Just before Mayor Bev Buckway turns over the reins to a successor, she will represent the city at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce's Economic Edge Conference 2012 in Calgary.

Buckway will not seek a third term in the Oct. 18 election, which will occur 11 days before the Oct. 24 conference.

The gathering is also five days prior to the Oct. 29 swearing-in of the new council, leaving Buckway as the mayor at the time of the conference.

"It will probably be one of my last official duties (as mayor),” she said in an interview this morning.

She described what an honour it is to be invited to be part of a panel discussion happening there.

Buckway said she's unsure just yet what the panel discussion will be focused on – the chamber is waiting to learn who's attending before it confirms the exact discussion topics.

Overall, the conference will be about regaining Canada's economic competitive edge, with a theme of Smart Cities.

"In an increasingly urbanized world, creating smart and sustainable cities is essential to Canada's economic development,” notes the conference web page.

"Cities that boast digital and green infrastructure attract knowledgeable and talented people that are capable of driving the innovation needed to improve Canada's productivity and allow our country to better compete in the global marketplace.”

It goes on to note that too often, cities are thought of as the cause of social ills from congestion to climate change and so on.

Cities that use integrated planning, take sustainability measures and use "out of the box thinking,” it continues, have the potential to address many of those issues and "provide the staging post to a cleaner, better and brighter future.

"This must-attend event is a crucial step for developing the solutions that will help Canadians and Canadian businesses address the barriers surrounding smart city development. Attention will be dedicated to new urban development, smarter grids and the energy challenge.”

It's expected delegates will look at dealing with aging infrastructure, transit and transportation issues and fiscal policies among others, Buckway said.

After the conference, the chamber will produce a document with the key findings from the event along with sponsor input.

The document will then be presented to various government leaders to be used to develop "smart, sustainable cities,” says the event's web page at http://www.chamber.ca/images/uploads/Event/EconomicEdge/2012/EconomicEdge2012SponsorshipOverview.pdf states.

Before voting with the rest of council to authorize the mayor's travel to the conference, Coun. Dave Stockdale noted the invitation to Buckway to be part of the session is a reflection on the entire city.

Obviously, he said, the community is being recognized for its innovation.

"We are ahead of the game,” he said.

Though she has council's approval for the city to cover her travel expenses, she noted the city will look into whether the chamber will absorb any expenses of those who have been asked to be part of panel

discussions or do presentations.

In any case, she said, she would require approval of council regardless of who is paying for the travel.