A Town in Canada Is Redefining Prosperity Thanks to the Community Action Lab

Medicine Hat, AB, one of the communities participating in the 2023 Community Action Lab.

January marked the launch of the most comprehensive resource Strong Towns offers: the Community Action Lab.

Each participating community—whether Chisholm, Minnesota, with a population of 4,723 or Lake County, Florida, boasting 395,804 residents spanning 1,157 square miles—has spent the last six months confronting its history and trajectory through a Strong Towns-shaded lens. Through continued mentorship, ongoing access to educational materials, events, and more, the remaining 1.5 years will hopefully cement what it means to build and maintain prosperity.

“This is basically the first time we’re endeavoring an application of ‘the Strong Towns approach’ on the ground, across vastly different communities,” Chuck Marohn shared during his opening speech at the National Gathering just two weeks ago. “These communities chose us as much as we chose them.” 

As informative as the last half-year has been for each participating community, Strong Towns has learned just as much, if not more. 

What we’ve learned about our messaging, the relationships we’ve built across constituencies, and the challenges we navigated all around will shape not only the remaining time with the current cohort, but the future iterations of the program. None of it would have been possible without the enthusiasm and trust of our inaugural Community Action Labs. Neither would it have been possible without the continued support of Strong Towns members.

One of the communities that welcomed Strong Towns this past year is Medicine Hat. Situated on the Southeastern edge of Alberta, Canada, Medicine Hat is striving to harmonize its rural roots with a growing population and shifting economy. Once dubbed the “Pittsburgh of the West,” the city is now reckoning with its definition of prosperity and what its current trajectory will mean for its future residents.

We were able to catch up with Ashley Howes, a Community Resource Worker for the city of Medicine Hat who moonlights as an Action Team member. The following conversation was edited for clarity.

Since CAL started, do you see things differently where you live and if so, how?

Honestly, when I first joined the Community Action Lab, I felt like a fish out of water. I’m a Community Resource Worker while everyone else seemed to have expertise more relevant to, say, urban planning. The learning for me has been immense. Now, when I reflect on what I see as a prosperous city, it’s one of sustainability and not just development that provides little to no return on investment. 

One of the biggest lessons, and honestly maybe the first and simplest—in theory—we learned in our involvement is to humbly observe. Then, try doing the smallest thing you can do right now. 

It’s so basic, but it really resonated with me. We have to stop overcomplicating problems—of course, we need to understand the context, but that doesn’t mean overcomplicating it. It’s possible to begin small and often, it’s those small steps that make the biggest difference.

I can’t lie, it’s definitely blown my mind and I certainly wouldn’t have begun looking at my city in this way if not for the Community Action Lab. I see communities, the notion of vibrancy, and even diversity differently now, too. 

Especially with regards to achieving diversity, I understand how vital it is to tap into the people we have in our communities as resources rather than looking elsewhere. 

To that point, part of my job is ensuring people have what they need and throughout my work, I’ve learned one of the things people need the most is connection. Since being a part of the Action Team, I’ve come to understand that fundamentally Strong Towns is reconnecting people to the core of their community.

What’s Medicine Hat like, as a place?

Because of the oil and gas here, Medicine Hat has been a very prosperous community for what appears to be a long time. That’s not to say we haven’t experienced disparity and exercised exclusivity, but the backbone of our economy has in some ways allowed many people to ignore that inequality. 

Now, however, that’s changing and we’re collectively and visibly not enjoying the same prosperity anymore. In fact, we’re at a place now where we need to reevaluate our definition of prosperity.

Medicine Hat had this motto that really stuck with me and so I’ve used it to guide my work. It went something like, “Medicine Hat—a place to live, work, and play.” In the end, we want to create communities where people want to stay. I take that to heart.

How have you applied something you learned in CAL in your community? 

In my work, we also focus on prevention and part of that involves working with kids. There’s this regular program we do with third graders called “Box Cites,” wherein we build little cities out of shoeboxes and eventually display them in an exhibit. 

The project teaches kids basics about planning a city, community development, and really works to try and get them invested in where they live. Every year we change it up a little bit and often have a give back project where the kids collect money for a local organization. This allows us to talk about communities that are vibrant and what that really means.

I noticed this time around when we were doing box cities, we were infusing ideas I was exposed to through the Community Action Lab, and so our little city, Sunrise Springs, became a model for a Strong Town. You could see Strong Towns principles permeate through our main street, and even concepts like the tax base of Sunrise Springs.

What changes are you hopeful to see in the place you call home?

I couldn’t do my job without hope. I’m hopeful that we’re on the way to creating a community that looks beyond just dollars and cents and starts to take inventory of the assets we have in our possession. 

I’m likewise hopeful that we’ll improve how we communicate across the city. I hope that using more common language will help the people who live here understand the outlook of our city and accept that change isn’t always something to be avoided. There is a silver lining here. 

I also ultimately like to believe that people are good. There’s a lot of fear surrounding change, and so the few moments of resistance or uncertainty regarding Strong Towns ideas I’ve seen are probably rooted in that fear rather than real disagreement.

I strongly think that if people understand what investing in our community truly means, then they would fight for that for future generations.

It’s Member Week, and you can help support initiatives like the Community Action Lab by joining this movement. Become a Strong Towns member today to make places like Medicine Hat—and your own community—stronger and more resilient.

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