Most of the World’s Population Wants Stronger Climate Action
They just don’t realize that they are a majority. The Guardian is joining forces with dozens of newsrooms around the world to launch a year-long exploration of the ‘silent majority’ of people who want to fight climate change The Guardian US is launching a year-long... Read more
To Know Thyself By Heart
When we feel coherent emotions, like those of unconditional love and gratitude, our oscillating heart of gold creates a low coherent frequency. In-so-doing, our aura expands its resonant magnetism to draw in immense cosmic energy.
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Voting for the Ocean, Beaches and Waves
Canada is a water-rich nation: with the longest coastline in the world, a fifth of the world’s freshwater, an incredible diversity of aquatic ecosystems, and some of the planet’s most iconic cold-water surf breaks. From the west coast kelp forests to east coast salt... Read moreOne People – Global Peace Anthem by Morry Stearns
In honour of Earth Day/Week/Month, Creatively United for the Planet Society presents this timeless anthem by Morry Stearns, a world renowned Victoria, BC based singer/songwriter/musical producer extraordinaire. We also give thanks to Sabina Petitt of Pacific Essences... Read more
Climate Crisis on Track to Destroy Capitalism, Warns Top Insurer
‘Fossil Fuels Are Killing Us’: Scientists Publish Sweeping Review of Industry Harms From Common Dreams: “We’ve got to work fast to end fossil fuel operations near our homes, schools, and hospitals and trade fossil fuel infrastructure for... Read moreScreen The Interceptors for free for Earth Day 2025
The Interceptors, a story about a community-driven, technology-enabled network of people converting mountains of surplus food into meals that nourish their community, all while reducing greenhouse gases produced by diverting food from landfills. Follow... Read more
Call for an End to the B.C. Wolf Cull
The provincial wolf cull program is unsustainable, unscientific, unethical, and unacceptable to British Columbians. Since 2015 the B.C. government has spent over 11 million tax dollars killing 2,192 wolves. B.C.’s wolf cull program is an ecologically, economically,... Read more
With Cruelty Reigning to the South, Canada Needs to Keep Flame of Kindness Burning
Back in the late 1980s, the first President Bush expressed a wish for a kinder, gentler nation. A joke going around at the time, I recall, was that he had found it — it was called Canada and now he was going to buy it. Fast forward almost 40 years and the U.S. has a president whose whole approach seems…
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Old Growth Action Calls
Rainbow Eyes Needs our Financial Help Legal Aid is not covering all of Rainbow Eyes’ legal fees for the appeal of her criminal contempt sentence — $7,000 is outstanding. Appeal results come next week, April 9. We know we asked for funds as a special request in March... Read more
Fossil Fuel Nationalism Not a Solution to Tariffs
In response to threats from the Trump regime, Canadians from coast-to-coast have been seized by a fit of nationalism. The fossil fuel industry, bankers, and politicians have swiftly manipulated this to foster a pro-oil and gas narrative in an attempt to resurrect... Read more
Synagro Leaves Texas Town Amid a Toxic Crisis
Dear CRD Board Chair, members of the CRD Board, and senior CRD staff members, Below you’ll find a recent story from the New York Times on Fort Worth Texas, a city of just under 1 million residents, terminating their contract with Synagro following evidence the... Read more
Election 2025: Deliver Door Hangers for Proportional Representation!
