Please join Municipal Cultural Planning Inc and Pembroke (one of ten specially selected municipalities) for an exciting workshop on Municipal Cultural Planning and its creation of a creative economy from a rural perspective.

**The workshop will be held in the Madawaska Room on the lower level, formerly called the Auditorium. There is an entrance to the Madawaska Room off the parking lot in the back of the building. The parking lot can be accessed from Deacon Street and Bell Street. Marguerite Centre asks that visitors remove their boots. Please remember to bring a pair of shoes.**

8:30 to 9:00am - Registration 

9:00am to 9:15am - Welcome and Introduction

9:15am to 10:00am  - Session 1 - Keynote Speaker Councillor Anne Gilbert of Chatham-Kent will present the value of Municipal Cultural Planning from a rural perspective. - Please see below for Councillor Anne Gilbert's bio!

10:00am to 10:15 - Break

10:15am to 11:30am  - Session 2 -  Bernia Wheaton, former Economic Development Officer for Perth County will discuss Arts, Culture, Food...how does it fit into the creative industry? Can they transform the economy? Bernia will present two real-life examples of a holistic approach to the effect Cultural Mapping can have on a rural community. - it fit into the creative industry? Please see below for Bernia Wheaton's bio!

11:30am to 12:00pm - Facilitated discussion/exercise

12:00pm to 1:00pm - Lunch

1:00pm to 2:15pm - Session 3 - Melissa Shenk  - Entrepreneur, Educator, TV Personality will give you a better understanding of Who's a Tourist and Why You Should Care and how the use of Social Media tools can be used effectively in the Valley and Beyond. She will explore the world of social media and how to use it to your advantage when marketing yourself, your community or your business! Q&A - Please see below for Melissa Shenk's bio!

2:15pm to 3:00pm - Facilitated Discussion/exercise and Wrap-Up

3:00pm to 3:15pm - Break

3:15pm to 4:30pm  - Session 4 - ArtsBuild Ontario Facilities Portal - This presentation is applicable to any stakeholder, arts organization or municipal employee concerned about the investment in arts and culture in their community.

Arts Build Ontario is an organization that supports the health of Ontario's arts organizations by creating and realizing long-term solutions for their facility challenges.

Arts Build Ontario will be presenting their newly created ArtsBuild Ontario Facilities Portal - the first comprehensive and interactive online advocacy tool that will centrally house up to date information about non-profit arts organizations facilities, and their facilities needs, in Ontario.  ArtsBuild Ontario will be able to use this information to report accurately on the state of arts facilities in Ontario, thus strengthening and supporting, our need for increased infrastructure and facilities funding in the Arts sector.

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BIO - Councillor Anne Gilbert

As a Councillor for the Municipality of Chatham-Kent, Anne is known for being a champion of the concepts of Cultural Planning as an economic driver for both rural and urban municipalities. She was instrumental in the process of developing the Cultural Masterplan for the Municipality, serving as Chair of the Steering Committee and later as a member of the Create CK an outcome of the plan.  

She served as Chair of the Chatham-Kent Community Development Corporation from 2003 to 2010 which partnered in the creation of the Cultural Masterplan. It was CKCFDC who first recognized the importance of linking, culture, tourism and economic development through their strategic planning process.  

BIO - Bernia Wheaton

Bernia served for 5 years as the Economic Development Officer for Perth County.  It is in this role, that Bernia earned Perth County International acclaim with the 2010 BREI Award of Excellence for Program Impact, as well as the 2010 EDCO Social Media marketing award. 

Bernia worked to attract and facilitate development of new industries, business and services in the County of Perth for the purpose of expanding the economy of the community, providing local employment opportunities and strengthening the tax base of the County.

Bernia is frequently engaged as a keynote speaker throughout North America, and has delivered training in Best Practices on behalf of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs, who uses Bernia’s work and client success stories to showcase OMAFRA programs.

Bernia Wheaton is currently the Director of Business Development with Erie Meat Products Limited where she is responsible for e-marketing strategy development and execution, effecting purposeful social media campaigns, government relations, as well as researching new business products with an emphasis on identifying gaps and opportunities.

BIO - Melissa Shenk

Entrepreneur - TV Personality - Educator 

You might remember her from Tourism Queensland’s “Best Job in the World” Competition. She was in the TOP 50 out of more than 35,000 entries.  

Melissa Schenk is passionate about the power of video. She is the owner of MS2 Productions, a company specializing in Professional Video Production for the Web, DVD and TV.  With more than 12 years of experience in television, sales and marketing, she is a sought after public speaker, educator and marketing strategist, specializing in digital and social media strategies for businesses.   

Originally from Stratford, Melissa's broadcasting career began at 1240 CJCS.  A graduate of Fanshawe College's Television Broadcasting Program, Melissa interned with CNN in Uganda. A love of travel, lead her abroad working as a Port Lecturer on cruise ships. She later returned to Southwestern Ontario and began her broadcasting career as a weather anchor with CTV in 2001. Currently, Melissa wears many exciting hats as a Business Owner, Instructor at Conestoga College, regular guest on the Shopping Channel, and Weather Anchor on CTV News. Melissa will take you on a journey through the tools of Social Media and teach you how to become your own Social Media Producer, make a name for yourself and be remembered.