Doug's Blog

This Sunday I leave for Washington, DC for a few days for a conference on American agricultural transportation and their related industries.  Some of you may know how hard I, and my colleague, Len Mitzel, have worked on supporting the growth of the Ports to Plains Corridor and the Canamex Trial, two transportation corridors that should allow the freer flow of goods between Alberta, the American Midwest, and Mexico.  On behalf of Minister Groeneveld, and as Parliamentary Assistant to Agriculture, I am attending this meeting to help build and foster relationships and to identify American issues to further advance our cause.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of spending some time with the Ambassador of Lebanon.  It was a great meeting as we discussed trade issues, or rather, the possibility of trade growth in all types of products, but especially in Agriculture products.  Sometimes we spend too much time looking to our American cousins for trade access.  They are a huge market that historically has been easy to access.  Recent border issues however, have shown that we need to diversify as a province.  Historically easy access to a large market has made us complacent in many respects, and we haven't developed the full skill set for international trade negotiations that is standard practice in other jurisdictions.

I have heard many people complain that politicians travelling to other countries are only and always just junkets for travel.  I am sure that can occur, but I don't believe that is always the case.  It is hard for a business owner to pick up the phone and make a cold call to another business in another country in an effort to expand their market access.  It may be relatively easy to do across the border to the south, but going international is an entirely different game.  In many jurisdictions it is almost required that governments meet governments first in order to build relationships so that businesses have access.  On top of that, when trade issues arise, I believe they are more easily resolved, just as they are within the constituency, if there is a face to face relationship that has already been developed.

So whether it is a trip to Washington, DC by me, or a trip from Ottawa by the Ambassador of Lebanon, personal face to face meetings are always the place where success starts and problems are averted.

Sometimes you just have to laugh . . . at anything.  I got up this morning at 6am, just as I do most everyday and headed into the office in the Legislature for a long day.  Everyday I start off with a lot of reading and letters, all on very serious matters that require my full and immediate attention.  I have meetings with Ministers, again, over constituency or province wide matters that require immediate attention because they are of such a serious matter.  Caucus begins at 11am where we discuss deep and meaningful issues that are of the upmost urgency and importance to Albertans.  We begin session at 1:30pm with Question Period where questions and answers come fast and furious on all of the critical matters of the day and week.  More meetings at 5:30, when we adjourn from the House, over critical issues and legislation that simply must be addressed.  Finally back into the House at 7:30pm to carry on with the urgent government business that has so many Albertans watching live on the internet.  Typically a long and serious day, repleat with emergent issues, and emergencies of all kinds.

Tonight, however, as we sit in the Legislature, we got to have some fun as well.  The Leader of the Official Opposition brought forward, as his last motion in this House, a Private Members Motion that calls on the Provincial Government to make rodeo the official sport of the Province of Alberta.  It actually was a short but entertaining debate.  Most members discussed how rodeo has impacted their lives and told stories about their rodeo experiences.  The member could have brought forward a very serious motion that made some statement about him and his view on the province, but he chose to bring forward a motion that made a statement about his appreciation and understanding of Alberta and Albertans, and brought some levity to the Chamber.  I appreciated this debate.  It actually gave all members to be themselves and express themselves in a climate of non-partisianship.  So to that member, I will say thank you, on behalf of myself and those constituents who are involved in rodeo, who work on farms, and who have an appreciation for so much of what is a significant historical element of this province.  Thank you.  And thank you for bringing a little levity into such a serious job where we always handle serious issues day after day.  Sometimes we just have to laugh.  Thank you.

I am really sorry that I have been absent for a bit.  Last week was a constituency week and driving all over the country and spending time with my family wasn't very conducive to writing a regular blog, and of course, now I have so much to report.

To begin with I would like to remind all of about the interview I did with Archie McLean of the Edmonton Journal on the use of social media for communication.  The podcast is only available online and can be listened to in its entirety at www.journalexpress.com/podcast/lejoutloud/17_lej_griffiths.mp3

Well, many things have happened this week.  The second quarter estimates came out and, although they are not all roses and wine, if you were to take a moment to review the financial outlook of almost every other jurisdiction in the land you would note that ours is the rosiest of pictures in a pretty gloomy global scenario.  We know we need to keep a reign on spending and check ourselves regularly over the next couple of years, but we have more room to maneuver and capitalize on newfound opportunities than any other jurisdiction in North America.

As well we had the announcement of a change to the Royalty Review that comes into effect in January.  The New Democrats spent the day chastising us over changing our position to cater to big oil companies, but that position is simply absurd.  The rules have changed in the global marketplace, oil dropped below $50 at one point today, and I am hearing of slowdowns that are directly affecting rural Albertans and their jobs.  Of course the NDP wants to glean more money from everybody so they can take care of you, but I know that rural Albertans want to take care of themselves.  I also know, as a rural Albertan, that the changes announced are to ensure junior oil companies (not big oil) will continue to explore for plays around the province, and that keeps my neighbours and friends employed, which is much better than the government collecting more money.

So, I have a lot of catching up to do on phone calls and emails since these last two weeks I seem to have simply run from one event or meeting to another, but I will get caught up.  Tonight I am heading to Redwater to speak at a meeting with my colleague, Jeff Johnson.  Tomorrow morning I am flying with our Infrastructure and Health Ministers to Wainwright for the morning, and in the afternoon I am meeting with some brilliant minds about a video conferencing system they have designed that does not require a lot of bandwidth.

