Back in March 2008, Parents for Choice & Quality made a presentation to the Standing Committee on Social Development regarding the importance of the early years and child care issues.  Here is the link to the transcript from our presentation.

Cynthia Dunsford recently seconded the motion in the PEI legislature to accept the Speech from the Throne. The words below are part of the speech that she made in relation to this.  With all of the challenges that have been going on in PEI with respect to early childhood development, child care and education issues I was so pleased to read these words in follow-up to the Throne Speech. 

It is very clear to me that the government in PEI now recognize that engaging with the public will lead to improved individual and community empowerment as well as long term sustainablity for the future of the Province.  How refreshing…a government that wants people to talk WITH each other and not TO each other. 

To me, Madame Speaker, those two words “Public Engagement” are everything. They are at the very basis of how our government is planning on moving forward to one Island Future. And moreover helping to create and build upon One Island Community.

I equate the idea of public engagement to that of literacy, and I’ll explain. We know, for instance, that Prince Edward Island has an ongoing battle with literacy levels, and that there have been great efforts in addressing and implementing literacy programs by the Island community. These programs are integral to long term change in the literacy landscape of PEI and that is why our government will continue supporting these efforts. Unfortunately we also experience and utilize extensive resources on the back end of this literacy realm. Trying to fix something long after the fact.

And so we become aware of how easy it is to ignore strong beginnings in order to deal with the emergency at hand. And hence the history of public consultations on PEI. Crisis driven solutions do not have the same kind of sustainability as solutions built on strong foundations. Early Childhood Education, preventative health, building roads to last, are but a few examples of where our efforts and energy are aimed.

Madame Speaker, our government’s commitment to establishing an Office of Public Engagement is an admirable and commendable step in securing a sustainable future for Prince Edward Island. From listening comes change. And from change comes empowerment.

Empowerment that Islanders want and should have if we are to become a healthier people.

Madame Speaker, our government believes in healthy beginnings. And by putting children first with the introduction of kindergarten in the public school system we are doing just that. Representing a district made up mostly of growing families, I can tell you that parents in Stratford-Kinlock are relieved to learn that their children will get the same educational foundation as the rest of the children across Canada. As well, an expanded inclusion in the Chances Best Start program for children from 18-24 months.

We only have to look to our successes to see how Public Engagement has had a part. And I’m not talking about the traditional public consultations, as I mentioned previously, where government whittles away at policy one item at a time, or a kind of public participation that merely provides for a sounding board, over and over again, with nobody offering any solutions, I’m talking about a trusted space where effective governance and greater civic responsibility and participation can take place. Where new forms of leadership have a chance to grow. Where people talk WITH each other and not TO each other.