With all the challenges facing Canada, it’s never been more important to fight for proportional representation in our Parliament! Our archaic, non-proportional voting system could hand 100% of the power to a party with 39% of the vote. To make matters worse,... Read more
New Thermal Imaging Camera Kits Available at Local Libraries
Thermal Imaging Camera Kits are now available at local libraries throughout Victoria, BC. These kits provide residents with tools and activities to test and improve the efficiency and resiliency of their home. Discover air leaks, measure appliance electricity use,... Read more
Public Transit Climate Solution
We Need a Hero to Save Our Buses! Who Will it Be? We need a hero to save our buses! Who will it be? Without new funding, up to 50% of your bus service will be cut, as well as 30% of rail service. Transit is an essential service that we can’t do without. If the... Read moreWorld Water Day Resource Fair, Film Screening & Expert Dialogue in celebration of UN World Water Day 2025
Our celebrations will begin with a Water Sustainability Resource Fair in the Student Union Building. Then, we’ll gather at Cinecenta for a screening of the new film The Spirit Who Swims (2024). Immediately following the film, Laura Brandes (Communications... Read more
Science Alliance for Forestry Transformation February Newsletter
You have to check out the Hummingbird Collective’s launch of Nature Creative Commons showcasing the Forest Carbon Project. Check out the website for open-access, educational, and visually engaging materials to dispel myths surrounding forests, carbon, and wood... Read moreWhere the Liberal Leadership Candidates Stand on Proportional Representation
First, we want to say a huge thank you to the thousands of supporters who registered as Liberals during the federal Liberal leadership race to send a strong message to the candidates about proportional representation. Over the past six weeks, you chipped in for a... Read more
Simple Everyday Ways to Talk to Your Kids About Giving
Courtesy of Charitable Impact What You’ll Discover in This Blog: Everyday moments are opportunities to talk about giving. You don’t need to be an expert—parenting is about learning as you go, and conversations about generosity can happen naturally in daily life. Car... Read more
BC Old-Growth and Endangered Ecosystems Alert
Endangered Ecosystems Alliance has issued a SEND a MESSAGE action alert to tell the newly re-elected BC NDP government to protect the endangered old-growth forests and ecosystems across BC. Please share:... Read more
We Need To Take Steps To Be Better Ancestors
This month, I turn to an aphorism that became popular in the 1970s — “we do not inherit the Earth from our parents, we borrow it from our children.” Often attributed to Duwamish Chief Seattle in the 19th century and seemingly popularized by American novelist, poet and activist Wendell Berry in the early 1970s, this is…
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Can This ‘Burnt Toast’-like Substance be a Key Tool in the Fight Against Climate Change?
Biochar is a charcoal – like substance derived from thermally processing woody material, sewage sludge and biosolids. Bio-char can be used for a range of uses such a adding nutrients to soil, strengthening asphalt and concrete and storing large amounts of... Read more
2025 Point in Time Count – Call for Volunteers
The Community Social Planning Council (CSPC) and Volunteer Victoria are recruiting volunteers to take part in the biennial Point in Time Homeless (PiT) Count, which consists of conducting surveys with people experiencing homelessness in Greater Victoria. The PiT Count... Read more
Fossil Fuel Companies Funding and Supplying Misleading Climate Education to Canadian Schools
Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat | February 18, 2025 — Amid concerns about rising misinformation, disinformation and corporate influence, a new report by the Canadian Association... Read more
Seeking Volunteers for Air Quality Study
As part of a research project on wildfire smoke infiltration in residential buildings, the University of Victoria’s Clean Air Lab (cleanairlab.ca), led by Dr. Minet, is seeking volunteers to host air quality sensors in their homes next summer. The goal of this study... Read more
CRD Biosolids Update
On Wednesday, February 19, the CRD Environmental Services Committee reviewed an academic literature review of toxic chemicals embedded in biosolids produced by the Greater Victoria sewage Treatment plant and processed at the Hartland landfill. The review was ordered... Read more
BCCIC’s 2025 Booklist: Pathways to Planetary & Collective Healing
A microscope reveals what was always there. As more people become personally affected by crises, they are looking at issues once seen as distant and distinct now coming into sharp focus as deeply interconnected. With rising food insecurity, femicide, wildfires,... Read more
And The Gods Breathe Æther
In the beginning was the word and the word was of GOD and that word was LOVE. And so LOVE is the You•niverse of harmonious oneness. And the frequency of LOVE creates the sound of LOVE that propagates through the æther; a genderless medium giving rise to the polarity... Read more
There Is Only One Earth — Deal With It
I have spent much of my life working as an educator, whether as a professor teaching graduate students or as an in international consultant working with communities, organizations and governments around the world. Over the years…
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Fairy Creek Updates 2025
Even though it’s not as big a topic in the news these days, there are still some major updates on Fairy Creek that you should know: • Climate activists and land defenders are still facing legal issues. Zain Haq, a climate activist married to a Canadian citizen, was... Read more
Let’s Force the City to Re-Examine Retrofitting the Crystal Pool
Replacing the Crystal Pool is a wasteful, uncreative solution to problems that could be addressed through a less costly retrofit. FINALLY, on New Year’s Eve I was able to do my one-kilometre swim again at the Crystal Pool after its 6 weeks of maintenance. I miss the... Read moreWhy I’m Voting NO in Crystal Pool Referendum
On Feb 8 the city of Victoria is asking residents to vote YES or NO to borrowing $189 million to replace Crystal Pool and for your preferred location: the current pool site in Central Park (NORTH) and right next to it over top of the Steve Nash basketball court,... Read more
Crystal Pool Referendum — Vote YES! to a Retrofit, Vote NO! to a Replacement
Some of the reasons to say NO to the demolition of Crystal Pool: With 25% tariffs coming, the Globe & Mail (Jan 30, 2025) cautions, “Now is not the time to borrow.” To demolish the pool, the City is asking to borrow over $160 million. Building materials, such as... Read more
Survey: Financing Conservation on Private Land in the Capital Region
Here’s an easy-to-do survey that I hope you will complete and share with your contacts. It involves rating your support for a series of statements on a 5-point scale. It comes from the Coastal Douglas-Fir Conservation Partnership and pertains to support for... Read more
“Clean Energy” Comes at a Cost
In my local area in Courtenay BC, ozone damage is very severe because we live near the BC Hydro power station on the Puntledge River. I have spoken with the local authorities about the tree deaths along the river which is exacerbating the soil erosion caused by high... Read more
Submit to Ripples Youth Art Zine
Learn more about Ripples, a youth arts zine released annually for World Water Day! Ripples is brought to life by works of art, poetry, and photography, created by kids and youth (between the ages of 6-25) from across BC.
