ACE Bloggers

Grassroots Enterprises

The Importance of a Cocoon of Warmth

I think my husband must have wondered where I had spent my day because when I arrived home I was bubbling with energy. It...

Playing by the Old Rules Means Losing at a New Game

As I sat down to write this piece, I didn’t have a starting point. Heck, I didn’t even have a topic. Being good at...

Can a Skunkworks be a Solution?

Community building involves working with a variety of government departments, non-profit organizations, and businesses....

Say Goodbye to the Heroic Leader

What exactly is leadership? A number of years ago while planning a leadership retreat at Niagara College, where I worked...

Its Bad When Being a Walmart Greeter Looks Good

I love my life, I really do.  But last week, despite being blessed with a dear and loving family, fabulous friends,...

POPULUS community planning inc.

Work at scale to serve the city

In Wednesday’s post, Dynamically steering cities into the future, I reached the conclusion that it is only with feedback...

Dynamically steering cities to the future

In yesterday’s post, I reached the conclusion that the quality of the relationship between our economic life and our social...

Cities need quality feedback from habitat

A city that meets our needs pays attention to three critical relationships within the city’s habitats: between economic...

Cites: the result of our evolving interaction with our habitat

To organize ourselves to ensure our species is able to sustain itself, we need to fully contemplate the relationship we...

Phew – it’s hard work being part of our cities’ feedback system

Just over two weeks ago I wrote about my decision to slowly release my book, Nest City: The Human Drive to Thrive in...

Les Brost

Heavy Haulers

Last week I promised to take you down a new trail linking dog breeds and community leadership styles. I discovered this...

Dog’s Eye View

I have been working hard on my emerging MacBook, “The Community Leader’s Survival Guide”. The process has really...

Clarity of Signal

Have you ever been driving somewhere mountainous and wanted to listen to the radio? You are hooped, unless you have...

Accountability and Democratic Process

I’m a firm believer that the Universe gives us exactly what we need. We may not immediately “get the message”, and we...

Celebrating one of the Good Guys : Judge Sharek

Today, March 16th, 2012, is a day for celebrating the achievement of “one of the good guys” in my world. I’m blessed...

Arts & Culture with ACE

Funding now available for Alberta Culture Days!

Guess what? Funding for Alberta Arts Days is back! Well, technically - Alberta Arts Days are now called Alberta Culture...

Creating Synergy in Airdrie

Money, facilities, communication…. I wasn’t overly surprised to see these come up as priorities at a session that I...

March 8th is International Women's Day!

Did you know that March 8th is International Women’s Day? I’m ashamed to say that I didn’t. In fact, International...

Where your passion may take you...

The key is to follow your passion. That’s a lesson that I was reminded of recently after sitting down for coffee with two...

Resolved for 2012

This past December I threw down the gauntlet and challenged our province’s grassroots community leaders to make a...

ARPA Children in Nature

Children in Nature April Update

Greetings to Children in Nature Enthusiasts!This service is provided by the Alberta Recreation and Parks Association...

Children in Nature January Update

Greetings to Children in Nature Enthusiasts!This service is provided by the Alberta Recreation and Parks Association...

Children in Nature November Update

Greetings to Children in Nature Enthusiasts!This service is provided by the Alberta Recreation and Parks Association...

Children In Nature September Update

Greetings to Children in Nature Enthusiasts.This service is provided by the Alberta Recreation and Parks Association...

Children in Nature June Update

Hello all Children in Nature subscribers. This is a long one! This service is provided by the Alberta Recreation and...

Promoting Physical Activity

2012 Physical Activity Forum on Sedentary Behaviour

Upcoming Physical Activity Campaigns/Events

Motivation and Choice

Video fun

Step counts and cadence

Facilitate with Fun, Fervor and Focus!

Facilitate … like a musical arrangement!

Tempo, tone, dissonance, consonance – how do they connect with facilitation?  Several weeks ago, I had the intense...

Facilitate … around the bends in the road!

Change!  Flexibility!  Uncertainty!  These are often common experiences in facilitation processes.  I...

Facilitate … with inspiration from a Christmas Poem!

Twas the Night before the Workshop (with thanks and apologies to Clement Clarke Moore) “Twas the night before the...

Facilitate ... within someone else’s design

It’s good to get “shook up” every now and then! I normally facilitate and design discussions, meetings, and...

Facilitate … by watching, listening, participating.

I watched ... I listened ... I supported ... I participated! Is this facilitation? Yes! Last week, I was part of a...

How does your community grow?

I understand we did things differently!

Recently, ACE Cold Lake celebrated the success of their ACE project with a luncheon.  Invited guests included program...

Tis the Season - Giving Creativity

This time of year, could be quite dull if it were not for the onset of Christmas. I almost have a practical interest in the...

I am attracted to limit pushers

What is a limit pusher? Based on the context it was used the first time I heard it, the definition implies a limit...

aceval

Imagination…priceless!

As I was reading with interest the most recent ACE Newsletter, I was reminded that I had not submitted a blog for some...

we're all in it together....

At this time of harvest and with Canadian Thanksgiving fast becoming a memory, I would like to reflect on the bounty that...

Catch summer ....

Catch summer while it is here….Dare I say that things are calming down for summer? That said, we have had several...

Wasn’t that a party, Trochu ?

Yes, it was…. Their Honors, Lieutenant Governor Donald and Mrs. Ethell added a regal element to the birthday celebrations...

Trochu Has Taste!

Trochu has Taste !!…at least that’s what some 400 people were raving about after the Taste of Trochu event held at the...

Dance Debut Insights

Are you Dehydrated? Why?!

Canada’s Natural Resource:  WaterWe live in a country that is flowing with clean, nourishing water.  We have...

