Plenary 1: Cross Country Check-Up – What’s happening in Fire and EM Across the country?

Overview: How is the fire and emergency sector evolving across the country? Did you know that every month, the provincial and territorial fire chiefs associations and the national affiliate organizations involved in Fire Meet for 2 hours to coordinate policy and positions across the country? Find out what’s happening across the country.

Plenary 2: Good sleep requires shiny shoes – and other candid life and leadership lessons from the command post

Presented by: Matthew Pegg, Toronto Fire Chief 

Overview (Workshop): In March 2020, Toronto Fire Chief Matthew Pegg was asked to lead the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Toronto’s only declared emergency, as Incident Commander. This journey included creating and leading one of the largest incident management system in Canadian history, along with the development and leadership of the Provincial COVID-19 vaccine clinic play book. In this candid and highly impactful presentation, Chief Pegg will share behind the scenes experiences, personal observations, and both life and leadership lessons learned during his 25 month assignment as the COVID-19 Incident Commander for Canada’s largest city. 

Plenary 3: Public Safety Canada's Engagement with the Fire Community (60m)

Presented by:

Stephanie Durand, Director General, Public Safety Canada

Michael Norton, Director General, Natural Resources Canada

Overview (Workshop): Public Safety Canada proposes to present to attendees on the engagements PS has had with the fire community, and on emerging files and issues.

Presented by:

Dr. Trevor Nightingale, Director General, National Research Council

Ms. Lucie Leonard, Director, Statistics Canada

Ms. Rebecca Kong, Assistant Director, Statistics Canada

Concurrent Session 1: Introduction to Moral Injury (60m)

Presented by: Chaplain Bruce Lacillade, PhD. Author, Retired from Burlington, Ontario Fire Department

Overview: Introducing the moral injury/internal conflict component of Occupational Stress Injury from a spiritual perspective. Addresses symptoms as well as tools available to assist first responders cope with Occupational Stress issues.

Concurrent Session 2: Fire Department Continuous Quality Improvement through Accreditation Case Studies (60m)

Presented by: Ms. Preet Bassi, CAE, Chief Executive Officer Center for Public Safety Excellence, Chantilly, VA; Chief Steve Dongworth, CFO, Fire Chief, Calgary Fire Department, Alberta; Chief Steve Gamble, Fire Chief, Township of Langley Fire Department, British Columbia

Overview: During this moderated session, hear from the Fire Chiefs of City of Calgary Fire Department and the Township of Langley Fire Department how the model and process developed by the Commission on Fire Accreditation International has permitted them to continuously improve the administration, operations, and outcomes of their departments.

Concurrent Session 3.1: A virtual reality training system for Dangerous Goods Transportation Incidences (30m)

Presented by: Dr. Bruno Emond, National Research Council Canada, ON

Overview: The session will present our progress in developing a virtual reality (VR) training environment where novice first responders can acquire situational awareness and procedural knowledge for the management of dangerous goods transportation incidents. The development process includes conducting requirements analysis in partnership with key stakeholders and empirical evaluation.

Concurrent Session 3.2: The Fire Chiefs Role in Development Approvals (30m)

Presented by: Sean A. Tracey, FIFireE, Deputy Chief (Retired), Co-Chair of the CAFC Building Code Committee

Overview: The seminar will focus on guiding Fire Chiefs in their overall role in their role in the development approval stage. How this ties into Community Risk Reduction, fire service response capabilities, water supplies, etc. This will centre upon a handbook and approval template prepared by the presenter.

Concurrent Session 4.1: Before Operational Stress (BOS) Program (30m)

Presented by: Scott Maxwell, Executive Director, Wounded Warriors Canada

Overview: The purpose of the session is to describe a pilot of the Before Operational Stress (BOS) funded by Wounded Warriors Canada for and with the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs. The session will describe the BOS program and share highlights of the experience provided so that it may be explored as part of the suite of programs departments consider for their members.

Concurrent Session 4.2: Fire Safety Personnel Wellbeing – A specialized RESPECT Forum on Firefighters (30m)

Presented by: Colonel (retired) Gregory Burt, Facilitator for the Ottawa Respect Forum, Respect Forum; Ms. Servane Roupnel, National Coordinator of Academic Outreach, Women and LGBTQ2+ Outreach and Program Evaluation, Respect Forum, Quebec

Overview: This session proposes a discussion around our Respect Forums networking events to learn more and improve the wellbeing of fire safety personnel and their families. The goal is to connect uniformed personnel with local support organizations committed to their wellness to encourage collaboration.             

Concurrent Session 5.1: What’s next? How to thrive after retirement or job loss (30m)

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Presented by: President Shelley Langille, Certified Executive Coach (CEC) through Royal Roads University, Associate Certified Coach (ACC) through the International Coaching Federation, President and Founder, SeeShell Consulting, Victoria, British Columbia

Overview: Learn strategies to deal with the land mines that can accompany retirement or job loss. The session will include techniques to a voice mind health and identity issues, find or keep your purpose, and prepare for the journey ahead.

