates feeling optimistic
Collective compassion and a forward-thinking spirit of collaboration was the foundation for discussions at the 5th Annual International Summit for Urban Animal Strategies (ISUAS) held at Lake Louise, Alberta, 13 – 16 October 2010.
Over the course of the four days, more than 80 delegates attended a series of presentations, networking sessions and an open forum that provided opportunities to share ideas, set goals, form new alliances and consider various strategies to develop National Codes of Conduct for homing animals in urban municipalities. The event was deemed a great success with delegates from across Canada returning to their respective communities full of enthusiasm and optimism that the state-of-the-art in urban animal strategies is about to undergo a revolutionary change.
“Over the past five years the International and Regional Summits for Urban Animal Strategies have successfully delivered programs to hundreds of delegates in communities across Canada,” explains Larry Evans, President and CEO of PetLynx Corporation. “Conversations that start at the Summits are being continued in our communities and are the catalyst for positive changes in the way we serve pets and people.”
The focus of this year’s event was ‘Homing Animals in our Communities.’ A stellar line-up of guest speakers provided insight into the industry from four very different perspectives.
Animal control and legislation challenges, successes and strategies was addressed by John Wilson, City of Edmonton. Further insight into homing animals in urban municipalities -- based on a statistical analysis of the previous years’ Urban Animal Surveys -- was delivered by Lisa Chen, Senior Analyst from Socialstruct Advisory Group.
Patricia Cameron, Calgary Humane Society, introduced delegates to her ‘Next Wave’ theory of the animal welfare movement, expanding on the extraordinary successes (and challenges) of her organization and others in the Calgary market. Jim Sykes and Kate McDonald, Ontario SPCA, made a presentation on their controversial, yet highly successful, ‘FixYourPet.ca’ spay/neuter awareness campaign.
Insight into the role that pet stores play in our communities was delivered by Susan Dankert and Louis McCann, PIJAC Canada; Keith Burgess, Paradise Pets; Robert Brissette, Petland Canada; and Kit Jenkins, Petsmart Charities of Canada. Topics of discussion included the industry’s efforts to invest in employee education programs, secure reliable sources for livestock, work with humane societies and rescue groups to re-home animals, and developing National Codes of Conduct for the companion animal industry.
Challenges faced by animal breeders and their regulatory agencies was covered by Joe Mauro and Lee Steeves from the Canadian Kennel Club. Larry Evans, PetLynx Corporation, addressed the broader issue of ‘compliance’ and endeavoured to address this topic from a broad perspective. He also introduced a new program called ‘HomeSafe’ that will be officially launched in 2011.
Adding in an extra day for this year’s event allowed for the introduction of a new forum for discussion and delegate interaction called 'Open Spaces.' The day-long networking/team-building/collaboration exercise was lead by certified executive coach and leadership development facilitator, Karen Dawson, Create Now Inc.
Dawson encouraged Summit delegates to identify issues that needed further discussion, commitment and action, then invited participants to break into groups to address each topic. Subjects of intense discussion included everything from increasing awareness of the value of cats in our society, to developing national codes of conduct for animal homing, reduced cost spay/neuter programs and much more.
On the Summit feedback survey one delegate reported: “I was not sure what to expect upon coming into the room [for the Open Spaces] on the morning [of Day Two] … but once everything was explained and we presented the topics of discussion I was energized. Karen is an awesome facilitator and did an excellent job!”
As a result of conversations started during the Open Spaces sessions, several committees have been established and an Internet-based discussion board called ‘Open Space’ has been launched on the PetLynx wiki. In the coming months, Open Space will help to facilitate the development of new programs, improvements in protocols and, most importantly, on-going collaboration across the entire companion animal industry in eight key areas.
An annual highlight of the event is the Summit Awards Gala. This year there were 12 awards presented to recognize individuals, businesses and associations who have achieved success.
The Summit wrapped up with breakfast on the Saturday morning and an engaging Keynote Address based on how companies can deploy technology to engage customers in discussion about their brands in a meaningful way. The Keynote was delivered by Mike Dover, Managing Partner of Socialstruct Advisory Group and co-author of the new book Wikibrands: Reinventing your Company in a Customer-Driven Marketplace.
"As a result of the Open Spaces discussions and the high calibre of presentations I feel that we achieved our goal of hosting the Summit to initiate an unprecedented spirit of collaboration and open the lines of communication across the various sectors of our industry,” concludes Evans. “We are all excited to see what initiatives will develop in the coming months."
Over the course of the four days, more than 80 delegates attended a series of presentations, networking sessions and an open forum that provided opportunities to share ideas, set goals, form new alliances and consider various strategies to develop National Codes of Conduct for homing animals in urban municipalities. The event was deemed a great success with delegates from across Canada returning to their respective communities full of enthusiasm and optimism that the state-of-the-art in urban animal strategies is about to undergo a revolutionary change.
