Paul McLauchlin was elected President of Rural Municipalities of Alberta (RMA) at the Fall Convention in November 2020. He is a Ponoka County councillor and is currently the Reeve of Ponoka County and President of RMA. He is also in his fourteenth year as the facilitator for the Battle Lake Watershed Synergy Group, a mechanism for resource developers (oil and gas) and communities to discuss issues, concerns, and mutually beneficial development goals.

McLauchlin’s professional background is multi-faceted. He is a field biologist, environmental scientist, works in public consultation and communications, and is also a resource/conservation management specialist. His consulting business is in the area of project management, multi-stakeholder programs, ecological, indigenous, and socio-economic, predevelopment assessment, and public consultations for resource and energy projects. This diverse background will be helpful as he leads RMA during its advocacy on issues including a potential Alberta Police Force or a national energy strategy. The oil and gas industry being an employer and tax base for many rural municipalities, McLauchlin has been advocating for the creation of an innovative strategy that involves rural municipalities because they bring a closeness to the issue, allowing these communities to thrive.

McLauchlin holds an MBA in Finance with the University of Leicester, where he researched the barriers and motives of renewable investment of households in rural Alberta. McLauchlin also sits on the Board of Governors of Old College.