Local Government & Leadership on Social Issues: a Conversation with Doug Hillian

Image by hanspetermeyer.ca via Flickr

Recently, one of the young guys on Courtenay City Council got drafted into the big leagues (yep, the farm club system does work folks; start your political career in your town, village, city, or regional district and, with luck, you'll be noticed by the scouts and head for bigger money, more prestige, and a little more power... maybe). That means we're going to have a by-election this fall. November 7, 2009. That's a Saturday. Enough time in the day to get down to the local polling station and cast a ballot.

I've said it before (and I'll keep saying it): local government may be the minor leagues of political life, but it's where the sustainability challenge gets real, fast. One of my mentors, a former mayor of Nanaimo, called local government the "Hell's Kitchen of Sustainability." So it should mean something to all of us who care about the quality of life in Courtenay, this by-election.

One of the people who's tossed his "hat into the ring" (yes, it's a very tired cliché, and if you watch the interview you'll actually hear me say it as I grope for unscripted words to say) is Doug Hillian. I like Doug. He's a serious guy when it comes to community. He also knows how to play (watch him on Saturday mornings on the soccer pitch). I think he's got some things to offer our town, and I thought it would be interesting to video some little chats on various topics. Here's our first convo, from Studio Willemar...



Doug Hillian talks to hanspetermeyer about local government and leadership from hanspetermeyer on Vimeo.

See you at the polling booth! And stay tuned, Doug and I will be doing this chat on a more-or-less weekly basis. Got some questions for him? Leave them in the "comment" box below.

hpm

Related articles 

• Who Get's to Cook in the Hell's Kitchen of Sustainability? (hanspetermeyer.com)
• Comox Valley Quality of Life Report 2004 - Indicators for Status Quo or for Sustainability? (hanspetermeyer.blogspot.com)
• Climate Change Action Charter and Community Sustainability in a Dollars and Cents Kind of World (communitytransition.blogspot.com)