Professional Development Workshops
Professional Development Workshops
Enhance your expertise with our comprehensive workshop offerings designed for natural resource professionals
Renewable Energy 101
Canadian Renewable Energy Association & Relay Education
CanREA and Relay Education will deliver an engaging hands-on workshop demonstrating how wind and solar technologies work through small group exercises where participants build their own projects and test them under a variety of scenarios. The workshop will share facts about renewable energy and dispel common myths. Participants will learn about the role that wind and solar can play in bringing local jobs and economic development, contributing to BC's energy security, and advancing reconciliation with First Nations through equity partnerships. This workshop involves bringing in miniature examples of both wind turbines and solar panels for experimentation and hands-on learning. Participants will conduct experiments on solar panels related to shading, overheating, and light in terms of the electromagnetic spectrum and experiment with wind turbines in terms of testing how various blade lengths affect energy generation while taking the blade pitch angle into consideration.
Meet the Instructors
Patricia Lightburn
Patricia is the Director for British Columbia at the Canadian Renewable Energy Association. In this role, Patricia works with members to advance strategic priorities in the BC market. Prior to joining CanREA, Patricia was a managing consultant at Dunsky Energy and Climate Advisors where she led modeling and analysis exploring key energy transition issues, informed by consultation with communities and key stakeholders. She has also held roles at Innergex Renewable Energy, the David Suzuki Foundation and the Ontario Power Authority (now IESO). She was a guest lecturer at Simon Fraser University's Centre for Dialogue and regularly speaks at conferences and industry events. Patricia holds a master's degree from Sciences Politiques in Paris, France.
Ryan Gander
Ryan is an experienced communicator and educator passionate about renewable energy education. Ryan holds a BA in Communications from SFU. Ryan works as a facilitator for Relay Education, an environmental charity focused on renewable energy education and training across Canada. Ryan delivers hands-on STEM science based workshops with renewable energy technologies for grade school students in British Columbia in a fun and engaging way. Ryan successfully engaged 4,079 students during the 2024-2025 school year. Within this time frame, he also piloted a new secondary workshop with 2,336 students that focused on energy efficiency.
Consultation to Agreement – Navigating Benefit Sharing Agreements in BC
McCarthy Tétrault
A one-day dynamic workshop presented by C3 Alliance in partnership with Dan Bornstein and Rachael Carlson, McCarthy Tétrault that focuses on Benefit Sharing Agreement negotiations for Indigenous communities and resource companies. The workshop includes information on how to negotiate a basic framework of a Benefits Sharing Agreement and best practices in negotiation strategies. Specifically, the workshop provides information about resource sector benefit sharing agreements explaining why they are needed, key components of an effective agreement, strategies for agreement development, and key teachings on agreement implementation.
Meet the Instructors
Dan Bornstein, Co-head, Indigenous Legal Matters and Projects Group, McCarthy Tétrault
Dan is a partner in the firm's Business Law group in Toronto and Vancouver and a co-lead of our Indigenous practice. Dan's legal practice is focused on project development, environmental and impact assessments, permitting and negotiating agreements between project proponents and Indigenous communities in the mining and energy industries.
Dan has extensive experience advising domestic and international companies and Indigenous governments on the duty to consult, permitting and environmental law, sustainability strategies, and relationship- and agreement-development with Indigenous groups and project stakeholders. He is currently assisting clients to negotiate and work through Indigenous-led assessments in several Provinces and Territories. Dan is frequently called upon to help clients resolve relationship breakdowns in the natural resources space between project proponents, Indigenous governments and Provincial/Federal Governments.
Prior to joining McCarthy Tétrault, Dan held various senior roles in the environmental and sustainability departments of an international mining company, where he gained extensive experience negotiating with government and Indigenous groups in Canada and throughout the Americas.
Rachael Carlson, Associate, McCarthy Tétrault
Rachael is an associate in the firm's Environmental and Indigenous practice groups in Vancouver and is Vancouver-based. Her work is focused on project development, environmental and impact assessments, permitting and negotiating agreements between project proponents and Indigenous communities in the natural resources space.
Rachael helps clients negotiate agreements, advises clients on the duty to consult and reviews environmental and Indigenous rights-related matters in mining and energy transactions. She advises on environmental law contraventions, including drafting "opportunity to be heard" submissions for mining-related incidents, and develops compliance registers and overviews of key environmental statutes for clients in the natural resources industries.
Proven Communication Strategies – Moving Natural Resource Projects Forward
Monogram Communications
With increased public scrutiny, evolving regulatory requirements and a heightened focus on the rights of Indigenous People and UNDRIP, the ability to communicate effectively and respectfully with interest holders is a critical success factor for natural resource leaders. This workshop will equip participants with the tools they need to engage meaningfully and move projects forward. Successful natural resource projects depend on relationships as much as engineering, permits and funding. In this interactive workshop, participants will learn how to build trust, foster meaningful dialogue and turn opposition into collaborative problem-solving with Indigenous communities, local residents, interest holders and government.
Meet the Instructor
Alyson Gourley-Cramer, Monogram Communications
Alyson is an award-winning communications leader with over two decades of experience in government, natural resources and major multi-sport events. Alyson has built a reputation for helping organizations navigate high-stakes and high-visibility projects. Alyson's background as a certified teacher, trainer and facilitator ensures her sessions are both informative and interactive. She designs workshops that blend real-world case studies with practical frameworks and ready-to-use templates, making the learning experience immediately applicable for participants. Over her career, she has presented at the BC Natural Resources Forum, Union of BC Municipalities, BC Library Conference, BC Colleges Association, Canadian Public Relations Society and BC Hotel Association. Her approach consistently earns high praise for being relatable, results-driven and grounded in deep sector knowledge.