Invited to participate on a panel discussion for Climate Change
This is the latest date for a federal election, following the federal
election of 19 October 2015.
For Fixed Election Date legislation see Date of General Election |
Canada Elections Act: http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/E-2.01/page-22.html#h-27
On the last Wednesday of every month we meet to discuss the latest
news and politics of electoral reform. Sometimes we have presentations
on different aspects of voting systems, sometimes we just have an
informal discussion.
Everyone is welcome! You don’t have to be a Fair Vote member to come
to Discussion Nights.
Discussion Night meetings are now being held in the Civic Hub of
Waterloo Region [1], in the Church of St. John the Evangelist at 23
Water Street in Kitchener. To enter, come to the doors on Duke Street
and ring the bell for the Social Development Centre. Map [2]
If you drive, don’t park in the lot beside the church! It’s not part
of the church, and is actively targeted for ticketing!
Links:
——
[1] https://civichubwr.org
[2] https://osm.org/go/ZXnwWMM4?m=&node=6160219550
(Originally scheduled for 8 October 2019)
From Ken Burns:
Hi All,
At Brantford’s City Council meeting on Wednesday, 25 September 2019, Councillor Antoski provided notice of motion to declare a Climate Emergency in Brantford (copy attached) I am writing to ask for the Brant Greens to support this declaration in Brantford.
The motion to Declare a Climate Emergency in Brantford will be debated by Council at the Committee of the Whole meeting on Tuesday, October 8th. Please save the date and plan to attend this meeting – and bring your family, friends, and neighbours!
Climate strikes are designed to get the attention of government. This meeting is where our municipal government will turn their attention to this issue, so this will be where real climate action begins for Brantford. This is our future. This is the time. It is up to us to bring the global conversation on real climate action to Brantford. It is up to us to mobilize the citizens of Brantford to send a loud and clear call to Brantford Council for climate action.
As we all know, the declaration of a climate emergency must be linked to climate action in order to be meaningful. At the same time, we know that there are many climate change deniers in our community and there are even more who will argue that it will be too expensive or too difficult to take the kind of meaningful action necessary to respond to the climate crisis.
In fact, there was immediate pushback just getting the notice of motion on the agenda for tonight, so there is no doubt this we are going to need to mobilize like we have never mobilized before. We need to activate all of our networks and ask them to activate their networks. As soon as this hits the media, we need to be ready to respond, in real time and with overwhelming numbers, to the trolls, climate deniers, and naysayers.
We have to call out those who deny climate change and also those who are unwilling to act like it matters – especially anyone on Council who opposes this declaration. In politics, in democracy, in community: numbers matter! We have to make sure that there are 3 calls for climate action to every one against.
Silence is not a strategy. Hoping for the best is not a plan. Business as usual doesn’t cut it anymore.
The decisions and plans that Council makes today will shape the city that we live in in 2050. What kind of city, what kind of province, what kind of country do you want to live in? We need to let Council hear loudly and clearly from their constituents that we demand climate action in our community.
And it starts today. It starts with us. Please be ready online and in person. Please get out there and make your voice heard.
There is no excuse. We are facing a climate emergency. We can’t wait any longer. We can’t afford not to act.
That said, please note that the proposed declaration is a commitment to develop and adopt a plan to become carbon neutral by 2050, but does not actually require the city to become carbon neutral by 2050. While at first this may seem counter intuitive, this was a strategic choice in order to quash any argument about the potential costs involved in reaching that goal. We know climate is necessary and the cost of inaction will always be greater, however others will argue that it is bad governance to commit to doing something without knowing what it will cost, especially when they believe that the cost will be extraordinary. As we can’t afford to delay climate action any further in order to figure out what it will actually cost or waste time arguing about the cost of inaction while we do, the declaration has been designed only to require that:
a) the City develop and adopt a plan to become carbon neutral by 2050; and
b) all future Council decisions expressly consider the impact of that decision on the plan to become carbon neutral by 2050; and
c) the City educate the citizens about climate change and regularly report on its climate action progress (or lack thereof) to the public.