Concurrent Session 5.2: Financial wellness (30m)

Presented by: Kevin Cochran, President, Enriched Academy

Overview: How Fire Chiefs can improve their members wellbeing.

Concurrent Session 6.1: Are we ready for transit electrification? (30m)

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Presented by: Amal Tamim, Senior Consultant / Market Leader, Jensen Hughes Canada, M.Sc. FPE; Dr.Jason Sutula, Principal Fire Investigator/Principal Fire Protection Engineer, Jensen Hughes, PH.D., P.E., CFEI, CVFI, IAAI-CFI

Overview: Regulators, Transit agencies and emergency responders are already faced with questions related to risks electrification of transit infrastructure is picking up pace and reality. This presentation will give CACF members an overview of the associated fire risks and share Jensen Hughes experience with high-power battery fires and energy storage systems

Plenary 4: The Exceptional Fire Chief – How to Better Your Best (60m)

Presented by: Larry Iverson PhD, Psychologist, Author, Speaker, Seattle Washington

Dr. Larry Iverson is a Psychologist, Author, Coach and Keynote Speaker.

Overview: Being an exceptional leader is not accidental. In this program you will gain strategies used by highly respected leaders. Learn the twelve leadership traits that boost credibility and build connection. These are strengths you can begin applying immediately as part of your executive tool chest.

Plenary 5: "The Best Job in the World" (60m)  

Presented by: Kim Ayotte, General Manager Emergency and Protective Services, City of Ottawa / Directeur general, Services de protection et d’urgence, Ville d’Ottawa

Overview: Navigating a change in career from Fire Chief to General Manager. Some insights and tips on making it a successful change from your current position to your next promotion.

Concurrent Session 8.1: Human Factors: A new era of post-incident analysis (30m)

Presented by: Division Chief Scott, Ramey, BHSc, MScHQ, CCP, CHE, CMM-III Exec, Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency, Halifax, NS

Overview: What do we learn from adverse events? Most often our focus is on what went wrong, where we can we find fault, who or what is to blame. What if we shift our thinking?  Human Factors and Safety Science has shifted, everyday things go right, do we learn on a regular basis? Most importantly, do we really understand all of the human and contributing factors? Let's talk about the new era of safety.

Concurrent Session 8.2: The Wedge: Aggressive goal setting for the fire service (30m)

Presented by: Firefighter Bill Dungey, Peer Fitness Trainer & Social Service Worker, County of Brant Fire Department, Ontario

Overview: Goals are often set with good intentions but poor technique. Actionable and refined strategies to empower change can ripple through an entire department. The Wedge (provided) is a free and open source, data driven system that teaches participants to correctly set, record and chase personal objectives.

Concurrent Session 9.1: Team Red – The value of networking in a crazy world (60m)

Presented by: NFPA regional director Laura King, executive coach Shelley Langille, fire chiefs Rick Arnel, Tom DeSorcy, Gilbert MacIntyre, Vince MacKenzie, and John Thomas

Overview: When the world changed in March 2020, a small group of chiefs (and associated fire-service types!) took their conference friendship online. For almost two years, Team Red has met weekly via Zoom to help each other navigate the new normal. Most importantly, Team Red has strengthened the mental health of every participant and led to solutions to fire-department challenges.

Concurrent Session 10: Firefighter Cancer: where do you draw the line? (60m)

Presented by: Deputy Fire Chief, Richard Amnotte, Levis Fire Department, Quebec; Operations’ Chief, Michel Amesse, Montreal Fire Department, Quebec

Overview: A lot of information is available and known about the dangers of fire smoke and its contaminants on firefighters’ health and increased cancer risks. There are actually many other contributing risk factors that may contribute to increase your risk of developing a cancer. Get information on how to reduce your risk level.

Concurrent Session 11: Stop It! Overcoming Compassion Fatigue for 1st Responders (60m)

Presented by: Larry Iverson PhD, Psychologist, Author, Speaker, Seattle Washington

Overview: This program brings strategies to overcome compassion fatigue. Participants will take a compassion fatigue evaluation for evaluating their risk for getting it or their current level. They will learn two strategies for staying free of compassion fatigue, or if they are already experiencing it how to break free from it.

Concurrent Session 12: Eliminating Candidate Barriers to Attract and Hire the Best Firefighters (60m)

Presented by: Carl Swander, President/CEO, Ph.D., National Testing Network - Washington, USA; Manager, Employee Relations Bruce Donig, City of Cornwall, ON

Overview: Hiring the best people requires both getting the right people to test and using comprehensive testing tools. Session participants will learn how new approaches to nationwide candidate recruitment and testing can help attract higher quality candidates from younger generations by reducing candidate barriers.