Meet Barbara (Babs) Weber, the interim Alberta Social Innovation Connect facilitator. A former ABSI volunteer and network weaver, Babs comes to this role with a love of peering into nature, people, history and how those three things intertwine in ways that form who we are as humans. She believes Bob Marley had it right when he sang, "if you know your history, then you will know where I'm coming from; then you wouldn't have to ask me, who the heck do I think I am." She likes trying to help people understand the different experiences that lead to who we are as humans. She believes understanding leads to action, which breaks barriers and builds equity.
Between getting degrees in archaeology and museum studies and a career working in natural spaces, museums, and supporting social purpose organizations, Babs had the opportunity for some really cool experiences. She's participated in archaeological digs on two continents. She presented conference papers on interrogating beer making in the archaeological record and using queer theory to examine the relationships between sex and gender in Anglo Saxon grave goods. She hid smells in museum galleries to experiment with visitor experiences, and used touchable artifacts to explore nature and history from the ancient Romans to modern Canadian prairie farmers and coal miners. She once lived in an old stable hayloft that had been converted to house Land Army Girls in the Second World War. Her favourite walking tour she's ever written was one that used the cheap hook of thrilling historical crime to get people thinking about racism, sexism, public policy and systemic bias in the judicial system. She's even made organizational governance exciting and program logic models fun.
In her spare time, Babs enjoys birdwatching, hiking, otters, volunteering, hoarding textile craft supplies, and tea. Her favourite Star Trek series is Deep Space Nine, and her favourite season of Drag Race is Season 3. She lives in Fort McMurray with her husband Christopher and an ever-growing assortment of plants.