Announcing Vancouver Fostering Sustainable Behaviour Workshops October 23, 2008

The cornerstone of sustainability is behaviour change. If we are to move toward a sustainable future we must encourage individuals and businesses to engage in a multitude of actions (e.g., waste reduction, water and energy efficiency, pollution prevention, etc.). To date, most programs to encourage such activities have relied upon disseminating information. Research demonstrates, however, that simply providing information has little or no effect on what people or businesses do. But if not ads, brochures or booklets, then what? Over the last decade a new approach -- community-based social marketing -- has emerged as an effective alternative for delivering programs to foster sustainable behaviour.

This fall Dr. McKenzie-Mohr, an environmental psychologist, will be presenting introductory and advanced community-based social marketing workshops in Vancouver (October 23rd and 24th -- please note that these sessions are the only the training sessions offered this year in the Pacific Northwest). Dr. McKenzie-Mohr is the founder of community-based social marketing and has written and presented extensively on the topic. We invite you to attend either or both of these workshops, as we are confident that the training they provide will fundamentally change the way you think about program delivery.

The Workshops

Over the last decade more than 40,000 program managers have attended workshops on community-based social marketing that Dr. McKenzie-Mohr has delivered internationally. Here are two evaluations:

"The entire presentation was tremendous. The information was excellent and well prepared. I thought our entire communications department would have benefited from this. Doug is a very good speaker and his responses to questions were informative and seamless. The information and suggestions, particularly regarding one-on-one contact, will definitely become part of our strategies in encouraging water conservation and recycling. . . This was a very worthwhile day." Edmonton Workshop Attendee

"I benefit from an extensive network of contacts and colleagues and yet Doug's work stands alone in its depth and breadth in answering the questions we ask." Glen Pleasance, Water Efficiency Coordinator Durham Region

Introductory Workshop (October 23rd): The one-day introductory workshop provides a comprehensive introduction to community-based social marketing and how it is being applied throughout the world to foster sustainable behaviour. Those who attend the introductory workshop will learn the five steps of community-based social marketing (selecting behaviours, identifying barriers, developing strategies, conducting a pilot, and broad scale implementation) and be exposed to numerous case studies illustrating its use.

Advanced Workshop (October 24th): The one-day advanced workshop builds on knowledge gained from the introductory workshop or the book, Fostering Sustainable Behavior. It provides an in-depth exposure to community-based social marketing and provides participants with the knowledge they need to design and evaluate their own community-based social marketing programs. Participants will have extensive opportunity to discuss the application of community-based social marketing to their own programs. To ensure ample opportunity for discussion, this workshop will be limited to 75 participants.

Who Should Attend?

If you design or fund programs to encourage individuals or businesses to engage in environmentally beneficial behaviours -- such as those involved in waste reduction, water and energy efficiency, watershed protection, pollution prevention or transportation changes -- you will find these workshops invaluable. The workshops will also be useful for environmental education professionals who work in settings such as zoos, aquariums and parks. Public health professionals who work to foster sustainable lifestyle changes, such as being more active, will also benefit from attending.

Registration:

To register, please download the registration flyer (http://snipr.com/2ewih-sirq4r) and fax or mail it to us. Please consider forwarding this email to colleagues who might benefit from attending. Hope to see you in the fall.

Official Website: http://snipr.com/2ewih-sirq4r