Events

Go beyond the paperwork to understand the real-world application of Ontario’s Minimum Maintenance Standards (MMS). With increasing scrutiny on municipal road operations and evolving legal precedent, this has never been more critical. Led by IPE's Road Specialist Jaden Hodgins, this technical session reviews recent court decisions and municipal claim case studies, and provides evidence-based strategies to strengthen risk management, defend against liability, and prepare for upcoming regulatory changes.

Speaker Information

Jaden Hodgins
Jaden Hodgins is a Road Specialist in the Risk Management Department at Intact Public Entities. He provides municipalities with expert guidance on road design, maintenance standards, safety practices, and compliance with legislation, helping clients reduce liability exposures tied to roads. He also conducts road assessments, delivers training for municipalities, and supports policy development.

Jaden is a licensed professional civil engineer (P. Eng.) and holds a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. In addition to his consulting work, Jaden has authored articles on road safety and liability issues for the Risk Management Centre of Excellence and frequently shares practical solutions to help municipalities strengthen their risk management practices. Jaden also brings perspective as a Municipal Councillor in the Township of Lucan Biddulph, giving him unique insight into both the technical and governance challenges municipalities face.

Field trips create excellent opportunities to build strong relationships in the classroom and magical memories for children that last a lifetime. However, they also present significant liability exposures for schools, including event planning, transportation, safety, supervision, and permissions – not to mention the activities themselves.

Join us as IPE's Tracy Eso explores the often-overlooked risks of field trips and how to manage them effectively. Through real claim studies, we’ll highlight how strong risk management can make a difference, helping schools continue to offer unique and exciting excursion opportunities. Bring your questions, concerns, and insights for an engaging discussion.  

Join Ontario’s leading economic development event to connect with decision-makers, gain expert insights, and drive regional growth. OEMC is your opportunity to shape the future of Eastern Ontario’s economy.

AI adoption is accelerating across Canada, while governance, policy, and regulation struggle to keep pace. In this session, IPE's Anika Patychuk and Frank Fazio (CySAT Security Inc.) will help municipalities, community organizations, and public sector entities navigate emerging legislation, policy considerations, human oversight expectations, and an increasingly complex regulatory landscape.

When municipal spaces are used for outdoor recreation, what third-party liability can arise? From trails to stairways outdoor recreation liability is an ongoing risk for municipalities, and understanding it is key to preventing and defending injury claims.

In this 90-minute session, Tracy Eso and Terry Piche (ORFA) will cover:

- Occupiers’ Liability legislation and its specific impact to outdoor municipal spaces
- The appropriate scope and frequency of inspection and oversight 
- How to make signage more effective and defensible
- Contributory negligence and how it can reduce claim impact

Participants will receive an electronic copy of the new ORFA/IPE Recreation Risk Manual.

Speaker Information

Terry Piche
Terry Piche has been active in the field of recreation since 1979. Starting as a frontline practitioner with no training, he has subsequently obtained diplomas through distance learning in arena management and leisure services while still working his way through the ranks of supervisor, manager and director. This passion for life-long learning is what he strives to instill in the next generation of practitioners.

Today, his work focuses on monitoring legislative change of the many complex regulations, codes and acts that impact recreation. He further works closely with several key governing authorities so that they may better understand what ORFA is investing in to assist their efforts in compliance. In addition, he captures industry experiences and best practices, turning them into plain-English while offering actionable, easy-to-implement and practical solutions that are inserted into ORFA training courses that result in professional accreditation. Terry has been recognized with numerous industry awards.

Tracy Eso
Tracy Eso is a Risk Assessment & Solutions Specialist with Intact Public Entities, recognized for her wide-ranging expertise in risk management, including climate resilience, nature-based solutions (NbS), contractual risk transfer, and emergency preparedness.

Tracy supports both municipalities and community service organizations by researching emerging risks, developing best-practice solutions, and delivering tailored presentations to councils, staff, and boards. She is known for her ability to dive deeply into client issues, providing practical advice with an enthusiasm that is only outmatched by her knowledge.

Her expertise spans climate adaptation, contractual risk transfer, coastal erosion, wildfire risk, and recreation facility safety. She has contributed to provincial and regional working groups, including the Great Lakes Coastal Resilience Group, the Insurance Sector Advisory Group on Nature-based Solutions, and the Ontario Recreation Facilities Association (ORFA) Research & Development Committee.

Tracy is also a frequent speaker at conferences across Canada, including the national CRIMS conference, SPIAO, and numerous municipal forums. She keeps closely connected to clients and industry partners, maintaining strong relationships that allow her to stay ahead of the issues that municipalities and community service organizations are facing.

Committed to lifelong learning, Tracy recently completed a micro-credential at Royal Roads University and actively pursues professional development opportunities, passing those insights on to clients. She holds the CIP, CRM, and ACI designations. In addition to her technical expertise, Tracy is widely regarded as a mentor and leader, helping to strengthen both the Risk Management team and the clients she serves.

The Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) hosts the premier annual risk management conference, RISKWORLD, featuring hundreds of educational sessions, networking, and a large industry marketplace for thousands of global risk professionals.