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City Needs to Rethink Priorities
Two death knells for any city are the loss of urban trees/green space and the arts. People are attracted to Victoria, BC’s downtown area because of its inherent natural and architectural beauty and the vibrancy of the wide variety of art-based programming... Read moreSue Big Oil Sooner!
Let’s lobby municipalities to sue Big Oil. We are more than 3/5ths there to reach the half million residents involved needed to support a suit fought all the way to the Supreme Court. Read more
Save Our Neighbourhoods in Central Saanich
Hovey Road development in Central Saanich that violates the Official Community Plan Zoning. Do you live in Central Saanich and are concerned about uncontrolled development?
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Why Women Are Key To Solving The Climate Crisis
There’s no denying women are leading the fight to save our planet. In every society worldwide, women and girls are responding more effectively in times of crisis and actively working towards creating a more just and sustainable future for all. Yet, gender inequalities... Read more
Toxic Biosolids Promoted as Fertilizer
This article from the New York Times highlights the growing and inevitable public health and environmental harms associated with the land application of biosolids that contain PFAS and other toxic chemicals, and the EPAs associated liability in encouraging the use of... Read more
Towards A Well-Being Society and a Healthy One Planet Community
Throughout my career I have focused on the well-being of people in our communities and around the world, and on the state of the Earth’s ecological systems, which are the bedrock of our well-being.
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The UDI Successfully Lobbied the Government Against Environmental Streamside Protection Regulation
The UDI successfully lobbied the government against environmental streamside protection regulation. This ‘achievement’ by the UDI took place about 2 decades ago. Despite numerous indications to suggest lobbying activity at all levels of government, the UDI does not... Read more
How to Reduce Holiday Waste: 50+ Eco-friendly Tips
As someone who has been involved in the world of social media storytelling for environmental causes for over a decade, there is one piece of content that I always look forward to seeing circulate at this time of year: an image from Toronto artist Sarah Lazarovic... Read more
The Little Town That Could
It is the year 2019. The skies are clear with white low clouds. A climate emergency has been declared in the small town of View Royal, but little did the town know that it would lead the way for climate actions across British Columbia in the years to come.
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Good News from Dogwood
It’s a WIN! Enbridge’s Westcoast Connector Gas Transmission line is officially dead. It was one of several pipelines previously slated for northern B.C., but was hotly contested by Indigenous communities and allies along the route. The WCGT is the first project in... Read more
Life Expectancy Gas Grown Since 1970, But So Has Inequality
When I look back over the length of my career, it is clear that in many ways we have created a healthier future. One important indicator is life expectancy. According to Our World in Data, in 1970…
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Save Harewood Plains
by Wylie Thomas, conservation biologist Please send a message to BC’s new Minister of Water, Lands, and Resource Stewardship, Randene Neill, to let her know how important it is to protect Harewood Plains in the Nanaimo area on Vancouver Island (and please cc the... Read moreDesire for Better Public Policy Sparked Early ‘Green’ Parties
In my concluding major paper for my master’s degree at the University of Toronto in the late 1970s, I identified two major principles that have guided my career ever since. The first is ecological sanity…
Read moreCorporations Out In Force at Biodiversity, Climate Conferences
It’s global conference season, and once again the corporate sector is spending huge amounts of money — money that comes from us when we purchase their products and services — to lobby for their own…
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