This way, the declaration makes the ambitious and necessary commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050 without requiring Council to commit to an unknown cost or even that every decision of Council support climate action or result in GHG reduction. But what it does require is that Council be openly cognizant of the carbon impact when they make a decision, and that they regularly report on their progress (or lack thereof) to an informed public.
By requiring Council to be on record knowing the impact of their decisions and publicly reporting the progress (or lack thereof) toward becoming carbon neutral, the people of Brantford can be the judge of whether or not the efforts that Council is making on behalf of City are sufficient. As Greta Thunberg says, the people will be watching.
Here are a few more talking points to get the ball rolling. Please feel free to share and add more. This is just the beginning. We can do more and we will do more, but we need to start somewhere and we need to start today.
#ClimateEmergency
Canada’s Changing Climate Report, published in April 2019 by the Government of Canada with the input of Canadian Scientists and University Experts, (so a national scientific analysis and independent assessment) reported that Canada’s temperature is rising a twice the global rate and that the rise is due to global emissions of carbon dioxide from human activity. Further, the report confirmed that the effects of widespread climate warming are already evident in Canada and are projected to intensify in the near future, including more frequent and intense droughts, forest fires, rainfall, and other extremes of weather and climate.
The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the global scientific consensus confirm that the only way to limit global temperature increase to 1.5°C is to become net carbon neutral by 2050
Brantford directly experienced the impact of climate change in August 2017 when the north east end of Brantford flooded due to intense rain and in February 2018, when thicker ice on the Grand from an unusually cold winter was thawed by an unusually warm February, leading to ice jams which closed bridges and caused $4.5 million in damages to Brantford. That’s the impact of climate change locally (see recent article in Cambridge Times https://www.cambridgetimes.ca/news-story/9547405-cambridge-region-grand-river-conservation-authority-prepare-for-climate-change/ (https://www.cambridgetimes.ca/news-story/9547405-cambridge-region-grand-river-conservation-authority-prepare-for-climate-change/)).
We have to stop debating what’s possible and start doing what’s necessary. When the house is on fire, you don’t argue about how much it costs to call the Fire Department. You dial 911.
The increasing cost of fixing the damage caused by climate change is far greater than the cost of becoming carbon neutral.
It will be more expensive to deal with the impacts of climate change after 2050 than it will be to make the changes necessary to be carbon neutral by 2050.
It is imperative to act now BECAUSE if we don’t start now, it won’t be possible to be carbon neutral by 2050, and if we aren’t carbon neutral by 2050, climate change will become a self-sustaining chain reaction beyond our control, meaning that we will pay an ever increasing cost just to survive, without any hope of turning it around.
“As a Christian, responding to the #ClimateEmergency is not optional – it’s essential. We’re called to protect God’s creation and love our neighbour.” – Archbishop of Canterbury.
The declaration of a climate emergency is an important first step, but it needs to be backed up by urgent climate action. Otherwise it’s just like saying the house is on fire, but refusing to evacuate or call the fire department. Saying there is a climate emergency means a willingness to act like it is an emergency: immediately, effectively, and without distraction or debate.
This is not a Green Party event, but should be of interest to everyone who is concerned about the environment and our survival.
Brant Green Drinks on the 13th day of each month
Who: people like you who are interested in environmental issues, making a difference, networking, or just plain having a good time with friends and neighbours!
What: good drinks, good people, good times!
Why: good drinks, good people, good times!
Agenda: good drinks, good people, good times!
Brant Green Drinks is the Brantford/Brant chapter of an organic, self-organizing, international network of environmentally conscious, lively people, like yourself, from all walks of life.
There is no formal agenda for our gatherings, just good drinks, good people, and good times. Come out and you’ll be made welcome. Just say, “are you green?” and we will look after you and introduce you to whoever is there.
Green Drinks is a great way of catching up with people you know and also for meeting new friends and making business contacts. Everyone invites someone else along, so there’s always a different crowd. The gatherings are very simple and unstructured, but many people have found employment, made friends, developed new ideas, done deals and had moments of serendipity.
