#73 - Staying True to Your Principles with Jeff Lieper

Jeffrey Leiper is the current Ottawa city councillor for Kitchissippi Ward. He was first elected in the Ottawa municipal election, 2014. Leiper was born and raised in Ottawa. He studied History and English at the University of Ottawa, and Print Journalism at Algonquin College. As a youth, Leiper was a member of the youth wing of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada, though he is now a committed progressive. He has lived in Kitchissippi Ward since 1995 when he and his spouse Natalie moved into the Julian Apartments in the Wellington West area. Today, he lives in Hintonburg with Natalie and their son. In this podcast Jeff talks shares his motivations for getting into politics, what are his principles are and what it means to be courageous. He touches on how quality of life should influence policy and planning and some of the Climate initiatives including the recently declared Climate Emergency and the ongoing energy evolution and on the personal side adapting to work and life after his recent heart attack.  Episode Timeline 3:30  - Introduction -  Jeff's appreciation for community and his reason for entering politics  10:00  - Mindset and dealing with criticism, what it means to be courageous  18:20 What is quality life and how it influences policy and guidelines  34:00 -  Daily complaints and Issues  43:00 - Climate Emergency  55:00 - Life after a heart attack    Episode Links https://kitchissippiward.ca​ Social Media Facebook​ ​Twitter  Instagram Sponsor Offer Gingko Promo for Podcast Listeners Quote At the end of the day you just try to be true to a certain set of principles, and when the trolls comes out, if you've done your work and stayed true to your principles and been courageous in your pursuit, a lot of the negative comments will roll off. Some of it stings, everyday someone will be hypercritical of something that you are pursuing or a decision you've made, or a process that hasn't turned out the way they want. But if you can go to bed, staying true to your principles, being open minded, did I do the right thing, than ultimately it will roll off, it's a huge rollercoaster" --Jeff Leiper