I would like to say that I took some time off from WABE over the holidays, but that would be a big fat lie. The executive team of Cameron Thompson, Rob Brown, and I have been messaging, emailing, and meeting in hopes of having the final decisions for our Edmonton conference ready to release and share with everyone in February. If you came to British Columbia and experienced WABE in North Vancouver, we are hopeful to build upon some of that conference’s success. I have never been more sure that our industry needs WABE. I write these newsletters between my kitchen table, in my head on the way to the transmitter site, or sneak in a paragraph while I’m at the arena on a Winnipeg Jets game day. The conversations I share with others in the industry when I talk about the volunteer work I do at WABE are what drive me to actually know that the work we are doing is worthwhile. On the surface looking in and considering our historic humble beginnings, WABE is a convention held by Broadcast Engineers for Broadcast Engineers. What has changed, though, over the decades is that it is not just Broadcast Engineers who spend their days working, installing, repairing, and operating the technology our vendors and suppliers support.

So this is the challenge I have set for myself this year to bring realization to our Mission Statements we developed in our Strategic Planning into the forefront to help achieve our vision statement. 

Our MISSION (How):

WABE’s mission is to empower professional learning through networking, research, and community.

Our VISION (Future):

WABE’s Vision is a connected Media and Entertainment Technology Industry and their ideas.

WABE has never been about who you work for; it has always been about the work you do. WABE, every year in its annual convention, creates an open, collective meeting space to come together to share, connect, and learn. We all do unique things in media, and we often have slightly different roles depending on where our employers and skills are required. These collective roles, from transmission to distribution, from content creation to technical service, from operations to suppliers, make up pieces of a larger industry. An industry that is constantly shifting and changing, and faster than ever.

I am not naive to these changes. For example, the television station I started at had 100 people 20 years ago, and now it has only a few handfuls. However, 10 years ago, there wasn’t a full broadcast department at the Legislature in Manitoba; just a PR department with a podium and a backdrop. There wasn’t an AV service department at the University of Manitoba that continues to grow for marketing and internal communications to deliver educational content to their students and beyond. Basketball games my son played could only be seen in person, and this past year, my dad who lives two hours away, can watch them live on YouTube.

WABE has been around for all these changes, when radio made room for television, television made room for the internet, and the internet unveiled a never-ending list of business uses for capturing, creating, and distributing content.   

What I do see for 2024 is that this appears to be the year advertising is back in fashion.  Not that I’m surprised, we know content be made for free. People are listening, watching, and interacting with content made right here in Canada and so our industry continues another year into the future.

Make sure to sign up for our mailing list so you hear about what we have planned and how you can get involved.  We are looking for some energetic volunteers in Edmonton so reach out to executive@wabe.ca if you think you would like to be apart of what we are building towards . 

At WABE we have ambitious plans, a tight budget, volunteer labor but a desire to keep this organization sustainable and future ready.

For those in Edmonton this year, we can’t wait to welcome you to the future of WABE. To our supporters, vendors, and long-time WABE friends, we are listening, thinking, and moving forward with our plans to make WABE the organization we all need and want to be a part of.

Tessa Potter

President

executive@wabe.ca

wabe.ca