The work never ends, but it is always exciting.

I would like to begin by introducing myself. My name is Doug Griffiths and I am a politician in the Province of Alberta, which is within Canada.  I am sure you have heard about our province on the campaign trail over these many years and I am sure you realize that we are not all that bad.  Sometimes we get a little big for our britches and talk about being world leaders in everything and shaping the global situation, but in reality we are just 3.5 million people with a whole lot of resources and ingenuity that your nation might be interested in hearing about.

To begin with we are your closest neighbours and one of your biggest suppliers of energy.  Wait, I have to correct that . . . you see, we always talk about oil and gas as though it is a complete end in itself, but in reality the petroleum products we produce are used, not just for energy, but for mats and paints and all types of plastics and makeup and shoes and . . . well, the list is endless.  Now, I know your issue, or at least the issue of many of your constituents, may well be the notion that the oil produced here is 'dirty'.  Quite frankly, sir, you need to know that is not the case. 

You see, much like you do in your nation, we operate to clean up the environment from environment problems that were created before we knew better.  If you float down the Athabasca River you will see that oilsands oil is actually seeping into the river from natural sources, not from human sources, thereby causing river contamination.  As well we have all of that contaminated sand just below the surface and that could effect our very delicate water table and ground aquifers.  So much like we clean up from petroleum spills and old gas station storage tanks of the past, we are simply cleaning up the underground oil contamination left thousands of years ago by nature, and the by-product is something that your nation finds very valuable, very convenient, and very secure.  With our fantastic remediation technologies and advances we are remediating the land to prestine states that have real live roaming buffalo living a healthy natural life in native surroundings.

Now, I know that our nations might disagree with each other over some international situations, but I hope you understand that friends can sometimes disagree.  What is important is that we realize that we face fierce challenges from the rest of the world economically and so it is critical that we not let small trade disputes and issues over some cattle, or some soft wood lumber, or over electricity, or anything else like that escalate into disputes over bigger issues such as oil or natural gas.  Divided we will be open to attacks from all sides from other nations and economic blocks that would love to see North American influence wane in favour of other continental blocks.  Together we can open the borders between us and become a powerful economic block repleat with energy and food security, innovation and education like none other, and environmental stewardship practices that ensure long term prosperity.

I know you have a lot on your plate as you prepare to be sworn in, but I just wanted to say congratulations once again on a marvelous victory.  I know you will lead as you said, with a new spirit of cooperation that ensures long term success and global respect for the nation.

I am beginning to think that, not cancer, not aids, not obesity, but rather healthcare is the plague of the 21st century.  I am sitting in the Legislative Assembly listening to some discussion about the issue and I am beginning to fear that there may be no cure for this plague.  Everyone seems to have a different solution to the challenge.  The Liberals want to spend more money to keep it going, but as a colleague of mine just pointed out, how much is enough?  Healthcare spending has increased by over 10% a year for over a decade and still it’s not enough.  It grows also in its share of provincial spending every year.  When will we draw the line . . . when it accounts for 40% of the provincial budget, when it accounts for 50%, 60% or maybe we wait until it takes the entire budget and we have nothing left?

The US federal election is on tomorrow.  The Canadian federal election is still a fresh memory.  In reflecting on the impact of social media in those two elections I have to make a few comments.  Social media is a great tool for communicating, especially for communitication to the next generation that is not as inclined to buy a newspaper, or watch the news everyday at 6pm, but would rather catch their news all day, or rather catch their news when it is convenient for them.  This intergenerational band of social media-ites get information quickly when they need it, and they pass it on even faster . . . and of course, it often has a personal pitch or interpretation to it.

If you are going to use social media to get out the message and communicate I believe there are a few guidelines that should be followed, given my observations of the two elections.  First, don't jump into social media thinking that it will just happen overnight.  It takes time to build networks and adapt it into you personal priorities.  You have got to have good and meaningful and regular content or you will turn people off who experience gaps in your communitication, and you personally can't expect to just jump in because in our busy lives we often have too many things to do everyday and unless, or rather until, it is build into your life and daily duties as a priority, you will leave those big gaps that turn off the social media-ites.  Plan carefully, build up your communications and networks and work it into the fabric of your job.

Secondly, make it personal.  Putting out spins and headlines is not what social media is about.  It can be difficult to understand, but social media is about putting YOU out there, putting your personal message what you are saying, and reaching a world of people through a personal communication tool.  Those politicians and the like that hire and pay staff to 'post' all of their stuff for them lose the sense of what social media is about, and that turns off social media-ites too.  I know it opens a person up, exposes them to criticism and ridicule, and can be a scary thing, but social media tools are not as much about posting information as they are about real communication between people.  Try to picture it as sitting down for coffee with one person to tell them where you are coming from, or your perspective on an issue, or just to tell them about your life and its challenges . . . and now picture doing that 1 million times, but all at once. 

That is what social media is for.  Real message, from person to person, regularly and meaningfully.  The power of that is incredible.  I have been working heavily on my social media skills.  It has really become integrated into my job, and my person, and I love it.  I am doing an interview with a Journal reporter this afternoon on social media and my use of it . . . but you won't be able to read it in the paper . . . you will have to go to his (Archie McClean's) site at the Journal and listen to it as a podcast.  Nothing says more than using social media to discuss social media.