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Atlantic Canada Association for Impact Assessment

NOTICE of ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

February 10, 2026, 17:00-19:00 AST

Notice is hereby given that the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of members of the Atlantic Canada Association for Impact Assessment (ACAIA) will be held virtually on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, beginning at 17:00 Atlantic Standard Time (AST) and ending no later than 19:00 AST.  All members in good standing as of the date of the AGM are eligible, and encouraged, to attend this meeting and celebrate a retrospective of the maiden voyage of this burgeoning organization.

Pre-registration is not required.  The meeting link will be emailed to all members in good standing on February 9, 2026.

The draft agenda and financial statement will also be provided to all members in good standing by email prior to the AGM.

More Effective IA: Tools for Stronger Argument and Clearer Writing

Learn to improve impact assessment documents through organized reasoning in four 3.5-hour sessions , February 9, 11, 17, & 19, 2026, 1:00 - 4:30 pm Atlantic.

Learn to improve impact assessment (IA) documents through organized reasoning! This workshop has four sessions of 3.5 hours each. They will take place February 9, 11, 17 and 19 at 1:00 pm - 4:30 pm Atlantic Time. There will be a fifth session, for follow-up and review, about three months later.

Registering for this event will secure your spot in all sessions (even though the Eventbrite event only shows the first session). ACAIA will provide registered attendees with access details for all sessions.

Learn tools to build better arguments and clearer documents:

Many people feel that IA reports are overly complex and filled with unnecessary details. Underlying the steps of assessment is the process of argument — assembling a series of reasons to support a conclusion. There are tools that help make clearer arguments and for sharing them more succinctly on the page. The result is clearer, more focused, and shorter documents.

This workshop shares two sets of tools collectively called 'Organised Reasoning'(TM). The first tool-set helps build strong arguments. Once the framework of the argument is figured out, then you can use specific steps to make the ideas clear on the page. The second tool-set shows how to present arguments clearly in your written text.

Streamline your IA processes and related documents:

The tools of Organized Reasoning give you the means for better communication, clearer drafts and feedback, shorter documents, and, overall, more efficient processes. That is, they help you streamline your IA efforts, and do so without changing existing rules — just doing things better.

The workshop addresses, with presentations and participatory activities:

• common errors in arguments and written documents;

• the three different kinds of argument present in professional documents;

• a framework for assembling arguments based on the different roles played by different information;

• five fundamental strategies that help guide the many detailed tactics of argument and writing;

• central steps for packaging arguments clearly into written documents;

• how people have implemented these tools into their professional practice; and

• a process for self-guided improvement and feedback after the course is over.

Participants learn a revised approach to planning, preparing, and writing technical material that they can use immediately on the job. The workshop includes opportunities for discussion and practice and provides breaks for refreshment. You’ll receive handouts documenting the main ideas. Participants will be limited to 15 people.

Workshop Leader: 

Dr. Glenn Brown has over 25 years’ experience as an ecologist and educator specializing in environmental management. He has worked on environmental projects for industry, government, and non-governmental organizations in Canada and other countries. For 15 years, he taught courses on Ecosystem Science and Managementand on Analytical Thinking and Communications in the Master’s program in Environment and Management at Royal Roads University in British Columbia. He now does consulting work and online training. He has delivered this course at seven of IAIA’s annual conferences and 25 times for IAIA audiences online. You can find more about him at www.glennbrown.ca.

Who can register for this workshop?

This event is targetting members of the Atlantic Canada Association for Impact Assessment (ACAIA). ACAIA members in good standing and members of other Canadian IAIA affiliates (i.e., IAIA-WNC, OAIA, and AQÉI) can register for this event attend at the member rate. Non-members please register at the non-member rate. If a sufficient number of participants is not registered prior to the event start date, ACAIA reserves the right to cancel the event; in that event, ACAIA will refund paid registrations. 

Comments from Past Participants:

“Very useful and applicable to not only IA but all aspects of the professional world.”

“Glenn was a wonderful trainer; very passionate about his field, and keen to share it. He is an excellent trainer who made a complex topic easy to understand.”

“I came into the course expecting practical tools that I could apply immediately in my work and I felt that I got this.”

“Really well organized, very practical.”

"I really enjoyed this workshop. It is useful for anyone needing to make and communicate complex arguments."

"Great course to take to better understand how to write more concisely! Applies to academia, grants, and consulting!"