The B.C Green Party has nominated a doctorate in sustainability and local business owner, Dr. Alison Shaw, as the candidate for Kelowna-Lake Country.
Shaw has made an impact nationally and locally. She worked on the Nobel-Prize winning United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to research the relationship between scientists and policymakers. She has worked with a number of provincial departments and with numerous municipalities across the province.
She is also the founder of Flipside Sustainability, a local business that applies cutting-edge research to help public and private sector clients account for people and planet alongside budgets and profit.
“As an academic and business owner, I’ve never considered politics,” said Shaw. “That has changed. B.C. politics has been stuck in a cycle of celebrating the professional politician for too long. We have amazing natural and intellectual resources in this Province and yet too many people are struggling and communities aren’t feeling the benefits of this bounty. With my experience as a business owner and researcher, I believe I can help.”
Shaw promises to foster a Green Party that is people and evidence focused. Committed to providing smart, proven policies, her desire is to strengthen local economies and communities while protecting our environment. She is critical of policies that prioritize the interests of large corporate and union donors.
“As a mother, a business owner, and a conscientious citizen, I am concerned that the real issues facing our citizens and our communities, such as childcare, housing and the need to invigorate our local economies, are being systemically neglected,” she said. “Through working with the Greens, I hope to be part of a movement that is offering pragmatic and genuine solutions to our problems.”
Shaw has a PhD in sustainability from the University of British Columbia and is excited to engage with Kelowna-Lake Country constituents.