The City of Saint John is in the middle of a public engagement process called “Community Conversations” – senior city staff and the councillors for each ward host town hall-style meetings where residents can air their concerns and share their ideas to improve our community. Today I attended one of the Ward 1 (West Saint John) meetings and was impressed on a number of fronts.
Congratulations to city staff for running a very well organized meeting. I’ve been involved in similar events and it can be hard to keep such a group focused and on schedule, not to mention be sure that everyone at least has the opportunity to be heard. Their challenge when this process is complete will be to ensure the proper follow-up occurs.
I was also pleased to see such an engaged group of residents show up on a Sunday afternoon – too often I think people take the easy road of sitting back and griping about issues rather than trying to take action. These residents were involved, had obviously thought about their needs, and you better believe they’ll be following up on the items discussed!
Last but definitely not least, I met a teen by the name of Erin who to me represents everything that’s great about this community. All too often youth can feel neglected and ignored, and as a result most choose not to participate in “the process” or try to affect change. Yet here was Erin, giving up her Sunday afternoon to speak out about issues that concerned her, and doing it very well I might add.
And how does she represent the Saint John Community? Simple – like many of our residents she actively took part, was listened too by the people who can make things happen, and will very likely have a positive impact when it’s all said and done. I sincerely hope she keeps it up, and inspires more like her to get involved.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Monday, October 6, 2008
Federal Election - what happened to long term planning?
With only a week and a day to the federal election I feel that the political junky in me has been very well behaved. I have purposefully avoided using this forum to rant and rave like I do at home and with friends… but something happened this morning that made me decide to break my fast.
I ran into a couple of neighbours on my walk to work this morning who were deeply involved in a debate over which party/leader/local MP had done the most for our riding since the last election. Although I don’t know these two individuals that well, I do have a lot of respect for their intelligence and ability to think for themselves. Which is why I was a little surprised at the narrow focus of the conversation – they were only discussing what had occurred since the last election, and we all know how long ago that was.
Many people fault corporations for their short-sighted, immediate-term thinking based almost exclusively on quarterly shareholder returns. The big players in HR consulting all agree that this kind of short-term focus is not only unhealthy for the organization as a whole, but has a definite and proven negative trickle-down affect on everything from the frontline workers to the consumer and therefore eventually the shareholder.
If we’ve really accepted that this philosophy of immediacy is so bad for business, then what on earth makes us think it would be good for the country? Let’s all take a deep breath and agree that no matter where you land on the political spectrum, the issues of the environment, the economy, education, health care, immigration, etc. have long-term impact, were long-term in development and are long-term in the solving. I humbly suggest that this time around we vote based on which party/leader/local MP we believe has the soundest long-term strategies around the issues we care about, and the conviction to follow-through in the long run.
Oh yeah, and while I'm at it I can't resist saying - if you choose not to vote I choose not to hear your complaints.
I ran into a couple of neighbours on my walk to work this morning who were deeply involved in a debate over which party/leader/local MP had done the most for our riding since the last election. Although I don’t know these two individuals that well, I do have a lot of respect for their intelligence and ability to think for themselves. Which is why I was a little surprised at the narrow focus of the conversation – they were only discussing what had occurred since the last election, and we all know how long ago that was.
Many people fault corporations for their short-sighted, immediate-term thinking based almost exclusively on quarterly shareholder returns. The big players in HR consulting all agree that this kind of short-term focus is not only unhealthy for the organization as a whole, but has a definite and proven negative trickle-down affect on everything from the frontline workers to the consumer and therefore eventually the shareholder.
If we’ve really accepted that this philosophy of immediacy is so bad for business, then what on earth makes us think it would be good for the country? Let’s all take a deep breath and agree that no matter where you land on the political spectrum, the issues of the environment, the economy, education, health care, immigration, etc. have long-term impact, were long-term in development and are long-term in the solving. I humbly suggest that this time around we vote based on which party/leader/local MP we believe has the soundest long-term strategies around the issues we care about, and the conviction to follow-through in the long run.
Oh yeah, and while I'm at it I can't resist saying - if you choose not to vote I choose not to hear your complaints.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
An Intimate Evening with Elton
Last night my partner and I went to see Elton John. Yes, Sir Elton himself visited the Port City yesterday and played an intimate little concert at Harbour Station – just us, Elton and ten thousand other excited fans loaded down with cell phones, digital cameras, blackberries and anything else that would take a picture and/or glow in the dark.
