Wednesday, 24 February 2010 10:05 Written by Reboot Alberta

Alberta is an important place in the world. Our schools are amongst the best in the world according to an analysis of standard test data – we rank second only to Finland. As oil from other sources begins to decline, Alberta oil will be in high demand – whatever Whole Foods wants to think. Our scientists and technologists are in high demand world-wide – they are innovative, creative and successful. Our musicians, ballet dancers, artists and theatre companies are recognized worldwide for their talents – over a billion people watched Alberta Ballet perform at the Olympics. But Alberta is at a tipping point – the smell of real change is in the air.

 

Politically, a tired and lacklustre conservative government is finding it difficult to capture the hearts and minds of Albertan’s. After thirty nine years in office, the party seems to have run out of ideas and is sticking to its “no new taxes” and spend our way out of trouble when the mood is one which favours austerity and realignment. Two new political parties – The Wild Rose Alliance and the Alberta Party – are hoping to capture the minds of Albertan’s followed by their votes when the election is called for March 2012. Progressives are meeting in various rooms across Alberta in an attempt to Reboot the Province – positioning policy and thinking for a twenty first century Province ready to take its place in the world.

 

Significant reforms are planned for Alberta’s school system by the widely respected Minister for Education, Dave Hancock. What these reforms will be is not yet clear, but the expectation is for a significant change in terms of curriculum, assessment and the use of technology. Hancock talks frequently about new skills for a new century – a century that is already approaching the end of its first decade. Many within the system are enthusiastic about the potential for change, but fearful that it will not be substantive. They fear a missed opportunity – one that comes only every thirty or forty years.

 

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Tuesday, 23 February 2010 09:01 Written by Reboot Alberta

As I’ve written about before, coming out of the first Reboot Alberta event, many individuals (including bloggers) were invited to write on what “being a progressive” means to them.

While there have been a great many posts and white papers written on the subject as a result – I invite you to visit RebootAlberta.org to read as many of them as possible – I wanted to take advantage of the week leading up to Reboot Alberta 2, which begins this Friday in Kananaskis, by offering my own take.

The first Reboot Alberta event was billed as a meeting of progressives before the event. I considered myself to be ‘progressive’ in my thinking (or at the very least not ‘regressive’), so off I went to Red Deer. But it didn’t take long before I, and others, started asking “what does it mean to be ‘progressive’ anyway?”. It’s amazing how sometimes we simply label ourselves as something and do not bother to delve into it to find out what it really means. We’re far too often to simply sit back and be comfortable with a superficial label.

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Sunday, 07 February 2010 13:33 Written by Reboot Alberta

It has taken me a while to write this blog about “What is a Progressive?” as I am not a fan of labels and I am reluctant to abet labeling.  It took going to the Manning Centre for Democracy “Project Alberta” to help me develop my definition of  Progressive.  I thank the Manning Centre for putting on this event out of concern for Alberta’s future.  I appreciate having had the opportunity to participate and hear presentations from very knowledgeable people and to meet other concerned Albertans.

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Friday, 22 January 2010 15:04 Written by Reboot Alberta

To be a progressive is a time and place sensitive thing; to know it is to be relational and relative to the uniqueness of what is called for in this moment of history. That said, there seem to be certain characteristics which generally differentiate the progressive from the static and the regressive.

 

The contributions on the topic of "What is a Progressive?" on Reboot Alberta whom have preceded this one have done a good job of relaying some of the 'universals' of a progressive and some particular suggestions regarding different changes to items of governance. Paula Kirman's observations about progressives' differentiating between people and the institutions/special interests that have taken a central role in the today's socio-political balance of power (corporations), is crucial. Likewise, the succinct, clear delineations of Jonathan Teghtmeyer and Sue Huff's articulate exemplifications of how progressives tend to be and act awake towards possibilities, help to generalize what we can strive for as a growing movement.

 

What follows is my attempt at merging such general qualities with some specific approaches to ecological, economic, and cultural challenges we are faced with as individuals and as a society beginning to experience what history will probably come to see as the collapse of an age and the transition to another.

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Tuesday, 19 January 2010 15:16 Written by Reboot Alberta

What is a Progressive?

I have my own thoughts about what a Progressive is . . .but before I share those I thought I would share what the definition (according to dictionary.com) is; (adj):

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Sunday, 17 January 2010 22:24 Written by Reboot Alberta

Democracy in Alberta has been in a coma for some time now. In the past 6 months with the Neo-Conservative split resulting it the formation of the Wildrose Alliance Party, it may have begun to suffer some form of cardiac arrest.

Voter turnout in the last provincial election was 41%. In both Edmonton and Calgary voter turnouts are in the mid 20%s during municipal elections. Why is this? How do we increase it?

Over the past 10 years as a Community Organizer I have met with thousands of citizens face to face. I have heard overwhelmingly about pressures on families created by busyness, exhaustion, media influence and hyper consumption, increasing costs of living and just not being able to keep up with day-to-day survival. This is obviously part of the story.

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Wednesday, 13 January 2010 15:14 Written by Reboot Alberta

Progressive. Conservative. Centrist. These are political labels that define our perspectives on a variety of social and fiscal issues.

 

Fiscally conservative. Socially progressive. And vice-versa. These are combinations that are made when one or the other are not working in and of themselves.

 

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Saturday, 09 January 2010 18:59 Written by Reboot Alberta

As do most who would read this, I love Alberta.  I have lived here for 31 of my 51 years and Alberta as a whole is “home” in a way that no other place has ever been.  I am a proud Canadian living in one of the most blessed jurisdictions on the face of the earth, and I appreciate that fact every day.  Yet, few days go by during which I don’t also lament the fact that the Alberta that is and the Alberta that could be are two very different things and it is precisely that disconnect which motivates me to participate in the Reboot Alberta discussions, regardless of where they eventually lead.  Perhaps the best way of describing my motivation for participating is by understanding what my Alberta includes.

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Wednesday, 06 January 2010 11:18 Written by Reboot Alberta

Happy New Year everyone. Welcome to 2010. Is it everything you thought it would look like?

I remember the new year of 1990 very well. I was 10 and it was the first time in my memory that we were celebrating the start of a decade. I remember vividly thinking about the future - the nineties - and what they would hold. I think that was the first time I really thought about the year 2000.

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Sunday, 27 December 2009 13:25 Written by Sue Huff

Defining progressive is a great mental exercise and important collective work for Reboot Alberta. Until we develop a shared definition, we won't have a truly shared purpose.

Being a bit of a word-phile, I started with the dictionary:

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