Keenan Yang 杨楠 Interview collection | 2026 BC election

Keenan Yang (杨楠) | Ep. 1: A Scientist Runs for Office | 2026 BC Election Interview

https://youtu.be/XJhYTHl7fUo

(Transcript from the episode's English subtitles, translated from the Chinese interview; speakers not labelled. Host: Sarah Yu.)

[0:00] Highlights

Lately, in Vancouver's Chinese community, a lot of people are talking about you, saying, "Even scientists are running for office now!" What's the motivation behind this? What I want to say is that the government workforce is aging, and a lot of the ways of working are still very traditional. That includes our own company. Some of our older managers, the people in management — even now, they can rarely use AI or computers fluently, things like that. During the pandemic, when we held meetings on Teams or Google Meet online, a lot of them just couldn't get on. - And they needed training. - Right. They had to get trained first, and then every time they logged on, it was really chaotic — people kept dropping off and coming back.

[0:38] An international student since 2014

Could you introduce yourself for us? Sure! My name is Keenan Yang. Everyone calls me Keenan, and my Chinese name is Yang Nan. I came to Canada in 2014 as an international student. At UBC, I studied hydrogeological engineering, so now I'm actually working in my field. I'm a full-time environmental engineer. Right now my work is mainly about environmental contamination in land development, including water, soil and air. So I'm actually what everyone wanted to be as a kid: a scientist.

[1:06] Technology in government — without cutting jobs

So in running for office, you want to bring new high-tech ideas and new workflows into city hall and the provincial government, right? Yes, that's one of them: efficiency. Bringing high technology and AI into the actual work we do, because it can really boost productivity. Of course, we can't do it at the cost of jobs.

[1:26] Arriving alone in Vancouver

So you came to Vancouver in 2014, right? As an international student. So, were there times you felt lonely, or nights when you couldn't sleep, all alone, trying to make it here — those kinds of hard times? Actually, from the moment I arrived, everyone I met was very friendly. The landlord of the first place I rented picked me up at the airport. Then he brought me straight here and had me get my driver's licence, then drove me to the US to buy duty-free bedding, shoes, that kind of stuff.

[1:56] Skydiving and flying planes

Do you have any special hobbies? My hobbies are pretty wide-ranging. Some high-risk adventure sports, like skydiving and flying planes. That's impressive! So would you say that you're kind of a tomboy at heart? Yes, I'm actually pretty... I mean, I've got a woman's body with a man's heart — Superman! Superwoman. - Superwoman. - Supergirl.

[2:18] Surfing without swimming

Surfing. I can't swim, but I love every kind of water sport. That's pretty dangerous too. If you can't swim and you fall in while surfing, you'd have no way to save yourself. I'm not afraid of water, because when you surf, isn't your foot tied to the board with a leash? So if you fall in, if you hold your breath for 60 seconds, you'll come up one way or another.

[2:34] Bold, and bringing others along

I think, by nature, you're someone who's really bold and daring. So you have the style and traits of a reformer. There's a bit of that. Sometimes I can be unwilling to settle. Right, like... liking what's new, liking to explore things in new fields. Right. Not one to play by the rules. And I really stick to what I believe in. I hope more people can be like me, too. So sometimes we actually hold in-person meetups for women or people our age. We share our experiences, and sometimes things people want to do but don't dare, we talk it over and do them together.

[3:04] An ordinary person in politics

For us women, especially young, accomplished women, what spirit would you like to pass on to everyone? First of all, I want to set an example. And that example is... On Xiaohongshu (RedNote), I go by "an ordinary person entering politics." Meaning that, honestly, before this I didn't have much political experience, and my family didn't have any resources in this area either. But when you set out to do something, if you really work hard at it, you'll eventually move toward success. As for how far you get in this life on the road to success, who knows. But there have to be people who keep pushing forward in this direction, one after another. So what I want to do is actively encourage Chinese Canadians to get into politics, and actively encourage white-collar workers like me. During this campaign,

[3:43] Voters who don't know how voting works

I've actually noticed a lot of problems. For one, a lot of voters in Richmond, when it comes to voting and elections, actually know nothing at all. Lately I've been educating many friends about all this, like the difference between civic and provincial elections, why this year there's a provincial election, how the Premier is chosen, how many people sit on city council, how they make decisions, can I vote separately in provincial and civic elections? So many questions. they just don't know. Right, a lot of people don't know.