Is your organization prepared to communicate effectively in the event of a cyber incident? Public relations expert Kathryn Kolaczek of Alchemy Communications Inc., will share practical guidance on developing a clear and actionable cyber crisis communications strategy. 

In this session, you will learn:
•    How to proactively plan and prepare for cyber incidents
•    Techniques for crafting clear, consistent messaging under pressure
•    Best practices for coordinating across internal teams
•    Approaches to managing media and public communications
•    How to keep your strategy current through testing and continuous improvement

Pending CE accreditation for broker partners.

Speaker Information

Kathryn Kolaczek
Kathryn Kolaczek is an entrepreneur and communications strategist who helps other entrepreneurs and brands grow robust revenue growth by creating conversations in communities that matter. 

Alchemy Communications is a full service Public Relations firm specializing in traditional and social media strategy and integration, and strategic communications management, including crisis communications.  Kathryn earned her PR and social media stripes at The Mompreneur Magazine where she served as the company's CEO and used PR as the main marketing tool for the growing company. 

Since that time, Kathryn has created and executed on crisis communications strategies for brands managing national and international product recalls, board governance issues, employee injuries and death as well as environmental crises. In times of brand stress, Kathryn serves to create and clarify the key messages, control the conversation, and offer support to media and communities in need of accurate and timely information. 

Community organizations that manage properties often face significant winter maintenance demands. This session highlights common winter liability blind spots, the risks of missed maintenance, and how to transfer risk appropriately to help protect your organization.

In this 60-minute session, IPE’s Tracy Eso will cover:

• High-risk areas for winter slip-and-fall claims
• How to transfer risk effectively when appropriate
• Tobogganing risks and practical prevention steps

Pending CE accreditation for broker partners.

Speaker Information 

Tracy Eso
Tracy Eso is a Risk Assessment & Solutions Specialist with Intact Public Entities, recognized for her wide-ranging expertise in risk management, including climate resilience, nature-based solutions (NbS), contractual risk transfer, and emergency preparedness.

Tracy supports both municipalities and community service organizations by researching emerging risks, developing best-practice solutions, and delivering tailored presentations to councils, staff, and boards. She is known for her ability to dive deeply into client issues, providing practical advice with an enthusiasm that is only outmatched by her knowledge.

Her expertise spans climate adaptation, contractual risk transfer, coastal erosion, wildfire risk, and recreation facility safety. She has contributed to provincial and regional working groups, including the Great Lakes Coastal Resilience Group, the Insurance Sector Advisory Group on Nature-based Solutions, and the Ontario Recreation Facilities Association (ORFA) Research & Development Committee.

Tracy is also a frequent speaker at conferences across Canada, including the national CRIMS conference, SPIAO, and numerous municipal forums. She keeps closely connected to clients and industry partners, maintaining strong relationships that allow her to stay ahead of the issues that municipalities and community service organizations are facing.

Committed to lifelong learning, Tracy recently completed a micro-credential at Royal Roads University and actively pursues professional development opportunities, passing those insights on to clients. She holds the CIP, CRM, and ACI designations. In addition to her technical expertise, Tracy is widely regarded as a mentor and leader, helping to strengthen both the Risk Management team and the clients she serves.

Municipalities are often offered “gifts” and donations—from artwork to playground equipment. While free items can be appealing, they can also create safety, compliance, and liability issues. In this one-hour session for elected officials, we’ll ask “What could go wrong?” and how to accept donations successfully while avoiding common traps, including:

- Equipment that doesn’t meet current standards
- Public artwork that becomes unsafe or inappropriate
- Donated real estate with hidden hazards

We will discuss how elected officials can best respond when well-meaning donors wish to enrich the community with their donations and how creating a process for properly accepting gifts can protect the municipality from future liability and avoid costly removal or disposal of unwanted “gifts.”  

Speaker Information

Tracy Eso
Tracy Eso is a Risk Assessment & Solutions Specialist with Intact Public Entities, recognized for her wide-ranging expertise in risk management, including climate resilience, nature-based solutions (NbS), contractual risk transfer, and emergency preparedness.

Tracy supports both municipalities and community service organizations by researching emerging risks, developing best-practice solutions, and delivering tailored presentations to councils, staff, and boards. She is known for her ability to dive deeply into client issues, providing practical advice with an enthusiasm that is only outmatched by her knowledge.

Her expertise spans climate adaptation, contractual risk transfer, coastal erosion, wildfire risk, and recreation facility safety. She has contributed to provincial and regional working groups, including the Great Lakes Coastal Resilience Group, the Insurance Sector Advisory Group on Nature-based Solutions, and the Ontario Recreation Facilities Association (ORFA) Research & Development Committee.

Tracy is also a frequent speaker at conferences across Canada, including the national CRIMS conference, SPIAO, and numerous municipal forums. She keeps closely connected to clients and industry partners, maintaining strong relationships that allow her to stay ahead of the issues that municipalities and community service organizations are facing.

Committed to lifelong learning, Tracy recently completed a micro-credential at Royal Roads University and actively pursues professional development opportunities, passing those insights on to clients. She holds the CIP, CRM, and ACI designations. In addition to her technical expertise, Tracy is widely regarded as a mentor and leader, helping to strengthen both the Risk Management team and the clients she serves.