There an economic, environmental and social disaster that has been around for a long time in rural Alberta. Part of it due to successive provincial government that have been beholden to the oil and gas industry for decades.  So we get totally inadequate attention paid to wellsite clean up and reclamation. That is a multi-billion (yes with a "B" dollar complex problem that gets ignored. The obligations get kicked down the road as the cost climb and the debacle turns into a disaster. The other problem is simpler, more current and easier to resolve in the short term, if there is political ..read more

We are all starting to come to grips with the importance of the May Alberta election.  According to polls, it is very difficult to say now if the UCP or the NDP will get re-elected. That result is in our hands as citizens.  The collective "WE" will decide but will the results be conclusive given the regional divisions in Alberta, and the final decision will be determined by a few Calgary constituencies. BUT VOTE WE MUST - IF YOU VALUE DEMOCRACY That voting decision making is a very personal activity and fraught with complexity and confusion and it takes time and effort to do it w ..read more

Are you tired of the overheated right versus left, political rhetoric?  Are you weary of the partisan blame game?  Are you concerned about the rise of misinformation and disinformation spreading throughout our society?  Are you worried about political polarisation that is dividing us and leaving a trail of debris in our economy, our environment, ourselves and many of our fellow citizens?  Do you have a nagging, or even gut-wrenching, feeling that there are people and groups who are committed to separating Alberta from Canada and intent on replacing our democracy with an a ..read more

This post is part of the series for Alberta Rebooters to consider their personal situation as we approach our voting decisions in the May general election. I’ve posted on the importance of elections as a chance for change, and charting our way as citizens in uncharted economic, social and environmental times for Albertans. THE 4-H TOOL FOR BETTER VOTING Now I am sharing a 4-H framework tool for you to use as you consider what you will be voting for, and why, in the election. The framework starts with what is on your mind, individually, for your family, and your various communities an ..read more

FINDING OUR WAY IN UNCHARTED TIMES A sextant was an indispensable navigation tool in the early days of European ocean going discovery. Unlike Heisenberg's Theory of Uncertainty, a sextant could tell you both where you are and where you're going. Are you on or off course and what do you need to do to make necessary changes and corrections. But to do this you needed an irrefutable constant to determine where you are. For those using a sextant, that constant was the North Star. As you navigate through your Citizenship Journey, as Rebooters, or as independent citizens and voters, do you have you ..read more

ELECTIONS ARE TIMES TO TAKE ACTION We are rapidly approaching the May 29th Alberta General Election.  Elections are those rare times when political power actually shifts from the elected to the electors.  Citizens as electors, can actually make a difference up to and through the election period.  This can only happen if we are focused, purposeful, politically aware, issue informed, effectively engaged and assertively activated.  Political leaders, party operatives, advisors and volunteers plus local candidates know that at election time, they have to pay serious attentio ..read more

  sts Reboot Alberta Ken Chapman  · lt11Scph16n9urmed072199ci2  ·  THOUGHTS ON A BY-ELECTION There will be lots of chattering-class speculative and extrapolative commentary on the consequences for the UCP and Jason Kenney over the Brian Jean victory in the Fort McMurray Lac La Biche By-election. Media and partisans will have a lots of click-bait baises to feed. WHERE ARE WE NOW? I see today as a new Baseline for Alberta to measure our progress in our economy and our society, and how we will now see ourselves al Albertans. I see the bye ..read more

What's Going on in Alberta? First a Disclaimer: Angus Reid Institute does good work when it runs surveys.  They are far from perfect because there is no assured randomization in the sampling as they use online panels for responses.  That said, their poll results are “true” for those who answered the survey.  But be careful in extrapolating any poll result in Canada as representative of the hearts and minds of your fellow citizens.  That Said: Angus Reid recently published a Three-Part morbidly fascinating poll of Canadian's attitudes about our politics and the state of ci ..read more

The advent of American-style big, and sometimes secret donors, coming into Alberta's political culture through Political Action Committees (PAC) is not good.  The situation isn't as bad as the American model where their Supreme Court ruled that, under free speech rights, there would be no contribution restrictions and no disclosure requirements for election supports and spending.  However what we have for rules regarding PAC contributions is far from ideal for a health for democracy or to assure trust in our political parties and politicians and fairness in our electoral processes ..read more

As part of my work with GO Productivity I have been all over Alberta conducting workshops on the impact and implications of disruptive and emerging technologies on small and mid-sized businesses.  Key questions we canvassed participants on was around the changing skills needed to work in a digitized and automated economy.  While many existing routine and even analytical jobs in professions like law and medicine will be lost or changed, others will be created.  There is definitely a “skills revolution” happening.  It’s in early stages but it has traction and is gaining mom ..read more