Arcand 'The Bulldozer' Issues A Challenge To Women

Sunday, March 06, 2011 07:58 AM

A sell-out crowd gathers for breakfast marking International Women's Day

Prince George, B.C. - MaryAnne Arcand has never been one to think inside the box...

Quite the contrary, in fact. The Executive Director of the Central Interior Logging Association said, "People say to me all the time, 'You think outside the box' - what freaking box? I'm not a box, my head's not in a box, if I can find a new way to do something, I'm going to do it."

Arcand was one of the featured speakers at a breakfast celebrating Tuesday's 100th Anniversary of International Women's Day at the Ramada yesterday. She told the crowd of 230 women, and a few men, "We're talking about women breaking barriers and I'm going to challenge you that maybe there aren't as many barriers out there as we think there are and we actually make those barriers."

"There's nothing you can't do, there's just a lot of stuff we haven't tried yet," said Arcand. She is the founder of the recently unveiled Carbon Offset Cooperative of BC, a first of its kind program in the world that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce deisel consumption, while saving truckers and equipment operators money. Arcand said, "When government guys told me last summer 'it can't be done', I went, 'Yah, watch me' - if there is a way, I will find it. The minute I think I can't, I put myself in a box."

At the helm of CILA for the past year-and-a-half, Arcand is the first woman to run a resource-based industry association in the province and she said that didn't happen because the association was looking to become politically-correct, it happened because they were looking for the best person to do the job and she happened to be 'it'. But she said since breaking through the barrier, collectively, to have a woman at its head, the board of long-time loggers is suddenly open to all kinds of new and creative ideas. As an example, she pointed to work underway on a partnership to bring more women into the industry. "It's just one of those privileged things, where you get a sort of life-defining moment - as Dr. Phil calls it - where you go, 'Hey, that affected change.'"

Years ago, when Arcand was working on setting up a wilderness camp for aboriginal young offenders, she had to meet then-Minister of Children and Families, Mike Corbeil, and he said others had told him that she was 'the Bulldozer' and 'anything that's in your way, you just move it.' She said she told him, "You just hold that thought." After the meeting she got the support she needed to get the project up-and-running.

The mother of four, and grandmother of 10 says she's proud to be known as 'the Bulldozer'. She admitted it's not something many would like to be called, but says you need to hear the story behind it, because that gives the full picture and "our lives are a collection of stories."

After sharing a number of personal stories, Arcand wrapped up by saying, "I'm going to challenge you ladies to fight for economic equality, for breaking into trades, for into natural resource industries, for into higher management - the economy and the aging baby boomer demographics are going to do for us what history started, because they need us so bad right now." She said, "It is our time."

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Posted on Sunday, March 06, 2011 07:58 AM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: Dragonmaster on March 6 2011 9:41 AM

Carbon Offset Coop.

What a useless waste of taxpayer dollar stealing time.

Posted by: seamutt on March 6 2011 10:28 AM

Arcand Co2 makes the forests grow, get it. There is no settled science that shows how much of the Co2 rise is man caused or even its effects on warming since the little ice age. Arcand I think you are stuck in a box.

Posted by: gus on March 6 2011 11:42 AM

I agree with Arcand on one thing. She says: "We're talking about women breaking barriers and I'm going to challenge you that maybe there aren't as many barriers out there as we think there are and we actually make those barriers."

There are probably many good examples in this community and certainly in this province and country.

The one I can think of right away who has served and continues to serve in a similar position and a similar industry is Roz Thorn.

This is an article written about her when she won the BC Construction Association's innaugural Distinguished Service Award in 2008.
[url]
http://www.journalofcommerce.com/article/id31700[/url]

If we wish to compare women to equipment used in the industries they work in, I think skill saw might be one to apply to Roz Thorn.

It is tought to get genders involved ion trades/vocations they have traditionally not participated in, whether it is male nurses or female carpenters.

As far back as 25 to 30 years ago there were entry level introductory trades programs across the province geared especially to women to try to get them to participate more in non traditional trades. I do not believe they made much of a dent, if any.

Traditions are difficult to change.
----------------------------------------

As to the carbon offset program, I think it was designed to keep the bean counters busy and give us a great sense of accomplishment so that we keep on burning carbon and feel good about it. The science is very questionable. Carbon credit programs with cap and trade are just as questionable.

Personally, if we are to do anything to try to reduce the amount of carbon produce thatr goes into the atmosphere, I believe more in the carbon tax system.

Posted by: gus on March 6 2011 11:42 AM

http://www.journalofcommerce.com/article/id31700

Posted by: Eagleone on March 6 2011 2:21 PM

IMO bulldozer is short for control freak.

Personally I don't trust anyone that advocates carbon penalties with vague 'out of the box thinking'. Its code word for more control and more taxes.

A straight forward solution in PG would be to build a new bridge at Isle Pierre eliminating heavy forest industry traffic climbing up that Isle Pierre hill, up Mud River hill, and up Peden-Parkridge Heights hill, and eliminate the stop go stop go funnel of traffic through the center of the city... eliminating 20km each direction and 30 minutes of travel time. All forest industry traffic from out west could use this new route enabled by the Isle Pierre overpass... increasing the viability and logistics of the forest industry west of town... and if carbon was the concern this would reduce carbon use far more than any off set scheme ever could.

Any offset scheme is simply code for wealth transfers to fund pet projects. If we are to subsidize through wealth transfers, then I would suggest we do that in areas that increase our carbon consumption though increasing our exports to areas of the world that would benefit from our forest products like the pine beetle kill trees in ways that would save their forests of higher value trees that contribute more to absorbing carbon from the atmosphere... like carbon charcoal export to places where charcoal is used to cook, but is sourced from high value coconut and palm threes devastating rain forests. Something like that increasing opportunities for export here in Canada would have some merit, but the wealth transfer would have to come from the federal and provincial governments that collect the various income, fuel, and corporate taxes from the industrial production thereby exchanging revenue for government in taxation for increase in industry and commerce and jobs here in Canada. That is not in their agenda though... their agenda is to drain our competitive edge and increase costs to industry that use the essential element of carbon to create value... so as to in their minds increase the pool of revenue smart heads in government can use to spend.

Posted by: dnakamura on March 6 2011 6:58 PM

Personally, I admire any woman who can break into a male-dominated field and rise to a leadership role. I attended the breakfast and heard Maryanne speak. Not only was she very inspiring but FUNNY as heck. Superinendent Brenda Butterworth-Carr was also one of the speakers and she is another example of a woman who works in a male-dominated indusry in a leadership capacity. Folks can criticize these ladies all they want but both Maryanne and Brenda raised kids, attended school/training and worked very hard to get to their current destination. When women are assertive, we're often labelled "bitches" and other derogatory terms. Maryanne is very fitting of her nickname "Bulldozer" because she removes debris on her path. It's not about being controlling but simply getting the job done. And my observation over the years is that women are the best multi-taskers and we accomplish a lot of work in a short period of time.
And of course I'm biased...:)