Developing an Informed Opinion

•I have the right to heat my home and drive my car.

•Oil is absolutely essential to my way of life, so nothing should stop oil extraction.

•Air conditioning is not a luxury; rather, it is essential to Canadian business – nothing should be

allowed to interfere with energy supplies.

Lubicon Cree:Building to the Crisis

• What was the first event in the chain that led to the situation the Lubicon Cree find themselves in today?– The discovery of oil in Lubicon territory in 1952.– Or was there another event?– Where does the war in the Middle East (Yom

Kippur - 1973) fit into this chain of events?

What did everyone want?• The Lubicon Cree?

• OPEC?

• The Alberta Government?

• Local and International Industries?

• Resource Users (like us)?

*These, and others with an interest or concern in this situation, are known as Stakeholders.

Lubicon Cree and Global Connections

Alberta Government Inquiry Panel:Resolving the Lubicon Cree ‘Issue’

• After getting into your assigned ‘stakeholder’ group, you have five minutes to prepare a short speech, answering the following question:“How should the challenges that face the Lubicon Cree

be resolved?”• Each stakeholder will have one spokesperson who has

30 seconds to be heard and should focus on their stakeholders specific concerns as to why they should not be left out of the ‘solution’.

• All those who are not speaking are apart of the ‘panel’ and need to act respectfully.

Developing an Informed Opinion

• What is the difference between:

An Opinion and….

An Informed Opinion?

* Informed opinions include the gathering of many points of view and perspectives and judging the reliability of sources

Steps to Developing an Informed Position

1. Consider Many Perspectives – List the Stakeholders and Examples of What Their Perspectives might be

2. Decide Where to Look for Information3. Evaluate the Strengths and Weaknesses of the

Information Sources4. Compare Your Ideas with Others

Create a chart (like the one on page 35) to organize your information

Use the examples already filled in if you want

Is it ever possible to have an unbiased point of view?

• Most of us have opinions on most things.• Do you feel upset, angry, happy or nervous when

certain issues, ideas or opinions are presented to you?• How can you be aware of your feelings and deal with

them as best as you can to make unbiased decisions?

People may be biased to some degree about most things in life, but this bias need not affect their point of view to such an extent that their opinion on the issue is not

valid.