S pring 20 17 19
environment, and they've had 40 years
of experience in honing their message
and getting it out to the public at large.
In Eastern Canada, on the other
hand, there are more corporate head
o¤ices. They have a di¤erent take on
resource development, and they send
out a di¤erent message. In addition, the
First Nations in the East have signed
land treaties with government, but few
in British Columbia have done so yet.
In order to get the people in the broad
middle onside with resource development,
we need to talk to them in non-technical
terms, and to use the language of values
instead of the language of science.
So far, the environmental groups have
been better than the pro-development
side at communicating with the public.
The people on the side of resource
development need to learn from them how
to do it. Engineers and scientists need
to learn how to listen to the concerns of
the public and how to talk to them in a
way that they understand and accept.
BYNG GIRAUD
Country manager and vice-
president of corporate aŽairs,
Woodfibre LNG Limited, Squamish
Most people are rational and are able to see
the economy and the environment in terms
of costs and benefits that can be added up
and the totals compared. There is, however,
a small percentage of the population
that sees questions about resource
development in black and white, one or
the other, and those voices are the ones
that are most often heard in the media.
But the supporters of resource
development shouldn't allow themselves
to become consumed by the naysayers on
the fringe. Don't build your strategy around
responding to them. They don't want a
meaningful discussion. Instead, talk to the
fair-minded people who have legitimate
questions that should be answered.
Most people in British Columbia
and the rest of Canada are doing okay.
They are able to learn about the issues
and agree to a compromise. They're
the ones we should talk to.
Aramark.indd 1 2016-10-20 3:17 PM
James Hume / Lloyd Hume / Hector De Los Santos Toll free 1-877-942-5551 sales@eaglemapping.com
Eagle Mapping.indd 1 2017-02-02 3:19 PM
