Community Stories
Nature Activities and Climate Solutions Resources for Busy Parents, Educators and Nature Lovers
This free downloadable e-book for parents of children age 0 – 12, is filled with creative activities, practical tips, nature activities and climate friendly solutions. It will spark environmental awareness, foster nature stewardship and make sustainable habits a part…
National Food Security? Not Without a Healthy Diet
The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization describes an agri-food system as encompassing everything from “field to fork.” Unfortunately, Canada’s new National Food Security Strategy fails to pay much attention to either the field or the fork end of the system.
Send a Wake-up Call to the Forest Practices Board
The BC Forest Practices Board calls itself “BC’s independent watchdog for sound forest and range practices”. The Board is the BC public’s only avenue for holding logging companies and the government accountable when either transgress a narrow range of forest-related…
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Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability Commitments
The following profile those portions of each of the Premier of British Columbia’s (John Horgan’s) new Cabinet member’s Mandate Letters sent to Provincial Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries on November 26 th , 2020 that highlight ‘climate change or environmental…
Climate Action – International to Local
The following are a sampling of climate action-related updates, activities or reports from an active Fall 2020, both internationally and closer-to-home: Internationally : On December 2, 2020, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres presented a sobering State of the…
To heal the planet, we need to embrace solutions that are already here
On Dec. 2, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres gave an important if somewhat overlooked speech at Columbia University’s World Leaders Forum on the state of the planet. Guterres was blunt: “To put it simply, the state of the planet is broken,” he said. “Humanity is waging war on nature” – and that is “suicidal.”
Climate Action Update
On November 19, 2020, the Climate Action Program presented an update to Victoria City Council on the progress made to meet our emissions reduction targets and advance the actions outlined in the Climate Leadership Plan which was released in July 2018. Information on…
New Year’s resolutions, and how we choose the right recovery
First, and very obviously, a wish that might actually come true in 2021: That COVID-19 be over. If the vaccines are as good as promised, and if we can vaccinate around 60 to 70 per cent of the population there is a good chance we can return to something like normal.
Climate Emergency Transportation Policy
I would like to share information on local and regional multimodal transportation policies that can significantly reduce climate emissions and provide other social, health and environmental benefits. This is important because motor vehicles are, by far, the largest…
Seeking Indigenous and South Pacific Youth for Stories of Resilience – Deadline Dec 22
Pacific Peoples’ Partnership is delighted to offer Stories of Resilience: a transformative cultural and artistic experience designed to lift spirits, recognize resiliency and build Allyship through a celebration of Indigenous stories and art. This program will…
The Cult of Individualism is Toxic
I suggested last week that our society is remarkably immature in its approach to life. Central to this is an exaggerated form of individualism that has achieved a cult-like status. With that comes an acquisitive, greedy and selfish culture that really doesn’t care about other people or about nature.
NDP Punishes Poor
Our NDP government has decided to punish the poor by reducing the $300 increase to welfare and disability rates to $150, and then eliminating the $150 on March 31, 2021. People on disability and welfare have been unable to receive CERB and other benefits collected for…
Money Talks… So Have Your Say!
Many people pay into the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) through paycheque deductions and become beneficiaries of the same when they retire. For those of you that are concerned on where your investments are going, including the CPP where one of the largest pension plans in…
Zero Waste, Circular Economy Possible
The CRD just released its draft solid Waste Management Plan for the Victoria region and wants your feedback. Landfills are not sustainable, produce greenhouse gases and should not be expanded. Other options are available. The CRD needs to do more to move to Zero Waste…
Education for life: Creating a more mature society in the 21st century
In exploring the German concept of bildung and the Nordic experience of folk-bildung I am indebted to a lengthy 2018 overview by Jonathan Reams of the 2017 book The Nordic Secret by Lene Andersen and Tomas Björkman.
