Mayor Nenshi discusses poverty-reduction initiative at Tamarack Institute event honoring urbanist Jane Jacobs

CALGARY, ALBERTA--(Marketwire - Oct. 6, 2011) - The Tamarack Institute, together with Mayor Naheed Nenshi, paid tribute to the influence of urban visionary and author of The Death and Life of American Cities, Jane Jacobs, during a special reception yesterday evening at the Jack Singer Concert Hall.

The evening, themed "Cities that Lead", played host to more than 400 community leaders from across Canada and featured a keynote address from the Mayor during which he discussed his poverty- reduction initiative for the City of Calgary.

"We are entering a new era of community building bringing leaders from all sectors together and taking lead on issues facing our cities," said Paul Born, director, The Tamarack Institute. "The inspiration of Jane Jacobs and Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi provide us with real hope that cities can lead."

Hosted by the Suncor Energy Foundation, the event was part of Tamarack's Communities Collaborating Institute, a five-day intensive learning experience hosted in Calgary for the first time this fall. Of the 400 guests in attendance, 250 were Institute participants.

"Helping community organizations connect and find ways to collaborate is an important part of building capacity in our communities," said Cathy Glover, director of Stakeholder Relations and Community Investment with Suncor Energy. "To truly become a city that leads, we need to think creatively about what we want for our communities – and that's what tonight's speakers inspired us to do," said Glover.

Brock Carlton of the Canadian Federation of Municipalities, Walter Hossli of Momentum, Paul Born of the Tamarack Institute and Alderman Gian-Carlo Carra also spoke during the cocktail-style reception.

Additional support for the evening was provided by the United Way of Calgary, Momentum, the Calgary Community Foundation, Vibrant Communities Calgary and the City of Calgary.

The Tamarack Institute is a charitable organization that develops and supports collaborative strategies that engage citizens and institutions to solve major community challenges. The Institute sponsors projects and provides learning resources, training, coaching and strategic consulting that enable people to collaborate and learn with and from each other.

For more information about Tamarack – An Institute for Community Engagement, please visit our website at www.tamarackcommunity.ca.