Laura Lee Langley: ‘Let’s be leaders who not only see the vision, but make it happen’

Laura Lee Langley received the 2024 Frank McKenna Award at a ceremony at Pier 21 in Halifax. An institution in Nova Scotia government, Langley is currently the President of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). In her acceptance speech, she talks about the importance of public policy work — and the ascendancy of her region:

This honour is more than a recognition of individual achievement. It is a testament to the collective spirit and collaborative efforts of those I’ve had the privilege to work with over the years. So many of you are here this evening. My new colleagues from ACOA who have welcomed me with open minds and hearts, ready for Atlantic Canada to take a bigger place in this world — and we will. And I feel the weight of being honoured in the company of former honourees like Zita Cobb and Cathy Bennett and Karen Oldfield, all of whom I admire tremendously for their big brains, their bold thinking and their passion for getting things done.

Public policy development is a team sport and the public administration theories that guide our work are complex, if not imperfect, constructs, because our work is about the real-life experiences of real people. It’s the instruction manual of how to live. How we live as families, neighbours, communities, and how we experience life. It’s about possibility, designed at points in time, with hopes for safe, prosperous futures in vast systems that are always colliding: departments, agencies, commissions, jurisdictions, things that really slow us down. And we have long suffered silos, which in my career I have worked ever so hard to bust so that we might see collective impact in areas of policy thinking — because when it’s boiled down, the thing that I think we need to care about is: can we draw a line from that policy table to the citizen and make that connection, or those synapses, fire?

What we do in public service means making decisions and giving advice that influences the lives of people. Public policy impacts everyone, and it is the foundation of who we are.

The Honourable Frank McKenna is a champion of place-based policies that address regional disparities and capitalize on regional advantages. To be associated with this fuels my determination to continue to be a voice for Atlantic Canada. And my friends, we are having a moment. We are having a moment that must be seized, and we must run with it, because the indicators tell me, if we do, 10 years from now, our children and our grandchildren will be living in an Atlantic Canada that is an economic powerhouse.

On July 1, 2023, the population of Atlantic Canada was 2.6 million people. That’s a 2.8 percent increase over July 1 of 2022, which might not sound like a lot, but it’s the strongest annual growth rate here since 1952.

Nova Scotia’s port infrastructure and proximity to Europe and the United States makes it a potential export nexus for hydrogen. And right now, there are eight large-scale wind to hydrogen projects advancing at various levels across this region. Atlantic Canada is emerging as a potential global leader in the production and export of clean hydrogen. In ocean tech, our blue economy ecosystem is in the top 10 of the world, creating 350,000 jobs here, and it’s worth more than half of Canada’s $30 billion ocean economy. The port of Saint John is busting at the seams. In P.E.I, the bioscience sector has quadrupled in size in the past decade. BioAlliance is one of Canada’s best examples of cluster-based, private sector-led economic development in the bio economy, and Nova Scotia’s Neptune project could be groundbreaking. The mineral industry in Newfoundland and Labrador creates 9,000 jobs. New Brunswick has a foothold in cybersecurity with the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity and the Cyber Centre. And the McKenna Institute is a collision space for discovery and transformative thinking. The invitation is open for innovators, entrepreneurs and big thinkers to advance and trigger possibility in the digital world.

These represent possibilities that together, the people in this room can make happen. Let’s not let this moment pass. We must respond with urgency and purpose, and trust me, it is there for us. Let’s be leaders who not only see the vision, but make it happen.

I’ve been surrounded by people my whole life who’ve inspired me, challenged me, mentored me, believed in me. A couple who tossed me out — that was important, very important. But more importantly, I learned a lot about myself and about what it means to be in public service. This accolade is as much theirs as it is mine. Mentors saw potential in me when I was searching, their wisdom has been my fuel. My peers, many of whom are here tonight, have become best friends. Their camaraderie and their shared ambition have fueled my drive, and their partnership has been invaluable.

I’ve been able to lead bright minds, but more importantly, learn from them, and I’m ever so grateful for them, because they push us through the boundaries to the future. To my family: I couldn’t do this work without your support and your patience, and I want to thank you. And Mom, you and Dad made me believe I could do anything. So the values that you ingrained in me at a young age — above all, work really hard and be kind — are ever-guiding lights. My deepest gratitude to the Public Policy Forum for this incredible honour. Thank you, merci.

This transcript has been edited for length and clarity.