Robert William Sandford – författare

A pandemic-inspired sequel to the original The Weekender Effect, looking at the current and future challenges facing mountain communities.

The pandemic, and the rapid introduction of technologies in its wake that enabled many to work from home, have put spectacular pressure on mountain and other resort communities that were already under siege by outside and foreign speculators and increasingly overwhelmed by owners of second and even third homes. Unmanageable development pressures and the explosion in property values fuelled by low interest rates and high incomes are undermining the very character of many communities and, by making where they live unaffordable, driving out the very locals who over decades established the charm, character, and sense of place and of belonging that now make their communities so attractive to weekenders and visitors alike.

Swelling populations, out-of-control tourism, and associated recreational and other pressures are also pressing hard against ecological limits in these places just when, in the absence of effective global climate action, the threatening effects and dangerous impacts of climate change appear to have arrived 20 to 30 years earlier than projected.

Fortunately, in the midst of this perfect storm of change there remains much that communities can do to maintain their identity. Major breakthroughs in science continue to unravel our society’s mechanistic world view and point the way to reconciliation with one another and restoration of hope for the future. The sequel to an earlier book on the same concerns, The Weekender Effect II: Fallout is a passionate plea for considered development in these precious communities and for the necessary protection and restoration of landscapes and positive transformation of local values, identity, and sense of place, here and everywhere.

A passionate plea for considered development in mountain towns and for the preservation of local values, cultures and landscapes.

As cities continue to grow at unprecedented rates, more and more people are looking for peaceful weekend retreats in mountain or rural communities. More often than not, these retreats are found in and around resorts or places of natural beauty. As a result, what once were small towns are fast becoming mini-cities, complete with expensive housing, fast food, traffic snarls and environmental damage, all with little or no thought for the importance of local history, local people, and local culture.

This updated edition of The Weekender Effect looks at how things have changed, grown, and morphed in numerous mountain communities in North America. Offering suggestions for residents, tourists, and planners who love mountain places, Robert Sandford tackles some of the issues facing small communities on the edge of the Anthropocene and looks forward to a future when the “commodification of place” is no longer the driving factor in human geography.

I believe that it is up to people like us to find the language, create the images and imagine the solutions that will allow us to break out of the vicious circle that threatens public health by threatening our landscapes and water sources . . . Together we can work toward this end. And, we can do it with humour. We can do it with style. And we can do it with grace. Try as we might, parts of North America may not escape the impacts of the global water crisis. The same kinds of water supply and quality issues that have appeared around our crowded planet are already beginning to present themselves here. Unfortunately, this is occurring at a time when, as a direct result of declining global food production, the world is beginning to rely more heavily than ever on agricultural communities in North America to help meet increasingly unattainable food-production goals. Instead of waiting for a water crisis of our own, North Americans may well wish to put the lessons learned elsewhere in the world into active practice. By using the example of others to put our own water-management house in order, North America can possibly avoid the same kinds of problems other countries are facing with respect to the protection of water resources. At the same time, we can employ enlightened attitudes toward the management of water resources to advance many of our own ecological and economic sustainability goals. Passionately conceived, clearly written and citing concrete examples from all over the world, Restoring the Flow is an approachable yet authoritative source, one of the many implements concerned citizens, government officials, businesspeople and policymakers can use and reuse in understanding and addressing this ever-growing global crisis.

Fresh water is essential to both the ever-expanding human population and the ever-threatened natural landscapes that surround us. And yet, society seems to continually ignore the need for a common-sense approach to--and appreciation of--our freshwater resources and our consumption of this remarkable, life-giving substance that now exceeds its future availability. This ground-breaking and approachable work, by two of Canada's most authoritative experts on water issues, redefines our relationship with fresh water and outlines the steps we as a society will have to take if we wish to ensure the sustainability of our water supply for future generations.

Cold Matters is a vital and approachable work that distills the scientific complexities of snow, ice, water and climate and presents the global implications of research put forth and funded by the Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences. This timely book gives the concerned reader an opportunity to take part in the conversation about our global environment in a way that transcends traditional scientific journals, textbooks, public talks or newspaper articles that are so often ignored or forgotten. In the end, Cold Matters will change the way you think about ice and snow. The impassioned narrative and sophisticated illustrations found within the pages of Robert Sandford's latest work offer ecologically and globally minded citizens an understanding of the behaviour of our ever-changing climate system and its effect on cold environments in western Canada over the past 400 years. Using revolutionary prediction scenarios to model glaciers and glacier meltwater in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Yukon, NWT and throughout the world, Cold Matters presents a clear snapshot of how altered ecosystems will impact future climates, urban centres and agricultural landscapes.