This weekend, my team and I held a political workshop at the University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM). We had an amazing turnout and an inspiring keynote speaker, Gerard Kennedy.

The purpose of the workshop was demystify politics and breakdown the misconceptions about access to being able to participate in the political landscape. Most people, particularly youth, perceive politics to be a distant world disconnected from commons sense and the needs of people. It is considered exclusive to the connected few and impossible to influence.

That is why these type of sessions are extremely important. We discussed fundamentals and the simple basics of politics. How is the government structured? How are governments elected? How does our political system work? Such elements demonstrate how accessible and open the Canadian political system is. People are generally surprised when they learn how simple our system is and how easy to reach are the tools for making a difference in politics and by extension addressing the needs of Canadians.

Politics is nothing more than an instrument to advance the well being of citizens. At times, it gets dominated by what appears to be inconsequential bickering turning people off and increasing their cynicism. This unhealthy trend, if not confronted, will continue to erode our democracy and our citizen’s involvement in choosing their destiny.

Our country becomes better when more citizens get involved in politics. By getting involved, I don’t mean, every citizen has turn into an activist. It means that we start demolishing any barriers (real or perceived) that stand in the way of people believing in their political system. That also doesn’t mean that one has to believe that our system is flawless. In fact, our system needs many improvements. However, these improvements will not happen if new ideas coming from concerned citizens are not put forward with vigour and commitment.

Politics is not just about campaigns during elections and it’s not just about winning. Those are all means to an end. The objective is to advance the interests of Canadians and politics is just the marketplace of ideas where policies compete.

Hopefully last weekend’s session (this was our third in less than a year) will inform people and empower them. The ideas circulating within politics will get stagnant and rusty if more people care less about them. The irony is that the less engaged people are the more politicians will be able to get away with things.

Get involved for your sake, the sake of your family, your neighbourhood, your city, your province, your country and the world.