Are we “an argument surrounded by water?” This description was originally meant to be a criticism, but – characteristically of Salt Springers – it’s been adopted as a whimsical badge of honour and cover to play out our oppositional tendencies as good fun.
But lately, some of Salt Spring’s arguments aren’t that productive. If you’ve spent any time in the social media groups, or even the letters section of the Driftwood, you’ll have seen it. Often those speaking (typing) are highly intelligent and well-informed, but the ill will in the writing undercuts what would otherwise be productive dialogue, slows down the possibility for solving our very real island challenges, and hurts the people who are targeted.
That’s why ASK Salt Spring has decided to take up the subject of how we talk to each other at the Friday September 11th 11-1 gathering at the SIMS classroom next to the Boardroom. Salt Springers Susanna Haas Lyons and David Norget, both experts in facilitating healthy community dialogue, will lead what we hope will be a frank, and open but respectful conversation about how we all can do better, especially in light of the upcoming local election on October 17th. (Please vote!)
We were partly inspired by the April Fulford Hall screening of the documentary 9/11: Reclaiming Ground Zero, which featured Carolyn Lukensmeyer, former Executive Director of the National Institute for Civil Discourse, designer of the civic process featured in the documentary and one of Susanna’s mentors.
If you didn’t get a chance to see it, the film brilliantly depicts how 5,000 New Yorkers came together in an enormous town hall to figure out how to move forward. Instead of the expected chaos and divisiveness, this audacious experiment resulted in collaboration and cooperation, modeling a democracy that works. If you’d like to watch the film before our gathering, it has just been made available and you can rent it for $7 from Prime Video Canada by clicking this link:
https://www.primevideo.com/region/na/detail/0PBZSFJ37L4RNXZ7JURBWVV6CP
The film is a great example of how democracy can work, and that seems like something Salt Springers all over the political spectrum want for our community. We are lucky to have a great variety of folks stepping forward to run for our local offices in the October 17, 2026 election. Of course we want them to hear our concerns, understand our priorities, and work with us toward shared solutions. But, in order for them to hear us, we need to speak to them with respect even if we disagree.
As we face the upcoming local election and a future with critical challenges, we hope you join this important conversation. We might even get to the popular subject of Community Assemblies as a new mechanism of governance! Let’s make this gathering an example of who we are – a community not afraid to disagree but also committed to exploring the issues in a warm, collegial conversation that assumes the best of others. See you there!
