What Matters to You – More Alberta, that’s what they are asking for

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The last time I had an article in the paper was August 25. I had touched on our “Alberta Culture” and that I was the legislator selected by CSG Midwest to take their legislative leadership training course held by the Bowhay Institute at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Time flies, it appears, so I’ll give you an overview of what I learned, which other engagements I had south of the Border representing Alberta, and who came to visit. I’ll also touch on some local items, including some of the items regarding our Alberta Bill of Rights.

What is a legislative leadership training course?

“Legislative Boot Camp” is how a colleague from North Dakota described the training he received from his local radio station in an interview. Considering he was an army officer graduate from West Point, I thought his description accurate! The training was intense, with lots of self-reflection, self-discovery, group exercises, and frankly, made to tear down some of the preconceived notions we may have had coming in so that we could grow as legislators and as people. The group was a relatively well-represented balance between Republicans and Democrats. The Canadian provinces represented were Ontario, Manitoba, and me from Alberta. We had a minimum of 15-hour days, a few a little longer when you consider the evening hour networking up to midnight on several occasions. It was a mental workout, to be sure.
It gave us opportunities to discover our personalities and how we tick and assess how others work and think; it allowed us to re-evaluate our approaches, communicate, and to be able to share ideas, collaborate, and compromise as well. To work across the aisle in a safe environment where the cameras were not rolling or the papers were waiting to catch a “Scoop”. It allowed me to make new contacts, friends, and colleagues I could reach out to, bounce ideas off and reciprocate the favor.

The next trip I was on was a speaking engagement held in Dickinson, North Dakota, at the Ports to Plains Alliance AGM. Ports to Plains is a group based out of Texas, and they are looking to connect Mexico through Texas, the Midwest, up to the northern border through North Dakota and Montana. For us, that means our Wild Horse crossing, the Veterans Highway, and Fort McMurray. Their president asked me to speak about our work on the economic corridors and the concept of Fortress North America. It was extremely well received and led to several follow-up discussions with a number of state representatives and folks from Mexico.

I was then off from North Dakota to Tulsa, Oklahoma, to represent Alberta at the Energy Council. This group comprises energy-producing states, as well as the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. We are affiliate members due to the organizational structure and when the council was formed to prevent any foreign entities (Canada) from directly influencing USA energy / environmental policy. I can tell you well; however, we are greatly respected and welcomed for full participation in the meetings and the votes. There was even a “Canadian Panel” in one of the afternoon sessions, chaired by our Canadian Consulate General based out of Texas, the Energy Minister DM from Ontario, and our own Washington-based Representative who heads up our USA relations team. In addition, our Minister of Affordability was included in a panel discussion about hydrogen. We were well represented! Outcomes include a special project with several states and us to work on some common challenges and share information between our universities and industry. I was happy to be approached by several senators to see if I was interested and to be able to help them with this.

Follow-up on my 2023 trip to Germany

Last October, I was asked to attend a 9-day exchange in Germany, funded and hosted by the German government, to view their energy transition. I was engaged and vocal about several items and approaches they took that would not work here. In addition, I shared some of the approaches we were taking, and I am looking for opportunities to share ideas and have them come to Alberta and see firsthand what we are working on, what path we are taking, and looking to help them as well. A small delegation took us up on that offer and came over to meet before Christmas last year. This summer, a second delegation, through the same project that had several USA senators, a fellow MLA, and myself meet with them in Germany, took me up on my invitations to come here.

We acted as hosts, and I was thrilled to chair a stakeholder round table discussion for several hours to discuss what we are doing here in Alberta. The conversations were straightforward, and I found that when the German delegates had a chance to meet with us directly in our backyard, they had a different perspective. It opened doors to conversations and led to an appreciation that although we have differing approaches, we seek to solve common problems. It was also very encouraging to hear firsthand from a number of German corporations who want to make significant long-term investments in our province because they also see our advantages. The outcome will be an annual visit from the German delegation, and we will have quarterly working meetings to ensure we are engaged and look for opportunities for sub-national agreements between Alberta and the German States.

I know I have said it before, but it can never be understated that the results are simply amazing when we tell our own story firsthand. People can see for themselves that we are the real deal. We have been vilified on several files for years, wrongly. It is extremely well received when we are open and honest, discussing some of our failings, solutions, and aspirations. You can’t fake authenticity, and it shows that people genuinely want to work with us, trade with us, and have closer ties with us. It’s not staged when USA senators send me pictures of them wearing my ballcap out in their constituencies. It is out of friendship and respect. When foreign dignitaries hang local artists’ paintings on the wall of their offices back home, they genuinely want a little piece of Alberta with them and a view to remember us by. I ask you to be you, to be genuine, and to be an ambassador for our province in your own right. Far too many want to take a run at us for who we are and what we stand for, but I can tell you full well that the folks I’ve met want more Alberta in their lives, not less.

Last, but not in the least

With that in mind, we are going to be modernizing or updating the Alberta Bill of Rights. Over the summer, consultations took place, and a task force led by our MLA out of Red Deer heard from many Albertans directly and stakeholders as to what they thought should be included in our Bill of Rights. I highly recommend the Premier’s update on this subject if you have not seen it. It is timely and topical, covering people’s freedoms of choice, property rights, and firearms ownership. The bill will be introduced in the house this fall, and we can’t go into any fulsome details until that happens, but I can tell you full well from what I’ve been able to see so far in regard to a policy, I am very proud of the work to date, and will be very happy to support this in the house.

I hope that you have a great week. Again, I’m sorry for the gap in the articles. I hope to see you out and about before we head back into session. I want to hear what matters to you so that when I am in there, giving speeches, debating, and voting on laws, I can be as effective as possible as your MLA.

Stay strong, Stay Free. And I’ll continue to care about “what matters to you”!

Sincerely,

Shane Getson