Senior Program Advisor

Company Description

CWN is a national non-profit that supports decision‑makers in addressing complex water‑related challenges at the intersection of Communities, Health, and Climate. CWN convenes cross‑sectoral networks of professionals to promote peer‑to‑peer learning, catalyze collaboration and accelerate action. Learn more about CWN on our website.

The Senior Program Advisor works closely with the Director, Communities, other CWN team members and municipal staff from the Regions of Peel, Durham, Halton and the City of Toronto to support the Lake Ontario Collaborative Group (LOCG). The LOCG is a long‑standing collaborative among municipalities, the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks, and the CTC Source Protection Planning staff at Credit Valley Conservation.

CWN is the Program Delivery Provider to support the municipal collaboration for the LOCG. In addition to supporting and growing the LOCG, the Program Advisor will foster and develop additional collaboratives in support of cross‑jurisdictional water management.

As a Senior Program Advisor, you will also assist with developing annual work plans for the LOCG program, and convening LOCG staff and directors to ensure the LOCG program is on track. This is a full‑time, one‑year position with the possibility of a two‑year extension, subject to funding.

• Work closely with municipal technical staff and Directors to ensure a strong cross‑jurisdictional collaboration in support of the LOCG program
• Plan and implement an overarching program work plan, with appropriate program coordination and implementation timelines, compile annual budgets working closely with municipal staff and maintain a 10‑year budget forecast for the collaborating municipalities.
• Ensure ongoing engagement and communication with program participants, including staff from municipalities, conservation authorities, Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks, Environment and Climate Change Canada and academic staff who have active research in the area of large lake hydrodynamics, modelling (e.g., MIKE), real‑time water quality monitoring and data management
• Organize, schedule, convene and facilitate regular meetings of the municipal staff team, municipal directors, technical working group, communities of practice and LOCG Steering Committee.
• Maintain and adapt the long‑term sustainability plan for the LOCG program and identify opportunities to leverage the LOCG work to grow the collective understanding of the nearshore Lake Ontario environment, including the implications of taste and odour issues near drinking water intakes, and the risk of pathogens in the nearshore of Lake Ontario among other contaminants or threats.
• Maintain program documentation and provide regular reports on progress to Municipal staff and Directors and maintain the program’s collaborative SharePoint site
• Act as a technical resource on lake water quality, and the transport and fate of pollutant spills in Lake Ontario to Municipal staff and Directors

• Knowledge of large lake limnological processes, lake monitoring and modelling approaches, including hydrodynamic models (e.g., MIKE) and real‑time monitoring of physical parameters, and the use of multi‑probe data sondes, and continuous data management platforms/databases.
• Knowledge of drinking water source protection planning in Ontario and the Clean Water Act, 2006 requirements for Lake Ontario through the CTC Source Protection Plan.
• Strong relationship‑building and partnership development skills to build trust across municipalities and program stakeholders to ensure a strong collaboration among key stakeholders of the LOCG
• Skilled in facilitation, moderation and consensus‑building of LOCG partners in support of ensuring a long‑term sustainable program
• Knowledge of and skill in using SharePoint as a mechanism for maintaining collaboration.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills for documenting progress of the LOCG program, including writing…