There鈥檚 no shortage of ways communities sabotage themselves and set up a self-perpetuating cycle of failure, but for Doug Griffiths there are 13 ways they do it in particular.
Griffiths gleaned them through his early years as an MLA in Alberta, travelling to hundreds of communities after being tasked to help form a rural development strategy for the province. He would hone them over his 13-year tenure in the Alberta legislature, release a best-selling book about them in 2010, and has been travelling the country to talk about it ever since in a bid to get communities to smarten up.
On Nov. 15, he found himself in Fort St. John, delivering a lively and sassy 90-minute talk at the Lido Theatre as part of the Community Development Institute鈥檚 first speaker series event. While he boiled down to specifics, sharing stories about anonymous towns collected during his travels, Griffiths emphasized the role attitudes play at nearly every turn.
鈥淚t鈥檚 attitudes that sabotage communities the most,鈥� Griffiths summed up. 鈥淓ven I do these things. It鈥檚 not to point fingers, or lay blame.鈥�
Here鈥檚 how he explained the 13 ways communities harm themselves.
Quality and quantity of water
Starting with the basic element of all human life, Griffiths zeroed in on Flint, Michigan, whose water crisis in 2014 led to the death of 15 people and exposed more than 100,000 to tainted and toxic drinking water. All this because of political failure to pay for and maintain a proper, high quality water system and supply, even throughout tough economic times, Griffiths said.
鈥淚n Canada, on average, there are three communities every single week put on boil water advisories. Some of them last for years,鈥� he said, noting the advisories affect a disproportionate number of First Nations communities.
A community only built because of its access to water, and it can鈥檛 grow without access to water鈥攖he droughts in California serve as a reminder of the desperate times water shortages can create, he said.
鈥淚f you wan鈥檛 to kill your community, don鈥檛 have water quantity or quality,鈥� Griffiths said. 鈥淭hey can drink from a poisoned well or die of thirst. Either way, your community will die.鈥�
Don鈥檛 attract business
Griffiths shared a story of two towns he visited, both with a population of 2,000. One town had just one grocery store that was failing miserably. The other town had two, and both stores were doing remarkably well. It鈥檚 all about the value competition brings, even in a small community where, on the surface, the need for two of the same type of business might not make sense, Griffiths said.
鈥淐ompetition gives us price, quality, selection, and service,鈥� he said.
In another town Griffiths visited, entrepreneurs were frustrated they couldn鈥檛 open a gas station because the mayor owned one himself, putting up development roadblocks for his competitors along the way.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 value competition like we say we do,鈥� Griffiths said. 鈥淚f it鈥檚 a value, you still adhere to it when you鈥檙e the one being competed against. If not, then it鈥檚 just a hobby.鈥�
Don鈥檛 engage youth
Youth aren鈥檛 meant to be trapped, Griffiths said鈥攓uite opposite, in fact, since it鈥檚 in their nature to go off and explore, learn the lessons the world has to offer.
What communities neglect to do is give their youth a reason to return home after they leave, according to Griffiths.
Growing up on a farm, Griffiths said his father used every opportunity to chase away the idea of following in his path鈥攆arming was too expensive and inconsistent, with little hope for a secure future, Griffiths recalled. When he returned home from university, the two men sat down and the father asked his son to takeover鈥攁nd then had the gall to be upset when the answer was no, Griffiths said.
鈥淲e run down our communities all the time, then wonder why the next generation doesn鈥檛 hold value for them,鈥� Griffiths said.
The key is developing a 鈥渂oomerang鈥� strategy鈥攇iving youth the momentum to leave town but giving them a reason to come back, he said. One town in particular interviewed its Grade 11 and 12 students about their career aspirations. Then it looked to attract the industry it needed to support those aspirations, while matching students with entrepreneurs and micro-loan programs.
鈥淵outh is synonymous with the future,鈥� Griffiths said.
Deceive yourself
Most communities barely have a sense of who they are, Griffiths said, and if you don鈥檛 believe it then just take a look at its slogan. Any town with a generic slogan proclaiming to be 鈥渢he best place to live, work, and raise a family鈥� likely isn鈥檛.
