Strengths

Business experience

• Co-founded a retail and consulting business which employed 60 full time personnel and achieved $19 million in annual revenue during my leadership
  • The company was based on principles of openness, community, responsibility and personal and collective benefit for working hard
  • We opened our books to employees and taught them how to read the financial statements
  • We were profitable from the beginning and as we did better, our employees did better
• The business was recognized as successful in the community
  • Won the 1989 Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Small Business Owner of the Year award
  • Listed amongst the 50 fastest growing companies in Alberta in 1988 and 1989 in Alberta Business magazine

Entrepreneurship

• Recognized in Edmonton as a successful woman entrepreneur
• Appointed to the founding board of the Alberta Women’s Enterprise Initiative Association, a Federal government program designed to assist women in starting successful businesses & getting start up and operating loans
• Offered courses in how to establish and run a successful small owner-operated business
• Mentored women entrepreneurs

Public Education

• I taught public school for 6 years – grades 8 & 9 English and Social Studies and Grade 9 Perspectives for Living with Edmonton Public Schools
• I understand the demands placed on a classroom teacher and the inherent stress in this system
• I believe well-funded, adaptive public schools are the cornerstone of a healthy community

Public Health

• For 6 years, I was a mental health consultant for the Edmonton Local Board of Health
• Our mandate was to improve the mental health of the City of Edmonton
• We functioned from a health promotion, disease prevention model
• I provided consultation to organizations in health, social service and education on building effective work teams
• I counselled 2 to 3 families a week

Adult Education

• I taught courses in communication skills, self esteem, problem solving, counselling skills and consultation skills for the Faculty of Extension, University of Alberta
• I taught evening courses in communication skills and self esteem for the Early Child Care Program at Grant McEwen Community College in 1984 & 1985

Psychologist in Private Practice

• I was chartered as a psychologist in Alberta from 1977 to 1997
• I had a small private counselling practice of individuals, couples and families from 1983 to 1997
• My Ph.D. dissertation assessed the impact of family counselling on family interaction patterns and on the self esteem of individual family members

Environmental studies

• I have completed 7 courses toward a Diploma in the Restoration of Natural Systems at the University of Victoria
• Courses completed include: Principles and Concepts of Ecological Restoration; Biodiversity and Conservation Biology; Ethical, Legal and Policy Aspects of Ecological Restoration; Ecosystems of BC, Canada and the World; Traditional Systems of Land and Resource Management; Nature by Design; and Restoring Home Place

Community Service

• I am on the Parks and Recreation Commission, the Theatre Advisory Committee, and the Heritage Advisory Committee for the Township of Esquimalt
• I am a member of the Sexual Assault Response Team with the Victoria Women’s Sexual Assault Centre
• Previously, I volunteered for the Sierra Club, the Victoria Aids Respite Care Society and the Alternatives to Violence Project at William Head Penitentiary
• I ran for the Green Party of Canada in the federal election of June 2004 and received the 5th highest vote total amongst the 308 Green Party Candidates across Canada

Character

• I am a good listener and a creative problem solver
• I practice collaborative and consensus-based decision making
• I am an action oriented person, a hard worker and I do what I say I will do
• I am honourable, responsible and principled
• I am informed about global, national, provincial, regional and local issues
• I believe in social justice, environmental stewardship and good governance

Self Care

• I practice yoga almost every day
• I dance twice a week at Lynda Raino’s studio
• I walk or ride my bike for 45 minutes almost every day
• I play the piano each day
• I like to garden and have a small vegetable garden, a native plant garden and the rest of the lot is planted in drought resistant, low-maintenance perennials and shrubs
• I eat organic food and support local producers

Weaknesses – and what I’ll do about it

I’m somewhat, shy – it takes an effort to go up to people and introduce myself

• This is something I can and will do
• I have someone to accompany me who can make the initial connection
• I am a good listener and I get comfortable with people once the “ice is broken”
• I have chosen to surround myself with people that have this skill naturally and I am learning from them

I lose energy and get exhausted and discouraged if I stretch myself too thin

• I will do at least 20 minutes of yoga each day
• I’ll make sure I eat well, drink plenty of water and get to sleep as early as possible
• I’ll call friends for support

I’m sometimes a bit wordy in responses

• I am getting training and personal coaching on presentation skill & media relations skills
• I’ll be watching myself on video and working on my presentation skills

Opportunities

• I’m a strong candidate, smart, articulate and well qualified to be an MLA
• There is general dissatisfaction with the traditional parties – NDP & Liberal – and some are looking for a positive, practical alternative
• Environmental issues are of increasing concern to voters. People recognize the environmental connection to important issues
  • flame retardants in foods & breast milk,
  • climate change,
  • deforestation & the connection to mud slides
  • water pollution
  • species extinction
  • drought
  • impact of environmental degradation on human health – e.g. cancer clusters – e.g. childhood cancers around gas stations
• People want clean air, water and safe food free from contaminants
• The increasing price of oil, gasoline, diesel fuel, and natural gas is making people much more conscious of the importance of sustainable resources and the Green Party is a leader on this issue
• There is a general awareness and concern about corporate influence on government
• Peoples lives are becoming increasingly stressful
• Three quarters of British Columbians want Green MLAs
• People are fed up with politicians who lack vision, who fail to do what they say, who put the interests of industry, labour and party before their constituents
• A Green government would be fundamentally different and it presents the only route to a sustainable, restorative economy
• Demographic mood swinging away from traditional parties – young people are tired of old line parties, they are conservative, radical, environmental
• More and more people are ready to vote their values because strategic voting doesn’t work

Threats

• People will be encouraged to vote strategically – i.e. I really want to vote Green but I’m worried that X will get in so I’m going to vote for Y
• The campaigning may be mean spirited and negative – “they’re bad”, “they’re worse”
• BC hasn’t yet elected a Green MLA
• Other parties claim to represent environmental and sustainability concerns (but their track records do not adequately demonstrate this)

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Last modified

2005-04-07 08:35 PM