Karen Harper
Website: karen-harper.ca
Twitter: @KarenInSaanich
Are you associated with or running as part of a slate? If so, which one?
No - I am running as an independent
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?
I live in Saanich, first arriving in 1967, then leaving for university and work, and returning in 2000. My family’s home has always been in Saanich since 1967 so I have never been disconnected from it, even when I lived and worked elsewhere.
What is your occupation, and for how long?
I am now retired, after 41 years of working in the public service, first as a teacher at different levels and in English and French immersion for 17 years, then as a BCTF staff person managing pension plans and the teachers long term disability plan, and finishing my career at the BC Pension Corporation as a senior vice-president and Chief Knowledge Officer for 10 years. I then took a few years out before running for council, and am just completing 5 years on council.
Tell us about your previous elected and/or community experience.
Over my career I have consistently been involved first as a teacher activist (local and BCTF executives) , with a special interest pensions and bargaining, as well as various community groups including Amalgamation Yes, with provincial and federal political parties, and various provincial and federal committees such as the Pension benefits Standards Advisory Committee (BC) and CRA advisory committee on pension standards and taxation issues. I have also been involved in groups such as the Jane Austen Society of North America which is having its AGM in Victoria at the end of this month!!
Why are you running? What’s your motivation?
As a sitting councillor, I have a strong interest in continuing the work I helped to initiate on housing for all pursuant to our Housing strategy; ensuring balanced environmental stewardship and a stronger emphasis on our park system as the basis of a biodiversity strategy; and revising Saanich’s approach to budgeting to create greater organizational efficiencies and limit tax increases to the taxpayer’s ability to pay. These have consistently been my motivation each time that I have run. I have shown that I work well with my colleagues in a collaborative approach which is needed to be able to successfully implement initiatives at Council.
What are your top three issues?
My top three issues are housing, balanced environmental stewardship, and fiscal accountability. I would encourage people to check out my website karen-harper.ca for more detail than I can provide in 100 words on these issues. They are by far the most important to face us and are totally interconnected as well.
What’s your vision for your community in 25 years?
My vision is that we will have succeeded in creating a community that houses people of all ages and incomes, living and working together in vibrant, compact and sustainable communities. By increasing our housing supply in the ‘right’ areas we will have created the basis of a stronger and more successful community through centres and villages, a more sustainable infrastructure system, including transit, and been able to maintain and improve our parks system as the underpinning of our biodiversity strategy. These steps will have helped us to manage climate change, and to have found the most efficient ways to deliver services. Without the full range of ages and incomes in our community we will not flourish and are already seeing significant challenges now in areas such as hiring and retaining workers which will significantly negatively impact us all.
What’s one “big idea” you have for your community?
The ‘big’ idea is to listen to the public during the upcoming Citizen’s Assembly (which is studying the pros and cons of amalgamation of VIctoria and Saanich, and may be making recommendations) . This process, which I totally supported, provides an opportunity to change our community in ways that could be totally transformative. I commit to supporting the work and recommendations of the Assembly, whatever they may be, including supporting a referendum on their recommendations if that is needed. This is a time for the public to decide once they have seen the results of the work of the Assembly, and time for the politicians to listen and accept the public’s will.
