The writ was dropped on Tuesday morning, so we are going to be in full campaign mode.  With only 28 days to campaign, it will be fast and furious!  For my volunteers – I thank you and apologize to you now – none of you have ever worked side by side with me before, and as anyone that has worked with me can attest to -- HANG ON TO YOUR HATS! 

This has been a busy week.   On Tuesday, I joined party leader, Stephen Mandel, as well as several of our Calgary Alberta Party candidates for a round-table discussion with The Community Housing Affordability Collective.  While it may seem counterintuitive for the Banff-Kananaskis candidate to attend a Calgary based meeting, I believe that we often get so caught up in our own ‘bubble’ we begin to experience ‘group think’ so I wanted to have a better understanding of how the collective approach worked, who was involved, and how it could possibly be effective in the Bow Corridor.  I do think there is opportunity.  We reviewed the housing continuum during the meeting, and the importance of ensuring there is housing available at every level.  When I asked where in the continuum the greatest lack of appropriate housing existed, it was in affordable rental housing (as opposed to market rental housing); the Bow Valley problem is not unique.

On Wednesday, I attended the Tourism Canmore Kananaskis strategic plan session.  Having served as a board member and executive committee member of the organization, I wanted to gain an understanding of the direction the organization was taking.  There was a great deal of respectful dialogue with the 100 plus people in attendance and I look forward to seeing the final strategic plan as Canmore is the largest population centre within the Banff-Kananaskis constituency.

Friday was the first forum for all three candidates with CYAN (Canmore Young Adult Network) hosting the Move Mountains Festival.  It was a great evening, and extremely well organized.  Essentially, each candidate had opportunity to speak for about 15 minutes with the rest of the evening being a networking opportunity.  There were local musicians, a cash bar, pizza, it was a fantastic way to get to know the candidates.  To listen to my full speech and my answers to questions around livability for young adults in Canmore, food security and health,  click here  We have some very passionate people in Canmore, and I had conversations ranging from underuse of available medical equipment to providing safe highways crossing for wildlife and pedestrians. 

Over the weekend we spent time door-knocking on the east side of the constituency.  It is always a good reminder that small communities such as Red Wood Meadows are often forgotten about in many ways from community grant and fundraising opportunities to easy access to medical care.  We also attended the Alberta Party rally in Calgary on Saturday afternoon.  I always enjoy spending time with my fellow Alberta Party candidates! With a focus on the future in a positive, collaborative way, we are FIERCELY ALBERTAN!