Adam Olsen

This summer I’ve been engaged in personal and academic inquiry. I’m examining leadership, values, and systems. As an elected official, this is important work. We benefit from critically analyzing ourselves, the groups and teams we are affiliating with, and in service of our constituents, the systems that we create, maintain, and transform.  Nowhere on the Elections BC or political party application forms for becoming an MLA does it ask about previous experience in systems thinking. It’s not a prerequisite, and yet it is the basis of our work.  However, unless there is an enlightened and clandestine conversation happening in some dark corner of the BC legislature that I am unaware of, there is no useful dialogue about how our political system, affects the myriad of critical systems we are responsible for: housing, health, education, transportation, social services, public safety services, and so on.  Consider the fact there are two applications, on…

I am deeply concerned about the health and wellbeing of the Salish Sea. The Government of Canada has proven to be incapable of managing our marine environment. It’s unlikely their intention, but together Environment Canada, Transport Canada, and Department of Fisheries and Oceans are successfully overseeing the demise of the W̱SÁNEĆ territory. Only Parks Canada has shown recently a desire for improvement, transforming episodic consultations into actual relationship building. One of the first big issues I confronted as a Councillor in the District of Central Saanich in 2008 was the multi-jurisdictional swamp that governs the waters around our communities. The province owns the land below the water, and they grant limited power to municipalities to make “land” use decisions. The federal government controls the surface and the water column. First Nations have unrealized inherent rights and jurisdiction. It’s a total mess that often results in finger-pointing and administrati…

British Columbians would be shocked to learn that the BC Conservation Service (BCCOS), a small, heavily armed service with no independent oversight, can be directly controlled by the BC NDP government through the Minister of the Environment. The Special Committee on Reforming the Police Act report submitted to the legislature last year recommending the Minister of Public Safety, Hon. Mike Farnworth fix this glaring lack of independent oversight and he has ignored it. The BCCOS website describes Conservation Officers as “highly trained, dedicated individuals responsible for enforcing 33 federal and provincial statutes, they hold Special Provincial Constable Status under the Police Act and have unrestricted appointment to enforce Acts and Statues, and protect the public and preserve the peace. Conservation Officers dress like police, drive police-like cars, use police-like tactics, carry police-like assault rifles, have all the powers of police under section 9 of the Pol…

The housing crisis has been growing since before the 2017 election. In 2018 and 2019, as part of their 30-point plan, the BC NDP tightened rules on reno/demo-victions, capped rent increases, introduced the speculation and vacancy tax, and the multi-billion dollar Housing Hub. Following that the BC NDP required local governments to keep an updated housing needs assessment, then last fall they introduced the Housing Supply Act, which gives the provincial government additional powers to ensure local governments are making decisions to create supply to meet the housing demand. This fall we are expecting legislation that overrides local zoning bylaws -- effectively turning single family zones into multi-family zones. Recently, I had an hour in budget estimates with Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon. I asked Minister Kahlon how many housing units existed in the province. I noted that the province has been collecting data and should have a sense of the profile of our housing sto…