So, come along, bring a friend, we’re looking forward to meeting you!
For more information or if you have any questions,
please contact organizer Ken Burns: kenburns [at] brantgreens.ca
When: 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. or for as long as folks are around
Where:
2019 CALENDAR
Saturday, April 13th
Devlin’s Advocate
93 Dalhousie Street, Brantford
Monday, May 13th
Stillwaters Plate & Pour
61 Grand River Street N, Paris
Thursday, June 13th
Duke on Park,
505 Park Road North, Brantford
Saturday, July 13th
Legends Tap House & Grill,
1084 Rest Acres Rd, Paris
Tuesday, August 13th
Sociable Kitchen & Tavern
45 King George Road, Brantford
Friday, September 13th
Midtown Kitchen & Coffee Co.
59 Grand River St N, Paris
Sunday, October 13th
Steel Wheel Brewery
105 Powerline Road, Brant
Wednesday, November 13th
Bell City Brewing,
51 Woodyatt Drive, Brantford
Friday, December 13th
Duke on Park,
505 Park Road North, Brantford
On the last Wednesday of every month we meet to discuss the latest
news and politics of electoral reform. Sometimes we have presentations
on different aspects of voting systems, sometimes we just have an
informal discussion.
Everyone is welcome! You don’t have to be a Fair Vote member to come
to Discussion Nights.
Discussion Night meetings are now being held in the Civic Hub of
Waterloo Region [1], in the Church of St. John the Evangelist at 23
Water Street in Kitchener. To enter, come to the doors on Duke Street
and ring the bell for the Social Development Centre. Map [2]
If you drive, don’t park in the lot beside the church! It’s not part
of the church, and is actively targeted for ticketing!
Links:
——
[1] https://civichubwr.org
[2] https://osm.org/go/ZXnwWMM4?m=&node=6160219550
This is not a Green Party event, but should be of interest to everyone who is concerned about the environment and our survival.
Brant Green Drinks on the 13th day of each month
Who: people like you who are interested in environmental issues, making a difference, networking, or just plain having a good time with friends and neighbours!
What: good drinks, good people, good times!
Why: good drinks, good people, good times!
Agenda: good drinks, good people, good times!
Brant Green Drinks is the Brantford/Brant chapter of an organic, self-organizing, international network of environmentally conscious, lively people, like yourself, from all walks of life.
There is no formal agenda for our gatherings, just good drinks, good people, and good times. Come out and you’ll be made welcome. Just say, “are you green?” and we will look after you and introduce you to whoever is there.
Green Drinks is a great way of catching up with people you know and also for meeting new friends and making business contacts. Everyone invites someone else along, so there’s always a different crowd. The gatherings are very simple and unstructured, but many people have found employment, made friends, developed new ideas, done deals and had moments of serendipity.
So, come along, bring a friend, we’re looking forward to meeting you!
For more information or if you have any questions,
please contact organizer Ken Burns: kenburns [at] brantgreens.ca
When: 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. or for as long as folks are around
Where:
2019 CALENDAR
Saturday, April 13th
Devlin’s Advocate
93 Dalhousie Street, Brantford
Monday, May 13th
Stillwaters Plate & Pour
61 Grand River Street N, Paris
Thursday, June 13th
Duke on Park,
505 Park Road North, Brantford
Saturday, July 13th
Legends Tap House & Grill,
1084 Rest Acres Rd, Paris
Tuesday, August 13th
Sociable Kitchen & Tavern
45 King George Road, Brantford
Friday, September 13th
Midtown Kitchen & Coffee Co.
59 Grand River St N, Paris
Sunday, October 13th
Steel Wheel Brewery
105 Powerline Road, Brant
Wednesday, November 13th
Bell City Brewing,
51 Woodyatt Drive, Brantford
Friday, December 13th
Duke on Park,
505 Park Road North, Brantford
+1-519-770-5305
bob.jonkman@greenparty.ca
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