A Collaborative Approach that is Bearing Fruit
Two years ago, in response to the ever-increasing stresses being exerted on Mount Royal’s ecological network, Les Amis de la montagne organized the first meeting of about a dozen major institutions that are responsible for the territory and share the common objectives of accelerating the ecological transition and protecting the integrity of the mountain’s natural and green spaces.
On May 25, 2023, representatives from 11 institutions gathered for the 3rd edition of the Rencontres des institutions du mont Royal portant sur la gestion écologique du territoire [meetings of Mount Royal institutions on ecological management of the territory], which are now part of a broad collaborative approach. The event allowed the participants to take stock of the situation and identify opportunities for cooperation in regard to the territory’s ecological management.
In particular, this meeting provided Les Amis de la montagne with the opportunity to present its Plan de conservation du réseau écologique du mont Royal 2023-2027 [2023–2027 conservation plan for Mount Royal’s ecological network] to its institutional partners. Unveiled on April 4, 2023, the plan’s objective is to strengthen the capacity for collective action of the institutions, the City of Montréal and civil society across the mountain’s vast territory. With a view to achieving these goals, the document sets out 7 conservation targets and 62 concrete actions, some of which involve mobilisation and consultation.
Most of the participating institutions have already developed plans and tools to help them sustainably manage the territory. The work of Les Amis and the institutions consists in identifying and maintaining potential links between their respective plans and ours. This will enable us to implement common projects and, in turn, allow several organizations to pool their efforts and resources.
It’s been a busy year
Throughout the past year, Les Amis worked hard to create places for discussion and learning with the objective of breaking down barriers and promoting the creation of new partnerships. Once again this year, we hosted two communities of practice on the respective themes of differentiated greenspace management and water management.
The first event was an opportunity to explore biodiversity monitoring methods and discuss common indicators that could be applied to Mount Royal. The second community of practice made it possible to identify common issues and solutions to promote the adoption of an integrated water management approach on the mountain. Following the second event, Les Amis organized an exploratory walking tour of water-related facilities in Mount Royal Park with the representatives of several institutions, thus enabling them to share their knowledge of the field with one another.
Engagement remains strong
After three years of collaboration, the shared commitment of our partners is reflected in their high rate of participation in the various activities we organize. So far, the communities of practice have rallied some 30 organizations and more than 70 professionals from associative, institutional, municipal and research communities around the cause of protecting the mountain’s ecological network.
An evolving partnership approach
The collective movement towards the ecological management of Mount Royal’s territory has a promising future and may well set an important example. In addition, our conservation plan could serve as a basis for promoting new partnerships. Les Amis will do everything in its power to support the institutions in implementing their joint actions.
