Gladys Atrill has spent much of her life thinking about how a small town stays strong.
The mayor of Smithers brings that perspective to resource development. She does not frame forestry, mining or agriculture as stand-alone sectors. She sees them as threads in a larger civic fabric.
Atrill, a lifelong Smithereen, was first elected to council in 2014 and became mayor in 2020. She has also worked in tourism and outdoor recreation, including with Tourism Smithers and regional development organizations. That experience is why she views economic diversity as the bedrock of community resilience.
That idea sits at the centre of her message.
“Diversity is king when it comes to community health,” she said.
Smithers is a perfect example of this in action. The town grew with forestry, mining, transportation and agriculture. It still depends on those sectors. But she argues its strength comes from not relying too heavily on any one of them.
Diversity as a form of resilience
Atrill rejects any characterization of Smithers as a single-industry town.
“One of the things about my community that stood us well is that we’re not … an anything community,” she said.
That diversity, she argues, cushions downturns. One sector may soften while another carries momentum.
Forestry serves as a prime example. Uncertainty exists. Yet she noted Smithers still has a strong mill, a skilled workforce and a fibre supply agreement that supports confidence.
But the impact of these industries goes well beyond the balance sheet. Resource sectors create jobs as well as sustaining volunteerism, local culture and social life.
“If people have a reasonable employment security, those are the same folks that will be coaching our hockey teams … and volunteering and giving life to the community.”
That argument gives resource development a wider civic meaning. It is not only about payrolls or exports. It is about what allows a town to function.
Beyond the urban and rural divide
Atrill resists framing resource debates as urban versus rural.
“I don’t want to create that urban, rural divide. We’re all in this together,” she said.
Her message to those in large urban centres is to approach resource communities with curiosity, not assumption.
Her advice was simple: engage. Visit a town, talk to the residents, tour a mill, or drive a forest road. Actually seeing how these industries operate on the ground is the best way to move past assumptions.
Her point is simple: misconceptions fade when we actually show up. We build understanding by seeing things firsthand.
Atrill also pushed back on the idea that sustainability and development sit in opposition.
“We ought to be able to” have environmental sustainability and industrial growth, she said.
She argued responsible development depends on accountability, informed citizens and expectations that industry perform well.
That is not a call for lower standards. It is a call for balance—stewardship and development succeed together or fail together.
Calm thinking in a volatile time
Atrill returned often to one word: calm.
It was her touchstone, whether she was discussing voters, governments, or policy.
“I want rational thought. I don’t want them to overreact,” she said of senior decision-makers.
That emphasis may be her sharpest warning.
Bad policy, she fears, is often the result of haste, polarization, or oversimplified answers.
Her answer is adaptive policy, better information and a willingness to correct mistakes.
Voters, too, are encouraged to dig a little deeper.
“Try to read things that are a little longer. Try to get your attention span a little deeper,” she said.
That line lands beyond municipal politics. It is a critique of shallow public debate.
For Atrill, durable resource policy requires something unfashionable in modern politics: patience.
Her optimism, however, remains grounded.
It comes from the landscape, from community ties and from what she calls “the wealth of the people that we have.”
That may be her core argument.
Resource communities endure not only because of what they produce, but because of the social trust they build.
Ian Biana writes for the Resource Works Accelerate team and can be reached at [email protected].
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