Rural municipalities across Alberta own and operate most of the province’s roads, bridges, and utility systems. These are the assets that connect communities, move goods, and support the resource-based and emerging industries that keep Alberta competitive. But for years, those same municipalities have been asked to do more with less—facing chronic underfunding, rising construction costs, aging infrastructure, and increasingly constrained budgets. This week, the Rural Municipa

It’s a new year—and with it comes new challenges, new obstacles, and new problems to solve. But a new year also gives us a moment to pause, to reflect on where we are today, and how we got here. Municipalities are complex, multi-pronged organizations. From cleaning the streets, to keeping the water running when you turn on the shower, municipalities are truly the front lines of government services. They’re the level of government people interact with every single day—often wi

(Photo Prime Minister of Canada Facebook Page) After months of uncertainty for farmers and producers across rural Canada, there may finally be some relief on the horizon. On Friday, Ottawa announced a new trade agreement with China following a high-level meeting in Beijing between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The deal is expected to roll back some of the steep tariffs that have weighed heavily on Canadian agriculture and seafood exports—tariffs

It’s shaping up to be one of the busiest municipal election seasons Canada has seen in years. In 2026, a majority of Canadians will head to the polls to choose a new generation of municipal leaders—councillors and mayors who will help shape their communities for the next four years. That election season begins right here in New Brunswick. On May 11th, the province will be the first in the country to head to the municipal polls, with nominations opening at the end of March. Bu

Welcome to Season Five the Political Trenches: Local Government At Work. We’re back in the trenches for another great episode. We are continuing our dive into the role of the CAO. And for our first edition of 2026, we are diving into an organization that works hand in hand with Municipal Administrators from across Canada, CAMA. We will be joined later in the episode by CAMA President Brenda Orchard. But as always, we have three stories we have been watching. First, Senior Shu

As we close out the final episode of Municipal Affairs for 2025, and begin to look ahead to 2026, I want to take a moment to pause and reflect—if you’ll allow me. Traditionally, this final episode is about the issues municipalities are facing and the challenges they carry forward year after year. But tonight, I’m going to veer slightly off that familiar path and talk about something a little more personal: this show, this network, and what has been an extraordinary, complicat