Saint John was one of the many stops on his latest tour. The music was good, his piano playing was fantastic, but for me the buzz in Harbour Station was the best part.
The great thing about the venue is that it’s large enough to fit a healthy crowd – so you get that wonderful buzzing energy inherent in an event like this – but small enough that even the nose-bleed seats are great and you have this sense that the strangers surrounding you are actually friends and family.
Last night was a perfect example of that feeling. From time to time during the concert I “went walk-about”, a habit of mine at concerts – I don’t enjoy sitting still for too long when the music’s on, and if my section isn’t dancing then… In my travels I ran into so many friendly faces and witnessed those little heart-warming moments that never get recognized (I mean you, the guy who gave up his place in the line-up to the men’s room for an elderly gentleman who obviously needed the break).
I also discovered the best section of Elton fans – who of course were relegated to the nose-bleed seats furthest from the stage. When I wandered into their section looking for a good photo op they invited me to stay and enjoy the party with them, and had it not been for my poor hubby left sitting by himself I definitely would have!
All in all a great night of entertainment and a really wonderful example of why I think the Saint John Community is the best place to live – our natural sense of community and desire to be neighbourly to everyone.
Saint John was one of the many stops on his latest tour. The music was good, his piano playing was fantastic, but for me the buzz in Harbour Station was the best part.
The great thing about the venue is that it’s large enough to fit a healthy crowd – so you get that wonderful buzzing energy inherent in an event like this – but small enough that even the nose-bleed seats are great and you have this sense that the strangers surrounding you are actually friends and family.
Last night was a perfect example of that feeling. From time to time during the concert I “went walk-about”, a habit of mine at concerts – I don’t enjoy sitting still for too long when the music’s on, and if my section isn’t dancing then… In my travels I ran into so many friendly faces and witnessed those little heart-warming moments that never get recognized (I mean you, the guy who gave up his place in the line-up to the men’s room for an elderly gentleman who obviously needed the break).
I also discovered the best section of Elton fans – who of course were relegated to the nose-bleed seats furthest from the stage. When I wandered into their section looking for a good photo op they invited me to stay and enjoy the party with them, and had it not been for my poor hubby left sitting by himself I definitely would have!
All in all a great night of entertainment and a really wonderful example of why I think the Saint John Community is the best place to live – our natural sense of community and desire to be neighbourly to everyone.
Saint John makes its Video Debut
Last Friday Enterprise Saint John and the Life on Your Terms team, in partnership with Alpine Lager, hosted the premiere party for the Chris Cummings music video Welcome Back!. About 1,500 people from the Saint John Community joined us to celebrate the accomplishment, enjoy some entertainment from Chris and be the first in the world to see the video.
The crowd was absolutely wonderful – so supportive of the project and the local team that put it together, and so excited to see the finished piece and celebrate with Chris. Although things were a bit hectic backstage I was able to sneak away a few times to check out the scene, and saw residents of all ages and backgrounds had turned out (the little kids whizzing around the dance floor may have been my favourite).
So what can you expect next? Look for the video to be aired on CMT in the next couple of weeks (I’ll try to keep you posted as we receive more details) and if you like it and/or you want to help promote our community vote for the video on count down shows and request it as much as possible! The more requests and votes it receives the more airplay, and the more airplay the more face time the rest of the country gets to have with Saint John.
You can also submit a story in our contest on Life on Your Terms and win an evening for you and nine friends with Chris Cummings in the Moosehead Suite of Harbour Station, compliments of Alpine Lager.
The crowd was absolutely wonderful – so supportive of the project and the local team that put it together, and so excited to see the finished piece and celebrate with Chris. Although things were a bit hectic backstage I was able to sneak away a few times to check out the scene, and saw residents of all ages and backgrounds had turned out (the little kids whizzing around the dance floor may have been my favourite).
So what can you expect next? Look for the video to be aired on CMT in the next couple of weeks (I’ll try to keep you posted as we receive more details) and if you like it and/or you want to help promote our community vote for the video on count down shows and request it as much as possible! The more requests and votes it receives the more airplay, and the more airplay the more face time the rest of the country gets to have with Saint John.
You can also submit a story in our contest on Life on Your Terms and win an evening for you and nine friends with Chris Cummings in the Moosehead Suite of Harbour Station, compliments of Alpine Lager.
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