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Courtenay-Alberni candidate profile: Susan Farlinger, Liberal Party of Canada

Election night set for Sept. 20, 2021
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Susan Farlinger is the Liberal Party of Canada candidate for Courtenay-Alberni. (Submitted photo)

In an effort to inform the Courtenay-Alberni riding constituents, candidates have been given the opportunity to introduce themselves to the riding.

SUSAN FARLINGER, LIBERAL PARTY OF CANADA

As a longtime resident of central Vancouver Island, a retired public servant, mother, biologist, natural resource manager and outdoor enthusiast, I see an opportunity to bring the voices of our communities to a majority Liberal government. Challenges of a changing climate, the need for real reconciliation between aboriginal and non-aboriginal groups, economic recovery and sustainability are priorities for me personally and for this area. I support future-looking, inclusive and social values, legislation and policies that respond to climate and social shifts that are changing the world we live in. I am running for the Liberal Party because I want to support actions on the ground to realize these goals.

Over the course of my extensive career in public service, I held a wide range of senior positions in Aboriginal Fisheries, Fish Habitat and Enhancement and Resource Management with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) as well as serving as the Regional Director of Natural Resources Canada’s Pacific Forestry Centre. From 2008 until my retirement in 2016, I was Assistant Deputy Minister and Pacific Regional Director General for DFO.

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As a biologist, negotiator and senior public servant, I have learned from working in the ocean, with fishermen, environmentalists, stewardship groups and aboriginal communities up and down the coast of B.C and also in international fisheries negotiations. My experience in managing the diverse programs and relationships for Fisheries and Oceans in this region is based on a belief not only in evidence-based science but also in the need for undersrtanding the knowledge, impacts and experience of individuals and communities to respond to these profound challenges.

I have enjoyed volunteering and contributing to local charities such as the Errington Therapeutic Riding Association, Nanoose Family Services and am an ongoing contributor and member of the Oceanside 100 Women Who Care, an organization that has contributed $382,700 to local charities since 2017. I have been a member of the board of the Pacific Salmon Foundation, a source of funding, stewardship and science to support Pacific Salmon.

I hope to have the opportunity to put this experience to work for the diverse people in this riding to communicate the needs and interests of our communities to the Liberal government and put real solutions into action on the ground.

— Submitted

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