Adriane Carr

When Adriane Carr decided to step down from leadership of the Green Party of B.C. last fall, her personal career was caught up in a number of cross-currents. With a surge in green consciousness among the electorate, the prospects for winning the first-ever Green seat in the B.C. legislature seemed brighter than ever. On the other hand, her mentor and friend Elizabeth May had recently been named leader of the federal Green Party. Carr saw an opportunity to affect change on a much bigger scale.

When Adriane Carr decided to step down from leadership of the Green Party of B.C. last fall, her personal career was caught up in a number of cross-currents. With a surge in green consciousness among the electorate, the prospects for winning the first-ever Green seat in the B.C. legislature seemed brighter than ever. On the other hand, her mentor and friend Elizabeth May had recently been named leader of the federal Green Party. Carr saw an opportunity to affect change on a much bigger scale.

Carr accepted the post of deputy leader of the federal Green Party last September and plans to run for election to Parliament in the riding of Vancouver Centre. But questions remain: is the former college instructor from the Sunshine Coast ready for the big leagues; how qualified is she to represent the province’s business interests; and, perhaps most important, does she really believe she has a legitimate shot at winning a federal seat? Why the decision to jump to federal politics? It wasn’t an easy decision because I have been passionate and dedicated to changing the political landscape in B.C. But some of the issues I felt most drawn to were being played out at the federal level. Climate change is foremost among them. I had worked hard for the past five or six years on energy issues and trying to shift the provincial government to a renewable energy path, but I really saw that the big decisions and the big money to affect change were at the federal level. That drew me more than anything. What was behind the timing of your decision? It helped that Elizabeth May was elected Green Party leader in August. I was mentored into politics by Elizabeth, working on B.C. issues and spending time in Ottawa pushing for federal support for the Clayoquot Sound biosphere reserve. I believe in Elizabeth’s ability to inspire Canadians and to move green politics in a whole new level, and I wanted to be part of that. You always want to leave a situation knowing that there is momentum and movement forward. I really believed that the new attention to green politics would spill over, so the party at the provincial level would have momentum and it would be fine for me to move; I would leave a party in good stead. Was it hard, personally, to leave a party you co-founded in 1983? I’ll never leave the Green Party of B.C. – I’ll stay a member forever! I liked what I did and I felt effective. But there are times in your career where you ask: have I done what I can do at this particular point in this particular job and got to the maximum point of effectiveness? There’s a time to let go, a time to let new people take on leadership and to move on. And that’s really where I’d got to. Given that we didn’t get elected during the term that I was there, I believed that the party would be served by bringing in new leadership to reawaken public and media interest and to spur on the party to the next level. No Green Party member has ever been elected to Parliament. Do you really believe you have a chance? Yeah, I do. We were leaked a poll that the Conservatives did at the end of February that has us in second place and very close to Hedy Fry [in the Vancouver Centre riding]. You’d have to ask [the Conservative Party of Canada] for it; they won’t give it to us. But we heard it from several sources, and we’ve done some polling that confirmed the figures. I’m feeling cautiously confident because it’s going to take a lot of work, and it hasn’t been done before.

“There’s a time to let go, a time to let new people take on leadership and to move on. And that’s really where I’d got to.”

You’ve spoken out publicly against some issues unique to B.C., including the transportation Gateway Program. What could you do from Ottawa about Gateway as opposed to what you’d do from Victoria? That’s a $1-billion investment from Ottawa that, with some gumption and vision, could be shifted from funding for Gateway to funding for a really world-class rapid-transit system. And boy, would that make a difference in people’s lives here. How has the switch from provincial to federal politics affected your life personally? I love it! It was a real leap forward into a new set of challenges. I love the learning and meeting with people on a new set of issues. I have to be frank: it’s great to be a party that’s funded through public financing. It was a struggle financially for the B.C. party. It’s great because there’s staff, there are resources and that makes my work easier. Do you still live in Gibsons? I now have an apartment [in Vancouver] too. My daughter lives in Vancouver Centre and I’ve been able to stay there. And my parents live in Burnaby. I’m in Vancouver an awful lot but I’m not commuting. I try to get home on the weekends to the Sunshine Coast, but home is here. If you were elected, would you move here? Absolutely. I would not give up my place on the Sunshine Coast, but I would purchase here. And I’m looking for a good deal on real estate, if anybody knows anybody…