鈥淚t鈥檚 amazing how many communities do this,鈥� Griffiths said.
A community needs to know exactly it鈥檚 selling to potential new residents, he said, and generic marketing campaigns with generic slogans are a waste of money.
One community, Griffiths said of his travels, didn鈥檛 realize the strength it gained when a young Polish couple moved in for a business opportunity they wanted but couldn鈥檛 get in their home country.
When Griffiths learned of their story, he suggested the town鈥檚 leaders travel to Poland with the couple, visit their region, and meet with other families to talk about what their community had to offer them. A year and a half later, 11 more families from Poland moved in.
鈥淎ll of them but one started new businesses,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t was like a little boom for the community.鈥�
Shop elsewhere
Every single chamber of commerce urges people to shop local. It鈥檚 not hard to see why鈥攅very local dollar spent in a community finds itself, on average, in seven other hands before it leaves, Griffiths said. But, 鈥渆very other dollar spent outside of the community is gone forever. It doesn鈥檛 come back,鈥� he warned.
The success and failure of local business is a two-way street, Griffiths said.
Consumers drive failure by thinking a new business won鈥檛 be successful and so don鈥檛 shop there. They also do it when their buying habits are driven by jealousy and they refuse to shop at a local business if they think the owner is too rich, or makes too much money.
But businesses can drive shoppers away, too. Griffiths returned to his story of the gas-station mayor, recalling how he had visited him years later after his first visit. The mayor鈥檚 brand name gas station had been downgraded to a budget brand because of a lack of sales. Lo and behold, the mayor was even still charging a premium on his gas in spite of it all, and blaming people for not shopping locally.
鈥淩esidents called it the 鈥榤ayor鈥檚 gas tax.鈥� So, they went down the road to buy gas,鈥� Griffiths said. 鈥淲hen they leave town to buy gas, they also go to the hardware store for supplies, to buy groceries, to buy lunch.鈥�
Don鈥檛 paint
People judge books by their cover, and ugly books don鈥檛 get read, Griffiths said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not superficial, we鈥檙e genetically encoded to be attracted to aesthetically-pleasing things,鈥� he said.
The way a community looks sends a clear message about what it thinks of itself and whether it thinks it will be successful. Beautification efforts can鈥檛 be neglected, Griffiths said.
鈥淵ou can have the greatest community on earth, but if it looks like you鈥檙e dying, no one will stop to talk to you,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not superficial. It鈥檚 critical for growth.鈥�
Don鈥檛 co-operate
One day, a community of 3,000 decided it needed a new community hall for town events. And so, three community groups stood up and said, 鈥渨e will build it,鈥� and tried to race one another to build the hall first and put their name on it, Griffiths said.
The groups found themselves at odds, competing for the same donation dollars for a decade鈥攁nd, in one instance, had even booked two separate fundraisers on the same night. No one showed up to either of the events, and, needless to say, no new community hall was built in that decade, Griffiths said.
鈥淧eople in the community finally said, 鈥榃e鈥檝e had it,鈥欌�� he said.
The groups eventually saw the light and learned the power of co-operation. The hall was then built within a year.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a powerful tool when people co-operate,鈥� Griffiths said.
Live in the past
鈥淧eople don鈥檛 like physical changes to their environment,鈥� Griffiths said.
That includes NIMBY (not in my backyard) homeowners in one community, who opposed a new affordable housing block on vacant land that had been tapped for that purpose for years.
And there are the NOPEs鈥擭ot On Planet Earth鈥攑eople opposed to coal and oilsands in favour of solar and windmills, without wanting to learn about the technology and science being developed in those industries they opposed.
And there are also the CAVE people, Griffiths said, or Citizens Against Virtually Anything. These are people who turn out for that last consultation meeting just to register and say they鈥檙e opposed to whatever is being proposed, and little else.
鈥淭he world is changing and you have to change with it,鈥� Griffiths said. 鈥淭hese people are the most dangerous, and growing in numbers and effectiveness.鈥�
Shut out your seniors
Seniors are the people who helped build a community from the ground up, Griffiths said, recalling how as a young boy he helped hand tools to his grandpa while he building the town curling rink.
