Return to Lakeland

I've been back 'in the field' living and working in (and around) Cold Lake for the last three and a half weeks. This entails meeting and interviewing new people and reconnecting with a few folks that I met when I came to stay last Fall. With this latter group, I'm sharing updates on the progress of this project and I wanted to share a few of these points here, as well.

To date, I've had the pleasure of interviewing 31 individuals living in the Cold Lake, Bonnyville, and St. Paul area. I've also spoken to another 12 individuals who work in the energy sector in Calgary, Edmonton, Fort Mac, or other spaces. I've also had a lot of fun designing and facilitating a hands-on workshop on the future of energy for a group (20+) of young students in Cold Lake and hope to take the show (i.e., the workshop) on the road to other local students.

The majority of individuals I've spoken with are of working age, meaning they fall within the 20 - 65 year age category. However, I've made plans to include as many youth as possible seeing as these are the individuals who will have to live with the decisions we're making now, about the future of energy. I've also taken steps to connect with retired (65+) folks who have deep knowledge and experience in the ways energy and its industry change over time.

In addition to speaking with people, I hang around (sounds like tough work, right?) and attend local events. Some are directly connected to the topic of energy like the Government of Alberta's roundtable on nuclear energy. Others talk about energy in roundabout ways, like the Alberta Independence roadshow currently travelling across Lakeland, where oil and gas is used as both the financial case and the cultural shorthand (see image, which is a screenshot from a song played at the beginning of the Cold Lake event) for leaving Confederation. I also attend events that have nothing whatsoever to do with energy because you never know where conversations about its future will pop up. In essence, this is participant observation. While this field stint will end and I will return to Edmonton, I already have dates and times to return again for more data collection.

In the coming week, I'll also share something else about returning to the community. Namely, returning my findings to the community which has shared their perspectives with me. I've planned a short roadshow where I will speak and collect more feedback on my pilot findings in Cold Lake, Bonnyville, and St. Paul. Be sure to check out the News page next week to find out more. If you've participated in the research, you'll receive a special invite.