The Community Symposium will take place at Prince Edward Collegiate Institute (41 Barker Street, Picton) on Saturday, March 25 from 9 am – 4 pm. Lunch will be provided and free child-minding will be available for ticket holders, for children ages 4-12.

The morning portion of the Community Symposium will kick off with a video produced by CBYF and Darkspark, highlighting the challenges that County youth face and their hopes for a brighter future. 

Three keynote speakers will then present on topics such as unique approaches to developing community, ways to celebrate local history and reconcile with the past, and ideas for rekindling community spirit following the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In the afternoon, five breakout sessions led by experts in each area will focus on Investing in our Community, The Future of Food, Weaving the Fabric of Community, The Learning Circle and The County Ambassador. See the full program below. 

Residents, businesses and nonprofits from across the County are encouraged to participate in the symposium. Come experience speakers, panels, hands-on sessions and make new community connections.

Thrive PEC is an ever-expanding consortium of groups and individuals who share a passion for connecting the Prince Edward County community as well as a vision for sparking positive change. It receives funding and staff support from the municipality, The County Foundation, and Community Futures. Visit the Thrive PEC website for more details.

For media inquiries, please contact Mark Kerr, Communications and Consultation Supervisor, at 613.476.2148 ext. 1009 or by email at mkerr@pecounty.on.ca

Thrive Community Symposium Program Details

Keynote Speakers

A “Yes, and…!” Approach to Developing Community

A hallmark of improv training is to develop a “Yes, And…!” mindset, one that builds off the skills and scenes being set by fellow actors and comedians. How can we transform our communities when we adopt a similar approach? Lanrick Bennett Jr. shares how his Second City training has shaped his community work, from building active transportation to better urban design to placemaking at 8 80 Cities and Artscape.

A Path Forward

Whose stories do we tell through local history? How can a community bring voice to forgotten tales, misunderstood narratives and history being made today? City of Kingston Director of Cultural Services Jennifer Campbell and First Peoples Group’s Melissa Hammell share Kingston’s path in transforming from a city of museums to a Museum City, animating local history while celebrating and reconciling its past.

The Power of Human Connection

What impact does two years apart from friends, family, neighbours, colleagues and classmates have on our health, happiness and well-being? Genwell Project’s Pete Bombaci shares why we may not be fully back to our old selves just yet, and offers some ways to rekindle the community spirit and sense of neighbourliness that makes the County a great place to be.

Breakout Sessions

Investing in Our Community

Our community has the means to make lasting change. This panel, featuring Mike Amos, Managing Director of KNDL; Kathy Kennedy, Executive Director of the Prince Edward Learning Centre; Kevin Taylor, Associate Director at Social Venture Connexion; and Mary Warner, co-Executive Director of Tapestry Capital, explores new and powerful ways to celebrate and build community through local investment.

The Future of Food

Imagine a food system where there’s no such thing as waste and where every citizen has access to the healthy, nutritious food they need. Imagine a living lab that promotes collaboration between food entrepreneurs, farmers, researchers and social innovators—and a rural-urban partnership that leverages smart technology to make it all possible. Since 2020, Barbara Schwartzentruber and the City of Guelph have been working to create Canada’s first circular food economy. Hear how this revolutionary project is enhancing access to nutritious food, reducing carbon outputs, turning “waste” into valuable resources and creating new economic opportunities.

Weaving the Fabric of Community

Through an ongoing series of community conversations, Thrive PEC has been collecting and mapping the gifts and assets that we value and cherish in our community using an asset-based community development (ABCD) approach. In this workshop with the Tamarack Institute’s Heather Keam, we go to the next step, building on the fundamentals of ABCD to learn how to weave those assets into activities that lead to building community.

The Learning Circle

Got a question about Indigenous culture you’ve always wanted to ask? While there’s no one-size-fits-all path or practice, this session with First Peoples Group’s Melissa Hammell can help demystify some common questions, alleviate worries of saying or doing the ‘wrong’ thing and encourage a spirit of curiosity, learning and sharing.

The County Ambassador

Do you know where to park for cross-country skiing at Sandbanks? What to do after dark on a wintry, Tuesday evening? Gain perspective on the County, from Sophiasburgh to the South Shore and all points in between. Taste some locally made treats, meet some new faces, get the inside scoop on the newest things to see, do and experience in our community. BYOD [Bring Your Own Device] as Visit The County’s Eleanor R. Cook takes you on a journey to becoming a certified County Ambassador.