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Course Content
Module 1: Introduction to THEP and the Guide
This module provides a brief overview of THEP, and provides a full list of the abbreviations and acronyms mentioned throughout the training sections.
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About THEP
Abbreviations & Acronyms
Module 2: Key THEP / THEC points in brief.
The sections below provide high-level information on THEP, the partners, and ways of working. The aim is to provide some context before you dive into the detail of each set of resources.
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About
Our Ways of Working
Key Actions
Who Is This Guide For?
How To Use This Guide
Module 2 Learnings
Module 3: THEP’s purpose, values, key resources, and an overview of partner organizations
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THEP’s Purpose & Values
Key Resources & Links
Module 3 Learnings
Module 4: THEP’s origin
This module provides information on THEP’s origin, as well as key details on study findings from 1990-2000 and how this influences current ways of working.
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How THEP Began
Module 4 Learnings
Module 5: Applying our values & ways of working
This module includes further information on THEP’s ways of working and also provides examples of how THEP applies our values.
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The Secret Sauce In Trail
What’s Next?
Module 5 Learnings
Module 6: Details on THEP’s work, including topic briefs
This module includes detail on THEP’s work. Topic briefs have been created to provide clear examples of how THEP works.
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What Does THEP Deliver and Who Does What?
Change Over Time
Introduction to Topic Briefs
Air Quality
Health
Soil Management
Module 6 Learnings
Module 7: Internal communications (for local THEP team)
This module includes details on communications and reporting.
Trail Area Health & Environment Program (THEP) Onboarding Guide 101

The Secret Sauce in Trail

Local Leadership

Local leadership

THEP is in contact with other communities around the world with operating lead smelters (e.g. Hoboken, Belgium and Port Pirie, Australia) and local leadership to convene all parties together is not common practice.

Trail is the only location that has local leadership and community participation on the stakeholder committee. THEC is a select committee of the City of Trail and chaired by the Mayor. All THEP partners participate along with community members, adjacent local governments and the local labour union. There are five public meetings each year, minutes are posted on the website, and working groups including community members and the City are established as needed to have deeper thematic discussions.

Community at the heart

For THEC, community leadership and participation has been core to shifting a potentially stigmatizing issue to a community success story. There is a high degree of trust and good will generated by the Program team that works on the front lines in the community. Local leaders keep up the conversation in the community, provide local context, and root strategic directions in on-the-ground realities. 

Without the community at the table, THEC would revert to being a regulatory discussion between industry and government, excluding the people that the programs are intended to benefit. The community voice helps to hold all partners accountable to the residents and each other. There is a “nothing about us, without us” feeling at the local level and the local champions are vocal in ensuring their voices are heard.

Collaboration Icon

Collaborative approach

Acknowledging that more is achieved working together than in silos, there has always been a collaborative approach between the partners: City of Trail, Teck Trail Operations, Interior Health (IH), and the BC Ministry of Environment and Parks (ENV), to address the challenge of reducing lead exposure in Trail. Program partners have two representatives each on THEC which focuses on strategy, planning and oversight. Guided by a jointly developed strategic plan, together the partners work toward shared objectives and goals with respect to improvements in knowledge, awareness, and health related to Pb and SO2.

There is an understanding that there is a regulatory aspect, and organizations have their unique mandates as well.

THEP representatives also work as a team in the community to bring together diverse perspectives and expertise in order to support and enhance its programs design and implementation. By sharing needs, identifying opportunities, and advocating for the families they serve, the team collaborates to better serve the community with a holistic, accessible, and integrated approach. THEP team meetings occur every 6-8 weeks to share information, seek feedback, and propose program improvements. We work hard to avoid working in silos so that as a team and as a community we support bigger picture thinking.

Trail’s journey of working together to improve the environment and health of the community ramped up in the late 1980’s. Based on more than thirty years of work, a key learning is patience. Complex work requires time, commitment to monitoring and learning and then adapting with new information and knowledge. Working together during times of success as well as challenges is also an important commitment to make with decadal timeframes in mind.

Community Discussion

Other venues for different discussions

As the work in Trail evolved, there has been a need for different venues for dialogue and more in-depth discussions. THEC is a public forum with all partners at the table which allows for collaborative thinking, debate and solution building. Additional safe spaces for conversations have also been created over the years. Working groups have been established as needed to host technical conversations as well as groups led by the partners to ensure government has space to consult with each other.

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