[4:11] Politics in Canada comes from the heart

So what do you think — for these people, going into politics, deep down, what is it they're really aiming for? In Canada, going into politics has to come from the heart. If you're in it for personal gain, you basically won't get it here. So people in politics here basically all start from the heart. Meaning, I feel the people around me really do have this need, so I'll stand up as their representative. The motive isn't money or self-interest; it's that I really want to do this.

[4:34] Facing opposition

So if people oppose you, or you run into major difficulties, have you ever given up, or felt discouraged inside? I do. Sometimes I feel discouraged or upset, because around us, there really are a lot of opposing voices. Or rather, it's not really opposition. It's a bit like your mom telling you it's all for your own good. There's a lot of that kind of talk coming your way. People are really taking their own insecurities and anxieties and basically grafting them onto you, projecting them onto you. But founding a party and keeping it going — this is something we'll definitely see through to the end. It's like you've already had a baby. You've already had a child. Even if you think the child isn't good-looking, you can't exactly stuff them back in, right? You still have to educate them well and raise them. Because the moment you decide to have a child, you're responsible for their first 18 years. And the moment we founded this party, we became responsible for its growth and for making it stronger.

[5:21] Worried families and boundaries

Right. Honestly, in the Chinese community, a lot of people... it's basically like when we were kids, right? Family and friends around us would put lots of their worries on us. But these worries aren't necessarily... Not necessarily bad. Right, they're not bad. But they don't really reflect your actual situation. Right. So we also need to learn how to set boundaries with them. That's why I also say, as a candidate, you need a really strong mindset.

[5:51] Resilience

Mindset. Also, I once heard Jensen Huang say that resilience — your resilience — is what our times need most. Whatever industry you're in, you'll get bent. Right. That resilience is so important. Very true. Because in today's society, if you do nothing, you're never wrong; the more you do, the more you're blamed. It's like, for example, say you're in a community group and you say, "All right, I'll organize an event." When you propose an event, everyone in the group will chime in with different ideas: "Do it this way," "Do it that way." But when you don't hold an event, nobody else will either.

[6:25] 40 politics explainer videos

Actually, I think you could also use some online strategies so that your videos, or your social media, can spread a little faster. You'll also see that on my social media, I've been uploading videos one after another. Early on, I talked it over with my team, and we made 40 topics, basically Canadian Politics 101 questions. For example, how much does an MLA earn? Can you run if you don't speak English? If you weren't born in Canada, or don't speak French, can you become Premier? Questions like these that people are curious about but don't really know the answers to. Fairly light topics. Right. Each episode is roughly one to two minutes, explaining one of these questions. I'm gradually uploading these videos, and I can see the view counts are actually decent on WeChat, Xiaohongshu (RedNote) and YouTube. And now I'm also making English versions for Instagram and Facebook. So I think the reach is decent. Even if I don't get elected this year, I think this thing I've done, giving people a basic political education, is my contribution too. That's great!

Keenan Yang (杨楠) | Ep. 2: Looking Past the Surface | 2026 BC Election Interview

https://youtu.be/dAapUmpw0iU

(Transcript from the episode's English subtitles, translated from the Chinese interview; speakers not labelled. Host: Sarah Yu.)

[0:00] Highlights

Our next topic is what people these days call housing affordability, and the pressure of the cost of living. Do you have any good ideas for solving the current problems? Look past the surface to the root — the main thing is really the economy. Once the economy is doing well, all the problems — well, not all problems, but most problems can be solved.

[0:20] A scientist's platform

So, can you tell us about your platform? Because we'd also like to hear what an outstanding young scientist is thinking — and especially, what kind of new platform she's putting forward. My platform — is actually pretty grassroots. Most of it comes from my friends, residents in the community — things I gathered while visiting them, areas people generally want us to support. And I also have my own work experience and education, plus my own strengths, so I'd lean more toward carrying out certain policies once I'm able to take office. To give you an example, take

[0:55] Drug houses and injection sites

an issue most residents care about: the drug problem. For me and our party, it's definitely zero tolerance. Whether it's drug houses or drug injection sites, we're definitely zero tolerance — that's our platform. But zero tolerance doesn't mean it can't be touched at all. What we really advocate is education about drugs. We can educate high school students early, or people with addiction, or even people curious about drugs, or even those with pain or illness who need these drugs. We want to give them education ahead of time, and tell them about the types of drugs, precautions for using them, what to do if they become addicted, and if you actively want to quit, what resources to turn to.

