Calgary: city of blue sky.

That’s the city’s new motto unveiled by Calgary Economic Development and Tourism Calgary on Wednesday, replacing “Be Part of the Energy,” ushering in a new era of branding.

The groups’ strategists say this new brand is a nod to innovation (Calgary is a city of blue sky thinking) and that it reflects all Calgarians.

The new tagline is also a nod to Calgary being one of the sunniest cities in Canada, which Tourism Calgary CEO Cindy Ady said reflects an important part of the branding process.

“That’s the thing about any brand: It has to be true,” Ady said. “And certainly when it comes to sunshine and blue skies, the same is true in Calgary.”

A marketing specialist told CBC News she believes the new slogan sends a positive message.

AnneMarie Dorland, assistant professor of marketing at Mount Royal University, says the new slogan will likely resonate with more people beyond the energy sector.

“There’s a whole group of humans who still think of Calgary as the pride of the West and Howdy and Hidy of the Olympics, until ‘Be Part of the Energy’, which never took hold the way everyone hoped. That’s how it would be,” Dorland stated.

But when it comes to city mottos, he said it’s important to capture qualities that are meaningful to both residents and visitors.

“I think they’ve done something complicated, which is capturing Calgary’s future while still recognizing what makes Calgary distinctive as a city and at the same time skirting around some difficult questions,” he said.

“They have walked a tightrope.”

The new blue brand was unveiled during a press conference on Wednesday, in which representatives from several partner organizations participated to announce the change in slogan.

Joel Cowley, CEO of the Calgary Stampede, says the rebranding also ties into the city building on the Stampede grounds.

“In BMO’s new addition, most of the attention is focused on this 21-metre-high chimney, which is the largest in Canada, but immediately above that chimney is a 332-square-metre skylight designed specifically to show the beautiful blue of Calgary sky.”

4.8 million dollars in four years

The new brand has been in development for more than two years.

In 2022, city council awarded $1.8 million to Calgary Economic Development (CED) and $3 million to Tourism Calgary to rebuild Calgary’s brand, said Brad Parry, CED executive director.

Parry said almost 129 organizations across 26 sectors participated through workshops, interviews, focus groups and surveys to develop the new brand.

“The city invested $4.8 million over four years to commit to research, strategy, asset development, which is an incredibly important component to this, as well as launch and implementation,” Parry said.

Parry said adopting the new branding will be an “organic” process for Calgarians, but the city will decide when the “Be Part of the Energy” sign will be removed.

Calgary’s previous motto, “Heart of the New West”, was launched in 2003 and promoted until a new motto, “Be Part of the Energy”, was unveiled in 2011. New signs were posted in 2015 to reflect the change of motto.

As for the new branding, CED says announcing the new slogan is just the first step, and Calgarians can expect new logos and visual assets to appear around the city in the coming months.