Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) board members Suzan Hewat and Leah Main have been elected to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM). This will be Main’s fourth consecutive term as BC caucus chair, while Hewat will serve her first term on the board.
“After two years of working tirelessly on the frontlines to support Canadians during the pandemic, there’s still much work to do to tackle our country’s greatest challenges, like the housing crisis and protecting our communities from climate extremes,” says Main.Â
“Municipal leaders were loud and clear in Regina; we’re eager to continue working with our federal partners to take these issues head on, because when our orders of government work together, we move this country forward.”
“We know that our country’s recovery starts in our communities and as frontline governments, we understand the challenges people face in their daily lives,” says Hewat “That makes us key to Canada’s recovery and we’re coming back home from this conference energized and eager to work with our federal and provincial partners to get the job done.”
Hewat and Main will help set policy priorities that address concerns of municipal governments and affiliate members across the country.
Over the four days more than 2,200 delegates passed resolutions calling for national action on four issues reflecting their local community needs: modernizing the Canada Community Building Fund; addressing period poverty in Canada; implementing the calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Committee relating to missing children and unmarked graves; and streamlining support for those fleeing the conflict in Ukraine.
FCM has members from more than 2,000 municipalities and regional districts of all sizes. The group advocates for municipalities to be sure their citizens’ needs are reflected in federal policies and programs.