The Planners Working Group (PWG) comprises municipal planners from each of the five partner municipalities, as well as representatives of the University of Alberta, Elk Island National Park, Agriculture Canada, and Alberta Tourism, Parks, and Recreation. The Executive Director of the Beaver Hills Initiative (BHI) is an ex-officio member of all working groups.
The PWG works to develop policy options for use by the five partner municipalities of the BHI. In so doing, it relies on other working groups to provide background information or scientific data. The GIS Working Group provides mapping, the Protected Areas Working Group provides best practices for managing landscapes, the Research & Monitoring Working Group generates scientific data, and the Communications & Education Working Group ensures that the work produced by all of the working groups finds its way to the public.
In addition to developing policy, the Planners Working Group also provides advice to its member municipalities and outside agencies on land management in the Beaver Hills when requested. The base document with which it works is the Beaver Hills Initiative (BHI) and Management Framework (LMF), which contains a comprehensive review of best land management practices. This Framework was developed over a number of years and is updated on a regular basis.