The overall success and spirit of collaboration fostered at the Summit can be summed up by comments received from delegates:
- The Summit is always a highlight for the year for our organization!
- I come away from the Summit rejuvenated and ready to tackle new projects.
- Networking is extremely important to further improve our own programs. It provides the opportunity to see what works … and what does not.
- Right people, right info, right time! We are poised to work together to have true impact.I look forward to everyone reporting on our accomplishments at the next Summit.
- Hats off to the PetLynx team for creating the environment and opportunity.
- This was the best Summit to date and reflects a growing respect within the industry.
“Over the past five years the International and Regional Summits for Urban Animal Strategies have successfully delivered programs to hundreds of delegates in communities across Canada,” explains Larry Evans, President and CEO of PetLynx Corporation. “Conversations that start at the Summits are being continued in our communities and are the catalyst for positive changes in the way we serve pets and people.”
The focus of this year’s event was ‘Homing Animals in our Communities.’ A stellar line-up of guest speakers provided insight into the industry from four very different perspectives.
Animal control and legislation challenges, successes and strategies was addressed by John Wilson, City of Edmonton. Further insight into homing animals in urban municipalities -- based on a statistical analysis of the previous years’ Urban Animal Surveys -- was delivered by Lisa Chen, Senior Analyst from Socialstruct Advisory Group.
Patricia Cameron, Calgary Humane Society, introduced delegates to her ‘Next Wave’ theory of the animal welfare movement, expanding on the extraordinary successes (and challenges) of her organization and others in the Calgary market. Jim Sykes and Kate McDonald, Ontario SPCA, made a presentation on their controversial, yet highly successful, ‘FixYourPet.ca’ spay/neuter awareness campaign.
Insight into the role that pet stores play in our communities was delivered by Susan Dankert and Louis McCann, PIJAC Canada; Keith Burgess, Paradise Pets; Robert Brissette, Petland Canada; and Kit Jenkins, Petsmart Charities of Canada. Topics of discussion included the industry’s efforts to invest in employee education programs, secure reliable sources for livestock, work with humane societies and rescue groups to re-home animals, and developing National Codes of Conduct for the companion animal industry.
Challenges faced by animal breeders and their regulatory agencies was covered by Joe Mauro and Lee Steeves from the Canadian Kennel Club. Larry Evans, PetLynx Corporation, addressed the broader issue of ‘compliance’ and endeavoured to address this topic from a broad perspective. He also introduced a new program called ‘HomeSafe’ that will be officially launched in 2011.
Adding in an extra day for this year’s event allowed for the introduction of a new forum for discussion and delegate interaction called 'Open Spaces.' The day-long networking/team-building/collaboration exercise was lead by certified executive coach and leadership development facilitator, Karen Dawson, Create Now Inc.
Dawson encouraged Summit delegates to identify issues that needed further discussion, commitment and action, then invited participants to break into groups to address each topic. Subjects of intense discussion included everything from increasing awareness of the value of cats in our society, to developing national codes of conduct for animal homing, reduced cost spay/neuter programs and much more.
On the Summit feedback survey one delegate reported: “I was not sure what to expect upon coming into the room [for the Open Spaces] on the morning [of Day Two] … but once everything was explained and we presented the topics of discussion I was energized. Karen is an awesome facilitator and did an excellent job!”
As a result of conversations started during the Open Spaces sessions, several committees have been established and an Internet-based discussion board called ‘Open Space’ has been launched on the PetLynx wiki. In the coming months, Open Space will help to facilitate the development of new programs, improvements in protocols and, most importantly, on-going collaboration across the entire companion animal industry in eight key areas.
An annual highlight of the event is the Summit Awards Gala. This year there were 12 awards presented to recognize individuals, businesses and associations who have achieved success.
The Summit wrapped up with breakfast on the Saturday morning and an engaging Keynote Address based on how companies can deploy technology to engage customers in discussion about their brands in a meaningful way. The Keynote was delivered by Mike Dover, Managing Partner of Socialstruct Advisory Group and co-author of the new book Wikibrands: Reinventing your Company in a Customer-Driven Marketplace.
"As a result of the Open Spaces discussions and the high calibre of presentations I feel that we achieved our goal of hosting the Summit to initiate an unprecedented spirit of collaboration and open the lines of communication across the various sectors of our industry,” concludes Evans. “We are all excited to see what initiatives will develop in the coming months."
Learn more about the International Summit for Urban Animal Strategies at: www.tsuas.com
Posted by Terri Perrin, Online Communications Editor
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