Creating!

Hot off the press last week was the new book by world reknowned author and healer, Louise Hays, and life coach...

Self Creation of Limitations

Sitting on my desk is a quote that I heard on a talk show a few weeks back:  "Many people are bound and held in the...

Walk the Talk

What is the most repeated phrase you say to yourself each day.  Do you look in the mirror and berate yourself for your...

Are you taking care of YOU?

For the last few weeks I have been training in new methods of delivering information about how to repair the body easily...

Pioneerleadership's Blog

Finding Space to Engage

Most people want to have a say in how decisions are made, especially if that decision impacts their lives. How do we get...

Engaging in Life or Ignoring It

“Kids,” he said, “were dying all over. And every morning you’d wake up and ask, “Where did Charlie go? And the...

Brave New World, The American Dream and Ayn Rand

Investigative journalist Amy Goodman of “Democracy Now!” headed down to the park on November 16th, where  the Occupy...

Occupy Democracy

“…the threat persists; we are not entirely rid of it. And against injustice, our anger remains intact. Indeed the...

Voices We Listen to… (or not)

Understanding the significance of the many voices we hear each day is a tremendous challenge. How do we decide what to pay...

Connecting 4excellence

Evidence

that working out at work works!Check out this CBC interview working out at work and see how tread mill desks in the...

How to WOW

Recently I was up in Grande Prairie and did a keynote for their WOWposium. It was on how to give exceptional customer...

How to Start Taking Action: People and Politics

There are many ways to start taking action. Here's one example:I was at a gathering this week and we were put into pods,...

My Kind of Research

"Talking explores history. Doing rewrites it." - National Geographic MagazineThat is a revolutionary...

Thank you!

Please and Thank you are things we learn to say when we're growing up. Parents remind their kids to thank others and we're...

........... Service Excellence

Service Excellence November 2011 Update

How do we assess our organizational capacity? Do our stakeholders have confidence in the effectiveness of the recreation...

June Service Excellence Program UPDATE

UPDATEWhat constitutes "Service Excellence" for those who deliver parks and recreation services? ARPA is well on the way to...

Striving for Excellence - Guest Blog

It might not sound like a big deal to some, but I recently did my first interview via Skype. I had to push myself to get...

The Experts are Speaking

Five expert panels have been working diligently to critique and enhance the Service Excellence Framework: one panel for...

Expert Panel Reviews About to Begin

The proposed Service Excellence Framework proposes core organizational competencies in five module areas: programs,...

Letisha McFall

Who Makes the Rules Anyway?

Last Sunday was the perfect fall day - warm sun, stunning tree colour, blue sky.  A perfect Alberta Day.  As I...

Rural Towns are my Cup of Tea

I love to visit Alberta communities especially on market day or when there is a special event being sponsored by the town...

A Community Waltz

I took dancing lessons for a number of years. When I close my eyes I  can still feel the "to and fro" of the music as...

Insights

Community Planning - Alberta Aboriginal Sport and Recreation Resource Manual

“When you see a new trail, or a footprint you do not know. Follow it to the point of knowing”- Uncheedah-Core Beliefs...

13 Ways To Kill Your Community

“13 Ways to Kill Your Community” – Doug Griffiths MLA Battle River – Wainwright Constituency and Kelly Clemmer,...

Proven Leadership

Proven leadership??!! How often have we heard this term over the past several weeks? Obviously it must be that time...

Volunteer Burnout or is Volunteer Bashout?

In the volunteer world we often contribute volunteers leaving a program to something we call volunteer burnout. But is it...

Building Community Capacity

From April 30 - May 1, 2010 the Indigenous Sport Council (Alberta) hosted their Sport and Recreation Conference. The...

Emerging Leaders Blog of the Week

Partnerships, Parties and Players

More from Mount Royal, here are our last three bloggers from the Recreation and Community Development class. What an...

Diverse Communities of University Students

There's diversity in all communities, the students of Mount Royal University are no exception. From snowboarding and the...

Something to talk about

Read Tim Thurston's blogs on a very unique community, one that doesn't seem to have an identity:...

Keep your eyes peeled

on these bloggers. Join these Mount Royal University leaders making a difference in their communities as each share their...

What are emerging leaders saying about community development?

This week five Mount Royal University students are featured bloggers. They talk about communities they're a part of, how...

View From the Hill

Becoming a Community Builder: Part 6

A great woman once said: “It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan.” Summer is upon us and so too is the...

Becoming a Community Builder: Part 5

Well it’s that time of year…Holiday weekend wrapping up, summer in view, Recreation and Parks month just a little while...

Becoming a Community Builder: Part 4

Spring is upon us and we are all getting ready for all that it means in the Recreation and Parks/Quality of Life...

Becoming a Community Builder: Part 3

Becoming a Community Builder, “Big Picture Thinking” is the third of six webcasts based on community leadership...

March Webcast-Big Picture Thinking

Becoming a Community Builder, “Big Picture Thinking”. Capra said that for leaders to be effective today, they needed...

Foresight

Professional Competencies and TrendScanning

ACE Communities has developed a leadership competency framework that places emphasis on vision, big picture thinking,...

Arts in the US - 1998 to 2007

'Americans for the Arts' has just produced the National Arts Index - an annual measure of the health and vitality of the...

Potential for Permanent Shift in Tourist Behaviour

The UN World Tourism Organization expects global tourism to rebound strongly after "one of the most difficult years", the...

The Great Outdoor Recreation Debate

Over the past couple of decades, we have concluded that demand for outdoor recreation will remain high and more stable that...

Fitness Predictions for 2010 - What's Hot

It's that time of year again - when leadership organizations in the fitness world make their predictions for the upcoming...