{"id":102322,"date":"2025-10-25T06:05:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-25T13:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resourcework2.devstudio.work\/?p=102322"},"modified":"2025-10-25T06:05:00","modified_gmt":"2025-10-25T13:05:00","slug":"public-opinion-shifting-toward-confidence-in-resource-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/resourcework2.devstudio.work\/?p=102322","title":{"rendered":"Public opinion shifting toward confidence in resource development"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Common sense returns to the national conversation<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If the B.C. Business Summit 2025 made one thing clear, it was that the public is catching up to what business leaders and resource communities have known for years: responsible resource development is essential to Canada\u2019s future prosperity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moderator Shannon Young of Petronas Canada<\/a> opened the natural resources session by pointing to recent polling showing that Canadians \u2014 and particularly British Columbians \u2014 are recognizing \u201cthe importance and value of natural resources and exports, both for the economy and for battling climate change globally.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That finding echoed throughout the discussion. Across industries, participants described a notable shift in public sentiment: a growing understanding that economic resilience, energy security, and climate progress are not opposing forces but interdependent goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A broader view of the public interest<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Mike Davies of Trans Mountain<\/a> said the change is visible across regions. \u201cThere\u2019s been a very significant rural\u2013urban divide in Canada,\u201d he said. \u201cThose who work on the land base \u2014 in places like Quesnel or Grande Prairie \u2014 have long understood the importance of resource development. What\u2019s new is that we\u2019re starting to see a shift in urban attitudes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He called it a moment of opportunity. \u201cThere\u2019s a greater consensus in the public about Canada needing to take advantage of its natural resource advantages,\u201d Davies said. \u201cThe question is whether governments can seize it, and whether we\u2019ll see it reflected in policy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Davies urged policymakers to think of the public interest as something broader than a checklist of environmental or procedural goals. \u201cThe public interest extends well beyond those important objectives,\u201d he said. \u201cIt includes security, economic welfare, the rule of law, transparency, and democratic participation. Good policy that\u2019s built in the public interest shouldn\u2019t have to be jettisoned to get things done.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rising trust in resource development<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

James Gorman of West Fraser<\/a> echoed that message, arguing that Canadians increasingly understand that natural resource industries are central to prosperity, reconciliation, and climate solutions. \u201cThere\u2019s a greater consensus in the public about Canada needing to take advantage of its natural resource advantages,\u201d he said. \u201cThe challenge now is to align policy with that reality.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both speakers emphasized that a more informed, engaged public could help reset the country\u2019s approach to growth. \u201cIf we can get the public to think more broadly about how to get projects done and how to regulate and build policy in this country again,\u201d Davies said, \u201cthat will really help.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The summit\u2019s recurring theme \u2014 \u201cunlocking productivity to power prosperity\u201d<\/em> \u2014 was not just an economic argument. It was a cultural one: a call for Canada to rediscover its confidence, embrace common sense, and trust itself to build for the public good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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