social issues – Growth and Grind

06Jun 2019 by Matt Edwards No Comments

Progress comes through failure

‪Success and progress in society come about through failure and regression. It’s hard and it’s scary. I’ve gotten angry and I’ve had my hope flicker. But then I’m reminded how much good we’re doing in the world because of the people I’m with everyday.‬ Parents, teachers, friends, and colleagues can have more impact in a person’s life than words written on a piece of paper.‬ Community and connection hold great and lasting power. It is how we overcome intolerance, inequity, and injustice.‬ Legislating power by the mean, intolerant people looking to divide us is temporary.‬ ‪Though it doesn’t feel that way when I see the treatment of young workers, the LGBTQ2+ community, the environment, education, and surely more groups who will be impacted‬. But we will overcome. We have a…

21Apr 2019 by Matt Edwards No Comments

Statement of facts

In the coming Canadian federal election, expect promises to fix “all the problems” but few details that stand up to scrutiny. I believe it’s reasonable to expect parties to demonstrate policy impacts using facts, math, and modelling. (more…)

12Apr 2019 by Matt Edwards No Comments

Your views and values show up everywhere

With increasing pace, I’ve seen more people use their voices online to stand up for what they believe is right and participate in fierce conversation and debate. I’ve also seen a shift in organizations' behaviour in response to the expectations of consumers that companies will interact online, speak up on issues, and make business decisions that are rooted in values that align with those of their customers. These trends have me thinking about the challenges individuals and organizations face in how they participate in the social and political climate of today. One particular challenge is around corporate social media policies that strive to find the right balance of influence over how employees engage online, and individuals who are asserting themselves when they feel those policies go too far. Seeing it…

01Oct 2017 by Matt Edwards No Comments

Greatness cannot be undone by one person

My heart and prayers go to the families affected by the events of last night in Edmonton. As more of the story unfolds and I read comments and reactions, I’m reminded how great our city is and know this cannot be undone by any one person. Life continues and our communities thrive because we refuse to succumb to fear and hatred. We will always be stronger together.

15Jul 2014 by Matt Edwards 3 Comments

A Vibrant, Thriving Community

My family bought in Windermere fully aware of the mix of residential and commercial spaces and I for one am very much looking forward to seeing how our community transforms in the coming years. Some of the residents in this subdivision are quite active (and vocal on social media) in their objections to businesses in the community or, at least, the types of businesses. For instance: no bars, few or no big box/chain stores, and an emphasis on local businesses and boutique-style shoppes. We've received several notices in our mailbox about proposed re-zoning and amendments to the proposals, most recently the explicit exclusion of a bar/pub-style establishment. How idyllic and narrow-minded. I posted my thoughts in the Facebook community group and also wanted to publish here since it can be hard to eliminate the noise from the messages in those groups. These are my (expanded upon)…

16Sep 2009 by Matt Edwards No Comments

How are the children?

My dad wrote a letter to the Edmonton Journal which was published on September 15, 2009. I'm republishing it here because I couldn't agree more with what he's said - nice work, Dad! The Masai tribe in Africa was considered to be one of the most fearsome and intelligent. Their traditional greeting was, "Kasserian ingera" which means, "and how are the children?" Even warriors without children would reply, "All the children are well," meaning that their priorities of caring for the young and maintaining their society were in place. (more…)

18May 2009 by Matt Edwards No Comments

Treating A Symptom Does Not Solve The Problem

There have been stories in the news recently about a teenage girl overdosing on ecstacy at a West Edmonton Mall Rock 'n' Ride and the mall's solution is to stop having these events. While it does remove the problem from the purview of West Edmonton Mall, it doesn't address the deeper issue: the fact that people at younger and younger ages are involved in the use of drugs and alcohol. I'm not going to preach teenage abstinence towards sex, drugs, and alcohol; it's been shown countless times that this kind of approach doesn't work. What I will suggest is that we look at treating the root cause of the problems we're facing instead of finding various band-aids to treat the symptoms. I would hope that the people at West Edmonton…