November 25 | December 2, 2026

9:00 am - 12:30 pm

Course Overview: Strong regional collaboration is essential to effective municipal governance, service delivery, and long-term community resilience. This course equips elected officials and senior administrators with the tools to build trust, strengthen relationships, and lead impactful collaborative initiatives. Participants will explore the principles of intermunicipal cooperation, develop practical strategies to navigate complex partnerships, and learn how to foster a culture of trust, communication, and consensus-building.

Key Learning Outcomes:

  •  Understand the value and purpose of regional collaboration
  •  Learn the stages and structure of effective collaborative frameworks
  •  Build communication and consensus skills to support joint decision-making
  •  Develop strategies to manage conflict and sustain momentum
  •  Explore Alberta’s municipal collaboration context, including legislative requirements and real-world examples

Note:

This course focuses on the general principles of regional collaboration and partnership-building within municipal governance. It is not designed to directly address legislative requirements for Intermunicipal Cooperation Frameworks (ICFs), Intermunicipal Development Plans (IDPs), or recent changes. Participants will gain a broad understanding of effective collaboration strategies, applicable across various intermunicipal initiatives.

Format:

This course is delivered in two 3.5-hour interactive Zoom sessions. Each session combines live instruction, group discussions, breakout activities, and applied practice.

To ensure a meaningful learning experience, active participation is required. This includes:

  •  Camera-on attendance (unless technical issues prevent it)
  •  Engagement in partner and small group activities
  •  Completion of short reading or assignments between sessions

Each session builds on the last. Full engagement in each session and its activities is essential to getting the most out of this course.

Instructor:

Ron Leaf is an established consultant with extensive experience in supporting the collaborative process.  Ron is committed to developing practical plans and processes that strengthen relationships and set the stage for effective partnerships into the future.

Who should Attend?

Municipal elected officials, and administrators responsible for community engagement, policy development, or public communication.

 Schedule: 

This course will be offered in morning sessions over Zoom on:

  • Date: November 25 | December 2, 2026
  • Time: 9:00 - 12:30
  • Course cost: $295 plus GST
  • Location: VIRTUAL

Participants must attend both sessions to receive credit for completing the course. 

This course is a requirement for successful completion of the Municipal Elected Leaders Certificate through the University of Alberta's Augustana Extended Education.



For more information on this course, visit the  eoep Website

Attendance Expectations

To get the most out of our courses, full attendance is required. Here’s how we handle attendance:

Virtual Courses:

  • Participants must attend all sessions. Up to 30 minutes of absence across all sessions is permitted for personal or business reasons.
  • Attendance is tracked by login records and participation. Technical issues must be reported immediately to ensure attendance credit. 

Cancellation and Refund Timelines

We aim to provide flexibility while maintaining fairness. Here’s how cancellations are handled:

Cancellation More Than 7 Days Before the Course Date:

  • A refund will be issued, minus a $50 cancellation fee.

Cancellation Between 7 Days and 48 Hours Before the Course Date:

  • Virtual Courses: A refund will be issued, minus a $50 cancellation fee.
  • In-Person Courses: Half of the registration fee will be refunded, minus a $50 cancellation fee.

Cancellation Less Than 48 Hours Before the Course Date:

  • No refunds are available for cancellations made less than 48 hours in advance or for no-shows.

Visit eoep.ca for more details.