The Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) has a new president: Whistler Councillor Jen Ford.
Ford was acclaimed as president at the UBCM convention in Whistler on Sept. 16, after climbing through the ranks of the union’s executive in recent years.
“Really, it's an honour. It's exciting. It's a little bit scary, because it's a big role. But I've been preparing for this for the last four years,” Ford said.
“When you're elected to third vice president, you know that that's sort of the progression. So I certainly feel well-supported, and I feel like I've worked my way up to this.”
As president, Ford will be tasked with communicating UBCM priorities to higher levels of government, and advocating for the needs of all of B.C.’s local governments.
“Much of what the president does is speaks on behalf of what we heard at convention from the resolutions process, and from all the different engagement processes,” she said.
“We'll take that forward into the work that we do for this year.”
While Ford’s role as president won’t afford Whistler any direct benefits or leverage with the province, it allows her to directly observe what other communities in the province are doing on issues of the day, and bring best practices and new ideas to the Whistler council table, she said.
