Kitchen Table Talks

Last night I had the opportunity to work with ReThink Red Deer (http://www.rethinkreddeer.ca/) in coordinating and facilitating the first ever "Kitchen Table Talks" Election Forum.


This was no regular candidates forum. Instead of the usual panel / debate, yes and no questioning that is typical of an election forum ReThink Red Deer came up with a new and innovative way to engage citizens and candidates.

I met with Lorne Daniel several weeks ago to figure out what this event might look like and for a first time I must say I was pretty impressed at the outcome of the evening. Although I have seen this format used for other purposes I have never seen it used in this capacity. It was an amazing way for candidates to really hear what people think. The Advocate did a great piece on the event. The link is posted above....

Regardless of the topic that each table had to discuss, I noticed that the common thread that each facilitator shared at the end of the evening was that there is a strong need to come up with new and innovative ways to engage the public. Not just because it's part of policy but because citizens need to be engaged ... not just sometime.. but ALL THE TIME. Open houses are not effective anymore. I know it's cliche to say but people are too busy and evenings are not good for anyone with a family.

It was great to be apart of an "innovative" way to engage people of all ages in who they should elect for Red Deer's next council. Facilitation is my passion so to be apart of something like this was a no brainer... mix in my love of politics and the political process I was happier than a pig in..... well you know. Not only did I get to facilitate, I got to meet some amazing voters and candidates and that has helped me to figure out who I will vote for and who I will NOT be voting for. So far I have settled on 5 candidates that I am confident on voting for but still need to do a little more research to get 3 more.

A big thanks to everyone that participated in Election ReThink and I look forward to seeing you all on Oct. 18.