Josie Osborne is the Mayor of Tofino, a town of approximately 1,800 people located at the southern edge of Clayoquot Sound on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. With an extensive career in environmental education and resource management, Julie was previously the executive director for the Raincoast Education Society and a fisheries biologist for the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council. She has served as Alberni Clayorquot Regional District Chair and is currently a member of the British Columbia Climate Solutions Council.

Voted in 2015 by Trip Advisor as the 8th best destination in Canada, Tofino is known for its booming tourism economy. The challenge, Josie will explain, is that tourism stresses the environment and creates housing and overall affordability issues for local residents.

Since becoming mayor, Josie has begun to address these complex resource, economic, and political challenges by creating more open and collaborative government. She is a strong believer in community driven economic development which incorporates principles of sustainability, smart growth, and capacity building, and is actively engaged in community gardening and food security initiatives. Under her guidance, Tofino has taken part in the Coastal Communities Social Procurement Initiative to better leverage tax dollars to achieve positive social outcomes for communities throughout the coast.