Is it time to revive this blog?  I will be publishing on oil sands issues as an owner of the asset at oilsandsken.com.

Is there another theme that this blog could pursue around citizen engagement and democracy commentary?

Take Time to Vote for The Grizzly Manifesto

I am championing Jeff Gailus' book The Grizzly Manifesto in the Alberta Readers' Choice Awards.  You can vote for this book - and you should - if only because I asked you to.  But you should also read the book and the other four books in the competition.  There is a rich array of genres awaiting your reading pleasure.

Here is a link to vote for Jeff's book. http://www.albertareaderschoice.ca. You have until the end of business on May 31 to vote on this book - so don't waste any time!  Vote once a day.  It is allowed!

If you want to get a sense of why I am championing this book - read this newspaper article based on an interview I did on The Grizzly Manifesto.

http://www.canmoreleader.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3139322

The Alberta Party Leadership Candidate Debate

Here is the long form video of the recent Alberta Party Leadership Debate held in Calgary.  It is 2 hours long so put on a pot of coffee first.



The Alberta Party Leadership Convention is in Edmonton May 27-28 and will be Live streamed.  More to follow on those details.

Vote for The Grizzly Manifesto in the Readers' Choice Awards.

The Readers' Choice Awards is a great prize and serious upside recognition for an Alberta author. The competition this year is between five terrific titles but my preferences is for The Grizzly Manifesto.  I really think Albertans are hungry for this kind of information and narrative.  We can't presume our species is in control and be oblivious to our place in the biosphere - even the carbon cycle.

Jeff Gailus teachers us, implores us and after reading this book, I know it will motivate us to take a more meaningful  look as how humanity is integrated into nature.  We have to do a much better job of being human within nature, not just consumers who are indifferent to our place in the planet.

I strongly recommend you read all the books but you vote for The Grizzly Manifesto.  It is not like an election.  Here you can vote early and often - until the end of May.

Here is the link to vote for the book I am championing.   

Don’t forget to VOTE once a day, every day in May to make The Grizzly Manifesto Alberta’s best book of 2010!

As for the rest, you can check them out here - but only after you vote for The Grizzly Manifesto.

Vote a bunch of times between now and May 31 and tell your friends and family to vote for The Grizzly Manifesto - but be sure to buy it and read it too.

Premier's Council for Economic Strategy Report is Some Kind of Wonderful

Premier Stelmach gathered together and challenge twelve of the most thoughtful minds you can imagine to actually imagine the reality we face as Albertans to ensure our prosperity from now until 2040.  Then they were challenged to get focused on major aspects of the challenges ahead.  That resulted in the five themes in the report.

The themes are:

1. "Realizing the full potential of our energy resources;
2. Broadening the economic base;
3. Preparing to prosper in a global economy
4. Providing a strong platform to sustain economic growth;
5. Investing in shaping the future.

Premier Stelmach framed the focus on the future challenges for Alberta in three ways. I have described them below and added the emphasis!

"What must Albertans begin to do now to sustain prosperity through the next three decades and beyond."

Next he asked the Council to consider "How can we ensure our children and grandchildren enjoy even greater opportunity than we have - that we hand future generations a legacy of 'a better Alberta'"?

He closed with the question of "What will it take to make the Alberta of 2040 the place for creative and committed citizens to live, work, raise families, contribute to an enjoy society."


This language aligns so nicely with my sense that we have to move beyond the Alberta Advantage and into defining and designing the Alberta Aspiration.  The report of the Premier's Council for Economic Strategy is magnificently aligned with that way of thinking as it responds to the challenges posed by Premier Stelmach and points to potential and mindset adaptations we must make to move beyond the Alberta Advantage.

I am anxious to deal with the content of the report.  It is a truly terrific document and designed to spark conversations and considerations of what we must to to adapt and achieve our potential in the coming but still uncertain future. I will get into the meaning and merits of the report in other posts.  For now you need some context and a reason to read the report yourself.

I have chosen a could of quote from the introduction of the report and believe these words are more than enough to intrigue committed and concerned Albertans.

"This report of the Premier's Council for Economic Strategy is intended to inspire dialogue and action to ensure that in 2040 and beyond, the citizens of Alberta will be thriving, enjoying a desirable quality of life."

"We call on all Albertans to make intentional choices now to shape their future, the future of their grandchildren and the future of Alberta."

"In these pages,we identify opportunities Alberta has within its grasp, given its history, endowment and potential.  We also shine a spotlight on threats to Alberta's future prosperity and suggest strategies for managing these risks as well.  Our focus is on building an Alberta that is resilient and outward-looking, with all its citizens contributing to their full potential and ready to seize opportunities, a respected and strategic player in Canada and on the world stage."

If that language does not make you want to read the report, then you are clearly too cynical or to presumptive that tomorrow will be just like today, only better, with out change or applied effort.and intelligence.

Here is the link to the full report.  It is a call to action for all Albertans.  Be part of the design of the next Alberta.  This report is a provocation towards a new and more appropriate purposefulness for the next Alberta.

Ready, reflect and respond.  It is within our grasp to create the future we want and avoid the dangers of continuing the current mindset.