Geoff Krause
Are you associated with or running as part of a slate? If so, which one?
No
Do you live in the municipality where you are running, and if so, for how long? If not, what is your connection to that community?
Yes- I have lived in Brentwood Bay since 2000
What is your occupation, and for how long?
I have been a Registered Professional Biologist since the mid-1990’s and have been working as Executive Director of the Pacific Urchin Harvesters Association since 2004 and the Pacific Sea Cucumber Harvesters Association since 2012. In this capacity, I have been exploring and reporting on international market (including general social) conditions and trends, liaising with Fisheries and Oceans Canada on fisheries management matters and representing them and other commercial fishermen in discussions with various other participants in the North Shelf BioRegion Marine Protected Area Network development process since 2018.
Tell us about your previous elected and/or community experience. (80-100 words)
This is the first time I have run for any kind of public office. My first substantial community experience was as member at large on the committee overseeing the Integrated Stormwater Planning process in 2008-09. I joined the local Brentwood Bay Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue station in 2009 and was soon a coxswain and then the Station Leader, roles I continue to hold. I have also been sitting on the Board of the Saanich Inlet Protection Society for the past couple of years where I am getting broader exposure to the issues we face.
Why are you running? What’s your motivation? (80-100 words)
No level of government has as much impact on our lives as the local municipal level and I see opportunities for local sustainability initiatives. We are facing some contentious issues in Central Saanich and it strikes me that lines of communication between groups that see themselves as competing are complicating the search for solutions. From what I can tell most everyone here values the clean, safe friendly small-town environment and “vibe” and feel it is worth preserving. I believe informed and honest dialogue coupled with a minimum of adversarial posturing can only help and want to contribute.
What are your top three issues? (80-100 words)
Increased housing, industrial and small business development but with more focus on strengthening community resilience to external shocks (eg. extreme weather). Adopting proven design principles that encourage local social interactions and limit impacts like increasing traffic congestion, continuing wetland loss and declining biodiversity hold promise.
Increasing coordination and transparency on environmental monitoring programs including around Hartland Road landfill (CRD) as well as locally commissioned water quality tests in Graham and Tetayut Creek watersheds and in Brentwood Bay;
Finding effective and fair options for vessel anchorages and marinas and including working pump out facilities and garbage disposal options in Brentwood Bay.
What’s your vision for your community in 25 years? (100-125 words)
My bottom line is retaining the extraordinary casual friendliness (eg. a 20 minute dog walk regularly regularly turns into hours sidelined talking to neighbours, friends and strangers) and natural abundance of the area. As a biologist I would like more attention directed to safeguarding our environment and returning Saanich Inlet to its historic abundance. Increasing public participation is key to boosting community interest I’d like to see practical environmental quality monitoring and enhancement training in schools and adult extension programs to encourage more citizen science.
What’s one “big idea” you have for your community? (100-125 words)
Approaching opportunities to explore and incorporate more First Nations perspectives, priorities and activities provides a path to jointly build a new kind of community. I believe the Sencoten speaking people, like First Nations across the country, deserve our ongoing gratitude and respect because it was essentially their generosity and foresight that provided the foundation for our community here on southern Vancouver Island. I know it has not gone as smoothly as they hoped, but we are not done yet. By approaching new people, ideas and perspectives as opportunities to grow, just as they did when they first welcomed Europeans to their lands, we can find a more equitable and just social construct that others may well take heed of and learn from.
