Our discussion on Sunday, February 9 about Naomi Klein’s book On Fire underlined the extent of the climate problem and the importance of taking collective action. We talked about:
- The challenge of acting on a crisis that feels so overwhelming
- Existing organizations at the local, provincial and federal levels that we could work with
- The difficulty of staying well informed on this complicated issue
As a follow-up, I am sending
1) Some current options for collective action:
Federal:
- Reject Teck! Environmental organizations across Canada are organizing a campaign to call and write to federal cabinet ministers asking them to deny Teck Frontier’s application for a massive new oil sands mine in northern Alberta. Come to SAC’s information and letter-writing session at noon at UUFO on Sunday February 16. For more info see 350.org, The Narwhal, GreenPeace, LeadNow
Provincial:
- If you are in Ottawa-Vanier or Orleans ridings, participate in bi-elections to be held in on February 27 and debates leading up to them. One all-candidates debate for Ottawa-Vanier has been held, see . There will be another Ottawa-Vanier debate on Feb 19, 2020 at 7:00pm in the Colonel By Cafetorium (2381 Ogilvie Rd)
Local:
- Come out to Green Drinks to connect to others with similar concerns and learn form speakers, every second Thursday 5:30 pm onwards, next one is this Thursday February 13
- Come out to the Day of Action Forum: Towards Just and Healthy Neighborhoods on February 22nd to get engaged in the development of Ottawa’s new Official Plan, which is just beginning to be debated at City Hall and will have huge impacts on the environment. Organized by the City for All Women Initiative, Ecology Ottawa, the Federation of Citizens Associations, Greenspace Alliance of Canada’s Capital, and Healthy Transportation Coalition, the event will focus on building an inclusive, healthy and sustainable city within the current urban footprint. For more information see Facebook. There is a waiting list. E-mail Trevor Haché trevhache@gmail.com to be added to it if you wish to participate
- The upcoming March 1st meeting of the Community Associations for Environmental Sustainability (CAFES) will focus on the city’s Climate Change Master Plan (CCMP) created in response to the Climate Emergency declared by City Hall last Spring as a result of pressure from Ecology Ottawa and citizens’ associations across Ottawa including UUFO. Janet and Marilynn will attend and report back. You can subscribe to the CAFES google group list at
- Want to plant a tree? Ecology Ottawa will be giving away seedlings for free, see and they are looking for volunteers for this and other environmental campaigns
- For ongoing information about local events, see Ecology Ottawa’s online calendar
Global/National/Provincial/Local – across jurisdictions:
- Extinction Rebellion, a global organization involved in direct action to demand urgent action on the climate crisis. Launched in the UK in 2018, it now has chapters around the world including in Ottawa, they meet every Thursday night
- Join the global movement for climate action online: https://350.org/
2) Some sources of ongoing information on climate issues that I use, in case others might find them useful:
- The Energy Mix provides an excellent overview of the latest national and global stories on climate, and all for free
- The National Observer and the Guardian provide excellent coverage of climate issues. I subscribe online to the National Observer and should subscribe to the Guardian.
- Councillor Shawn Menard is leader on local issues related to this topic – you can email him at capitalward@ottawa.ca to receive his regular updates
Janet Creery