Hot Tubbin' For...GGCLC: Kingston

Up at the asscrack of dawn again we’re treated to a beautiful view of the lake and dinner in the dining hall at Hotel Kenney. We meet with the hotel manager who tells us about the challenges of the area and like all of the other folks we’ve met so far, she’s passionate about what she does and the community she lives in. There's a charm to being somewhere that hasn't changed and then staleness for the same reason - it's a question of balance and equilibrium.... Anyway, breakfast is fast and it’s off to CFB Kingston to meet with senior military personnel from the 1st Division to talk about leadership in the Canadian Forces. We are met by Colonel Spike Hazelton who gives us a very progressive view of the military and like the Toronto PD, the face of the armed forces is changing. He’s candid, friendly and very experienced.  It’s a quick change of clothes for us in the parking lot as we’re told that at our next stop no dresses, skirts, shorts or sandals allowed. That means we all have to get our suitcases out and change. Well, we’re all family now, and all modesty goes out the window…hahahaha.

A quick bus ride away, we’re off to Queen’s University’s Innovation Park. We meet with the higher ups as well as the Economic Development Office for the City of Kingston. The Innovation Park is a partnership between private sector investment, the City of Kingston and Queens University. We meet with the Technical Director and tour Green Centre Canada - a green chemical company dedicated to clean energy. They have a $500 million lab with state of the art equipment - there's more the chemistry than beakers and bunsen burners! ;) We are shown crazy technology that will help breakdown Styrofoam which could eventually lead to technology that would be useful in clean energy initiatives. Back in the boardroom we have lunch and meet with some of the higher ups of Queens administration. We’re on a super tight schedule so it’s back on the bus and off to catch the ferry to Wolfe Island to meet with the operations manager of the wind farm. 

 The bus we’re using belongs to the Kingston Frontenacs – and we’re in Kingston with a douchey sign on the front of the bus that says “VIP Group.” So everyone is curious to know if the hockey team is on the bus and boy are they disappointed when we climb off. Hahahaha – a little humility is a good thing. The operations manager hops on the bus and gives us the low-down on the windmills. We learn about what seemed to have been a pretty good consultation process. The windmills are massive and there’s something beautiful about watching them all. We get up close and personal with blades on the ground (they are fiberglass and resin). We’re told that at night they light up so that planes can see them.
Our home for 9 days...
Wind mill at Wolfe Island

O2 with the operations manager of Wolfe Island Wind Farm
After Wolfe Island (this time we’ve cracked open the beer in the coolers), we’re back to Queens to check into our rooms and meet with the rep for the Corrections workers to discuss the closure of Kingston Pen, Canadian’s largest and oldest prison (housing notorious criminals like Paul Bernardo and Colonel McWilliams). This was the opposite situation re: consultation than Wolfe Island – workers found out minutes before the public did that their workplaces were closing, leaving their work situations in limbo. I hope the contingency plan is there because it sounds like our Corrections workers might have to deal with some pretty shitty work environments. I just hope they are safe… We have about a half an hour to settle into our rooms and get changed for a casual dinner (no jeans, t shirts) at the senior staff mess at the Royal Military College where we are going to meet with a Lt. Colonel to talk about leadership and nation building in Afghanistan. The campus is rife with history and the setting is gorgeous. We can see Wolfe Island in the distance and the girls have some time together on the patio before the boys join us.

Royal Military College, Kingston ON
Dinner is delicious – we have options other than beef which is a nice change. Then we have a pretty interesting conversation about leadership in the military, Somalia, Afghanistan…this was a more traditional view of the Canadian Forces and gave us a lot to think about. Then it was back to Queens to debrief and sleep.

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