RM of Stanley Reeve Ike Friesen, along with other Stanley representatives, recently returned from a trip to Ottawa, where they joined municipal leaders from across the country at the annual Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) conference. The event, held at the federal level, gives municipal officials a chance to lobby the federal government, connect with each other, and talk through shared challenges.
Federal advocacy and collaboration
Friesen shared that, while the conference serves an important advocacy role, it offers practical learning as well.
“There are a lot of learning sessions. There are tours… wherever that’s being hosted, you can tour some initiatives that are out there, as well as Mark Carney came to speak to us,” Friesen said, adding, “It’s all federally related. We had some mayors from the US that were there for a panel, and it was relating [to] the tariffs, how it affects them across the border, along with our own people here.”
The 2025 conference theme was Stronger Together, a phrase that, according to Friesen, captured the tone of the whole event, saying that discussions touched on interprovincial tariffs and how removing them might allow for better collaboration across provinces.
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Learning and touring
One session that stood out to Friesen focused on tackling misinformation and improving communication with residents. “Very often we deal with constituents not knowing the correct information and how we can better our communication with them,” he said, “instead of having the misinformation spreading.”
Friesen also had a chance to meet with Portage–Lisgar MP Brandon Leslie during the trip. “He gave us a tour of Parliament, which was very interesting. We were able to tour the Parliament floor seats, seating arrangement and the speaker's seat and so on.” He continued, sharing that he had the chance to sit in the speaker’s chair.
Solidarity amid the wildfires
Throughout the week, another topic loomed large: wildfires. While many RM of Stanley residents are still watching from afar, other parts of the country are feeling the effects directly. “Some of them actually had to fly home early because of the situations that were going on,” Friesen said of other delegates. “In our community, the rec centres are open to bring people in if they need it. The hotels are being filled up… we’re in it together.”
When asked why helping evacuees feels like a shared responsibility in the region, Friesen answered, “If you were in the situation yourself, you’d want to know that somebody is there to help you.” He said, adding that this gave the Stronger Together theme extra weight, “It just feels like we need to work together more.”
A valuable experience
Looking back, Friesen said the conference was time well spent. “It was a success. It’s always good to talk to others who are also in leadership,” he said, “Gives you a little boost when you get back. It’s just a nice thing to do to relate to others that are in the same leadership.”
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