[1:31] How the party decides

So, in the CanWest Party's platform, which policy do you think makes you feel the proudest and happiest — your real highlight? That's in line with our slogan, which is "When the people call, we answer." "When the people call, we answer." That's a really powerful line. Yes. We spent a long time thinking about how to phrase this line, because it had to be powerful in both Chinese and English. What is it in English? In English, it's "Your voice, my action." "You speak up, we act." And in Chinese, put more classically, it's "When the people call, we answer." So all of our platform and policies come from the people. What we really want to say is, if we're elected, then in the future, when issues come up for debate, we'll first run a poll in our riding — polling on what people are calling for most, and why, what the pros and cons of doing it are, and only then will we go and cast that all-important vote.

[2:23] Housing and the cost of living

Our next topic is what people these days call housing affordability, and the pressure of the cost of living. Actually, right now across Canada, probably 70 or 80 percent — most people are probably struggling. In this situation, do you have any good ideas for solving the current problems? Look past the surface to the root — the main thing is really the economy. Once the economy is doing well, all the problems — well, not all problems, but most problems can be solved. So take housing, the affordability problem — whether it's interest rates being too high, or mortgages being too high, or home prices being too high, or even property taxes being too high — all these problems, if our economy picks up, and everyone's income, their after-tax income, reaches a certain level, or their own business is doing well, and they have some extra income of their own, then it's really not a problem anymore. Because if you look at historical data, prices and the cost of living always go up, and home prices always go up, too. So we can't stop the historical trend, which is inflation, right? Every year, inflation is around 4% or more, so even if you do nothing at all, things will still go up.

[3:27] Incomes must outpace inflation

You can't have only prices going up while your wages and income don't. So in other words, if economic growth comes first, and your income always rises faster than inflation or the rising cost of living, then people really wouldn't worry.

[3:41] Tariffs and investment

Right. The main issue now is wages aren't rising; some are even out of work. Yes. For instance, I have a lot of friends who wanted to invest here from overseas or build factories, but once tariffs came up, they all backed off. Because going from overseas into Canada or into the US, the tariffs were already there to begin with. If tariffs between us and the US go up too, then where they build the factory doesn't matter anymore. And actually, there used to be a lot of people keen to invest who wanted to come to Canada — BC, Vancouver, even places like Richmond. A lot of things had already reached the planning stage. Some had even come to look at factory buildings and land. But the tariff issue really made them back off. And honestly, Canada has vast land and a sparse population. A lot of the land is really ideal for building factories.

[4:23] AI and jobs

If you take office, on the issue of employment, what's your stance? Say AI comes along — do we still need to protect the number or share of jobs our people have, or what? Is the employment rate also something you're working toward? The employment rate actually reflects how stable a society is. When unemployment is too high and employment too low, lots of social stability problems start to show up. Why do we have problems like shoplifting? It really comes down to jobs. But when high tech like AI comes along, you can't just reject it and not use it. All you can do is manage the speed and direction of its use. You can control the direction it's used in, and the people using it. My main idea is basically this: we can apply AI, and then have people do work above what AI does. In effect, you hand the basic work over to basic systems.

[5:21] Free training

Some people don't know how, so we need more training programs. And actually, the Canadian government has a lot of free ones like this. So really, we need to make these more accessible to everyone. That way, when AI comes in, you become someone who masters AI. Right.

[5:35] The Richmond-Steveston riding

This time, you're running around No. 3 Road, right? And south of Blundell. In the southwest corner of Richmond. Southwest corner. No. 3 Road, Blundell, and the area going south from there is the best, I think — the culture, the scenery. Do you think you have a strong chance of winning this time? I wouldn't say I have a strong chance, but the Richmond-Steveston riding is the riding whose result is most likely to surprise you. Because the MLA from last term isn't running this year, so effectively there's no incumbent seeking re-election. So everyone's platforms and policies, how much door-knocking they do, how voters lean — it's really hard to predict.

[6:13] Coffee-shop town halls

What are some ways you're hoping to get yourself out there? Right now, in Steveston, Richmond, at a local coffee shop, I've been holding community talks there. I get people in this community, through my friends, to bring along their neighbours. We have these roundtable-style sessions, where everyone talks openly. We've already held two of them, and both went pretty well. Of course, every kind of person and view, we respect them all. But we really do need to hear what people think. I can't hide away in an ivory tower and just develop on my own. So I listen to the views in support and the views against. Last Friday, about 12 people came. Thank you. We had a pretty happy chat, the two of us. Yes, yes, yes.