Seniors are more likely to be volunteers and spend money in a community, continuing to build its foundation in their old age, Griffiths said.
Communities must build a quality of life that involves seniors and their needs鈥攄on鈥檛 do that and watch them migrate away to cities that have made concentrated efforts to attract seniors instead.
鈥淲hen they go, the foundation will go with them and your community will crumble,鈥� Griffiths said.
Reject everything new
Small towns can be averse to new ideas. But those ideas more often than not inject new life in a community.
Griffiths shared one anecdote of a family friend who hated travelling鈥攁 trip to Mexico made the friend ambivalent because he had literally never left sight of the town鈥檚 water tower. Now, that family friend travels all the time after being exposed to a new experience.
In another anecdote, Griffiths shared the story of an entrepreneur who studied small towns and all the quirky amenities and businesses on hand that made the towns a success. Then, he imported those amenities into communities that didn鈥檛 have them, becoming extremely successful himself in the process.
鈥淲e always get told to learn from other鈥檚 mistakes鈥攍earn from other people鈥檚 successes鈥� Griffiths said.
鈥淵ou don鈥檛 need to have something brand new. You just need to have something new to you.鈥�
Ignore your outsiders
People choose to move to a community on purpose for any number of reasons鈥攖he climate, the environment, job opportunities, a competitive business advantage.
鈥淭hey don鈥檛 know who did what to who in 1922, and they don鈥檛 care,鈥� Griffiths said.
Outsiders, particularly immigrants, bring the opportunity to see things from new perspectives. That鈥檚 because they often don鈥檛 take our privileges for granted鈥攚hether it鈥檚 things as simple as hot water and gladly paying a water bill, while others complain about the water meters; or making sure to take advantage of their first chance vote while many others fail to use their two hours paid time off to do so; or working two jobs to give their kids the chance to go to university or college, Griffiths said.
鈥淲hat do we do? We sit around and complain it鈥檚 too expensive when the cost of ignorance is a lot more than that,鈥� Griffiths said.
Outsiders bring ideas, appreciation, and an entrepreneurial spirit with them. Making outsiders feel like outsiders is sure to chase them away.
Grow complacent
Complacency has a habit of spiralling and snowballing out of control, and the status quo can be more damaging than you think, Griffiths said.
鈥淎ll it takes is one business to close. That鈥檚 now 13 families unemployed in your community. That might cause them to leave, and now there are 13 less children in school,鈥� Griffiths said.
鈥淭hat might be just enough to cause another business to close. That鈥檚 now another 13 families unemployed in your community, 13 less students in your school, 13 less volunteers.鈥�
Communities must plan for succession, making sure there鈥檚 always something or someone waiting in the wings to take over, whether that鈥檚 organizing the rodeo, the fall fair, the Christmas play from that one long-time volunteer who finally dies after taking it all upon themselves.
The success of a community is more of a baton race, than a sprint or marathon, Griffiths said.
鈥淵ou run your leg of the race as fast and hard as you can, and you have someone trained up to pass them the baton at full speed,鈥漢e said.
鈥淵ou might have to pick up the baton again, but your legs will be rested. It takes a lot of leaders to carry that baton.鈥�
Being aggressive, focusing on action words like being 鈥渧ibrant鈥� or 鈥渄ynamic鈥� when community planning as opposed to static words like 鈥渟ustainable,鈥� will help put those words into action.
鈥淢aybe when that one business closes, another one will open in time to offset it,鈥� Griffiths said.
Don鈥檛 take responsibility
This isn鈥檛 meant to be confused with blame, Griffiths said.
Residents expect their town鈥檚 council and administration to be responsible for everything because they are easy targets to blame. But, 鈥渁ll they鈥檙e responsible for is managing a municipal corporation,鈥� Griffiths said.
Every community leader and resident is responsible to one another, he said.
鈥淵ou may not be to blame, but you鈥檙e still responsible to your community,鈥� he said.
