AGM Message to Members

March 25, 2020

To our members,

CSGA and CSTA have been closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation in Canada. The health and safety of our members is of the utmost priority to us. With the support of the executive members of both of our boards of directors, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the Joint Annual Meeting in Winnipeg and move to offering a virtual annual meeting for our members.

CSGA and CSTA have more than 200 years of combined history and we understand the significance of the annual meeting to our members. We know that members look forward to reconnecting with colleagues, friends and family every summer. As we look into the logistics of offering a virtual meeting, ensuring that our members still have opportunities to connect and engage with each other is top of mind.

We did not make this decision lightly. There were several factors that led to our decision, including the uncertainty of domestic travel, public health recommendations on large gatherings and the financial implications of moving forward with planning this event. We know the annual meeting is an important member service and we also know that we need to provide value to our members and sponsors.

While we are in the early stages of planning the virtual meeting opportunities, CSGA and CSTA are researching creative options to proceed that will likely include rolling out a webinar series on key topics, offering online surveys for feedback, and hosting a virtual AGM with mail and online voting options for the Seed Synergy Collaboration project. We will share more details in the coming weeks, and we encourage our members to reach out to us with any questions or suggestions of what you would like to see included.

Sincerely,

Jonathan Nyborg,
President, CSGA
Georges Chaussé,
President, CSTA