Endorsement: Richard Walsh-Bowers, Independent

Unlike other candidates who are running for specified parties, independent candidate Richard Walsh-Bowers is not limited by a particular party’s platform and views. As such, he has free range to focus on issues that pertain specifically to our illustrious city.

The five key issues that Walsh-Bowers focuses his campaign on include the economic, environmental, social, democratic and international-relations problems that face Kitchener-Waterloo and Canada. A key aspect of his platform that illustrates his awareness and desire for positive and practical change is that he acknowledges how these five issues are all interdependent and have great effects on one another. A focus on prevention, for instance, has the potential to cut economic costs while simultaneously promoting environmental initiatives and cutting down on health problems.

Aside from his acknowledgement and focus on these important issues, Walsh-Bowers has the integrity, compassion, and work ethic to effectively represent Kitchener-Waterloo at the federal level.

Walsh-Bowers is a trained community psychologist who has worked as a clinical psychologist and is now teaching at Wilfrid Laurier University. Consequently, he values education and has an acute awareness of the struggles that post-secondary students face both economically and emotionally. Furthermore, this training and these experiences have provided him with the ability to work cooperatively with others while promoting change rather than redundant discourse. In this regard, Walsh-Bowers has a captivating personality and problem-solving skills that allow him to engage with others who have varied points of view.

His ability to work with others while promoting prevention and effective solutions is a key strength that will contribute to him being an effective member of parliament.
According to Walsh-Bowers, one of the fundamental problems facing us all is that our current economic system is “trashing the planet.” In an interview with Mike Farwell on 570 News, Wash-Bowers stated, “We must shift to a zero-growth, low-carbon, locally-based cooperative society.”

Making these changes will lead to positive outcomes and a healthy future. In this sense, having an effective economic and environmental system in place in which interdependence is acknowledged and promoted is much more conducive to positive change than is attempting to separate and solve issues in an isolated manner. Basic ideas like these may be implemented with enough support and the passion and leadership of innovative individuals like Walsh-Bowers.

Read Peter Braid’s endorsement

Read Bill Brown’s endorsement

Read Julian Ichim’s endorsement

Read Cathy MacLellan’s endorsement

Read Steven Bradley Scott’s endorsement

Read Andrew Telegdi’s endorsement

Walsh-Bowers is a dynamic and creative thinker whose platform concerns go beyond fixing issues to preventing problems and promoting a healthy future.
Although Walsh-Bowers has much to offer Kitchener-Waterloo, as an independent candidate, he faces more challenges in terms of obtaining support than do party candidates who have the advantage of being a part of a known entity.

Although being an independent candidate may work against Walsh-Bowers’ odds, it is in effect a beneficial attribute when it comes to being a non-partisan representative. As noted, this is because he is not bound to particular party platforms and instead can focus on issues that are directly to Canadians and his constituents.

Laura Sedgwick is currently a fourth-year student at Wilfrid Laurier University and frequent contributor to The Cord