Although he didn’t have designs to run, Mr. Arthur knew that if asked, he wouldn’t turn it down.

And then, a longtime Bay of Quinte Liberal asked if he would put his name forward.

“If people want me to step up, I’ll step up,” Mr. Arthur said. 

He was warned early on that there was a chance he might be too late to meet the nomination deadline. 

“I put out a social media post saying I needed 25 signatures in support.”

 “Well, that blew up. It got more than 8,000 views in a very short window. I got letters of reference, and while that was all happening I did in fact hear that I was too late for the nomination.”

The Liberals of the Bay of Quinte selected the Belleville municipal councillor and former Intelligencer editor, Chris Malette, for the nomination.

Mr. Arthur doesn’t have any concrete plans to run in the future, but he wouldn’t rule it out if asked again.

“I’ve got a big voice and I’m not afraid to use my big voice,” he said. 

Meanwhile, he’s been travelling the country lecturing on sustainable agriculture, an important way to create food secure communities. 

“When I opened Carson’s Garden Market, it was with the intention of focusing on food insecurity,” he notes. 

That includes advocacy, as well as partnerships with Gleaners Food Bank in Belleville and The StoreHouse Food Bank in Wellington. 

Recent world events, including supply chain disruptions, the pandemic, and trade upheavals, have people thinking more about where their food comes from. 

“When the pandemic happened, I think that it highlighted for a lot of people that we look to other countries to provide things we should be growing ourselves,” he said. 

There is a noticeable uptick in people who not only want to grow, but grow sustainably, in tune with the environment. 

“People are starting to look at the purchases they’re making for their outdoor spaces. They’re starting to move away from landscape plants: plants in the garden that are pretty but that don’t give back.”

Plants that “give back,” are vegetables and fruits, and the flowers that support pollinators. This means people are shifting away from lawns in favour of native grasses and meadows. 

Carson’s Garden + Market has become a hub for workshops on gardening and cooking. 

“When we moved to Prince Edward County I decided that this was the spot I wanted to put down roots,” he said. 

As for the upcoming election, his advises voters to “vote for the party you feel will do the best job to meet your needs.” 

“Even if you feel that party doesn’t have a chance, it’s still sending a message that that party’s values align with yours.”