The City of Brooks is a small city in South-Eastern Alberta, Canada with a population of about 14,000.  Brooks is situated in the middle of the Canadian Prairies where farming and ranching has been an integral part of our culture for over 100 years.  Situated in one of Alberta’s most active gas fields and home to 200 production and service companies, Brooks has excelled in the oil and gas industry.  There are 26,000 wells in the area and several major oil and gas regional offices.   Today, the oil and gas industry is a central driving force for its economy.

The beautiful, unique surroundings are second to none and for decades, people have been migrating to its region to find work.  Situated just east of Brooks is XL Foods Inc. / Lakeside Packers, a large meat processing plant which employs 2,400 people.  Lakeside is the largest private employer in South-Eastern Alberta and is only getting bigger. To boost its output, Lakeside has been combing the world to find talented and skilled recruits.  Due to the high availability of work, many members of the community have come to Brooks and Canada as refugees, temporary foreign workers, or immigrants.  Brooks has become a highly multicultural community with over 87 different languages spoken.

When living in a multi-cultural society, particularly in a small urban centre, there is an increased chance that residents will encounter barriers against the development of individual and groups.  Racism and discrimination divide communities, pose a serious threat to peaceful coexistence and aggravate inequalities within society.  Because local government functions at the most practical level and are most involved in the lives of residents, proactive governance, polices, programs and events can go a long way towards eliminating this threat and improving the quality of life in multi-cultural communities. The following are Brooks’ learned lessons about governing in a multi-cultural community, making magic out of some unique programs and projects.