Tuesday 1 May 2018

WCCD and Nova Scotia Mayors endorse creation of the first ISO-certified smart and sustainable rural region

May 1st, 2018
For Immediate Release


The Mayors of seven towns in the Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada enthusiastically endorsed the message from Patricia McCarney, President and CEO of the World Council on City Data (WCCD), that their ISO certification would make the Annapolis Valley region a global model for rural sustainability and investability. The Mayors Executive Roundtable focused on demonstrating the Region’s attractiveness for investment, through the use of standardized, community-level data.

From L to R: Mayor Don Clarke (Berwick); Mayor Peter Muttart (Municipality of the Country of Kings); John Lorh MLA, Kings North; Mayor Sylvester Atkinson (Middleton); Mayor Sandra Snow (Kentville); Dr. Patricia McCarney, WCCD President & CEO, Mayor Anna Allen (Windsor); Mayor Jeff Cantwell (Wolfville), Mayor Bill MacDonald (Annapolis Royal); Keith Irving, MLA, Kings South; and Terry Dalton, President, i-Valley
“Creating a culture of data in communities and regions is the starting point for creating smarter and more sustainable communities,” stated Dr. McCarney. “For communities of all sizes to compete on the global stage, standardised, comparable and independently verified data will help to drive innovation and attract investment from both governments and the private sector. Once established, this model can be replicated in other countries around the world, and help to drive innovative growth."

Dr. McCarney (left) receives a hockey puck from Mayor Anna Allen
 of Windsor, Nova Scotia, the "birthplace of hockey."
In addition to the Mayors present, guests also included John Lohr, MLA for Kings North, and Keith Irving, MLA for Kings South. The Roundtable was hosted by Peter Muttart, Mayor of the Municipality of Kings and was chaired by Terry Dalton, President of i-Valley, with summarising remarks provided by Deborah Dennis, CEO of the Valley Regional Enterprise Network (Valley REN). Also in attendance was Acadia University’s Danny Silver, Director of the Institute for Data Analytics, who characterised the regional ISO 37120 certification program as "...not a project, but a fundamental shift in how communities track progress."

For more information, please contact:


James Patava

james.patava@globalcities.ca