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Mike Harcourt
Former Premier of British Columbia, Mayor of Vancouver and City Councillor
Mike Harcourt is a former Premier of British Columbia, Mayor of Vancouver and City Councillor.
In 2006, he was chair of the Prime Minister’s Advisory Committee for Cities and Communities. He co-chaired the National Advisory Committee on the UN-HABITAT World Urban Forum, which was held in Vancouver in June 2006.
Between 1996 and 2004, Harcourt was appointed by the Prime Minister to serve as a member of the National Round Table on the Environment and Economy where he served on the Executive Committee and chaired the Urban Sustainability Program. He was a B.C. Treaty Commissioner. He is Honorary Chair of the International Centre for Sustainable Cities, and Co-Chair of the International Panel of Advisors. In 2007, he chaired the Directors’ Selection Committee on behalf of Mayors in collaboration with Translink and B.C. Ministry of Transportation.
Harcourt is a passionate believer in the power of cities and communities to improve the human condition. A near fatal accident in 2002 only strengthened his resolve to contribute to the transformation of cities and communities around the world through the principles of sustainability, particularly in relation to social inclusion in the broadest sense.
In 2005, Mike Harcourt was awarded the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public
Service and in 2006 was awarded the Canadian Urban Institute’s Jane Jacobs Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2007 he was the Walter Bean Visiting Professor on the Environment at the University of Waterloo.
He is author of: Mike Harcourt: A Measure of Defiance, Plan B: One Man’s Journey from Tragedy to Triumph (with John Lekich) and City Making in Paradise (with Ken Cameron and Sean Rossiter)
In applauding Premier Harcourt for permanently preserving the jointly shared ecosystem of the Tatshenshini River and Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park in Northwest British Columbia, Al Gore said, “Harcourt acted boldly and with foresight to protect and preserve the natural heritage of one of the world’s most important rivers and magnificent regions”.
Topics:
- Sustainable Solutions for 1 Fragile Earth
- Sustainable Cities: Urban Tidal Wave
People are leaving rural areas and moving to our country's urban centres to live. As this urban tidal wave swells, it raises significant questions. Hear Mike's thoughts on where we need to focus, and why. - From Restless Communities to Resilient Places
Communities are the key to long term prosperity. This presentation outlines the importance of and challenges facing our cities and communities - Environmental Stability
Harcourt shares his vision for protecting the environment at the continental level. Through real-world examples and ideas, he'll motivate listeners to do just that - Plan B: Attitude for Life
Partially paralysed after a fall, doctors weren't sure if he would recover. So begins Harcourt's Plan B - hear about the courage and the determination of the human spirit as he relives the journey.
References:
"Thank you so much for joining us at the 2008 UBC/UW Summer Institute in Sustainability and delivering such a wonderful talk on the role of cities in creating a sustainable future. The participants truly enjoyed your talk. Here are comments from the evaluations, verbatim:
“Harcourt: Inspiring”
“Next time, maybe Harcourt should be the keynote speaker”
And in response to a question about the highlights of the Institute, they responded:
“Meeting Mike Harcourt”
“Mike Harcourt’s visionary presentation towards the end of the week. It pulled other presentations together.” UBC/UW Summer Institute in Sustainability
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