Category Archives: Environment

Entries regarding the environment

The Free Range Child

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I still have visions of my youngest daughter running around the backyard of a property I once owned North of Orangeville. I would lose sight of her once in a while, between climbing to the top of the red pines to the north of our house, or searching for elves in their undergrowth.

One day I lost sight of her completely. We had a small above ground pool in the backyard, and I ran out to do a safety check. There she was, laying under the stairs to the pool, gently stroking the neck of a garter snake who was hypnotized by her. I left quietly.

On another occasion, I looked out on the back porch where we had a hummingbird feeder. I watched for fifteen minutes while she patiently waited with her hand outstretched under the feeding tube. Finally a hummingbird landed on her finger. She watched close up as it fed from the nectar and her smile was like a thousand Christmas mornings.

Today she lives in British Columbia with her husband and two beautiful grandchildren. She keeps them close to the wild and sacred spaces, hiking the trails, exploring the watersheds, releasing the salmon fry, and simply loving all of the life around them. They are free range children, maybe the last of a childhood immersed in nature.

Today we hear all kinds of experts tout the health and wellness benefits of keeping children in close contact with natural systems. But the easy way out is to hand them an electronic drug like a cell phone or an iPad. Will we inherit the Ecozoic or the Technozoic Era?

At least I know these grandchildren will have had their earliest years immersed in the natural world. If I leave behind any kind of a legacy, this is it.

The way I see it.

UK, France, Canada Full Joint Statement on Gaza

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“We strongly oppose the expansion of Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The level of human suffering in Gaza is intolerable. Yesterday’s announcement that Israel will allow a basic quantity of food into Gaza is wholly inadequate. We call on the Israeli Government to stop its military operations in Gaza and immediately allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. This must include engaging with the UN to ensure a return to delivery of aid in line with humanitarian principles. We call on Hamas to release immediately the remaining hostages they have so cruelly held since 7 October 2023.

The Israeli Government’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable and risks breaching International Humanitarian Law. We condemn the abhorrent language used recently by members of the Israeli Government, threatening that, in their despair at the destruction of Gaza, civilians will start to relocate. Permanent forced displacement is a breach of international humanitarian law.

Israel suffered a heinous attack on October 7. We have always supported Israel’s right to defend Israelis against terrorism. But this escalation is wholly disproportionate.

We will not stand by while the Netanyahu Government pursues these egregious actions. If Israel does not cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid, we will take further concrete actions in response.

We oppose any attempt to expand settlements in the West Bank. Israel must halt settlements which are illegal and undermine the viability of a Palestinian state and the security of both Israelis and Palestinians.  We will not hesitate to take further action, including targeted sanctions.

We strongly support the efforts led by the United States, Qatar and Egypt to secure an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. It is a ceasefire, the release of all remaining hostages and a long-term political solution that offer the best hope of ending the agony of the hostages and their families, alleviating the suffering of civilians in Gaza, ending Hamas’ control of Gaza and achieving a pathway to a two-state solution, consistent with the goals of the 18 June conference in New York co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France. These negotiations need to succeed, and we must all work towards the implementation of a two-state solution, which is the only way to bring long-lasting peace and security that both Israelis and Palestinians deserve, and ensure long-term stability in the region.

We will continue to work with the Palestinian Authority, regional partners, Israel and the United States to finalise consensus on arrangements for Gaza’s future, building on the Arab plan. We affirm the important role of the High-level Two-State Solution Conference at the UN in June in building international consensus around this aim. And we are committed to recognising a Palestinian state as a contribution to achieving a two-state solution and are prepared to work with others to this end.”

Offensive is in the Mind of the Beholder

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In my days of being provocative as a speaker on environmental issues, I once took the stage wearing a hooded sweatshirt that had emblazoned on its back “UNF*CK the PLANET”. When I finished my keynote, one attendee remarked to me that they found that logo offensive. “Really?” I replied. “What I find offensive is continued habitat alteration, loss of biodiversity, chemical pollution, and accelerated climate change.”

No response.

Recently I pondered that same response when I read criticism about Canada joining the UK and France in condemning the blockage of aid to starving Palestinians. Their statement said: “We will not stand by while the Netanyahu government pursues these egregious actions, If Israel does not cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid, we will take further concrete actions in response.”

Yeah, what I find offensive is not Canada’s response. What I find offensive is the deliberate starvation of 14,000 children. I find that  really f*cking offensive.

The way I see it.

Ignorance & Stupidity vs Environmental Literacy

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Ignorance: 1. the condition of being uneducated, unaware, or uniformed;

2. willful neglect or refusal to acquire knowledge which one may acquire and it is their duty to have.

Stupidity: 1. the condition of being slow to learn or understand

2. a tendency to make poor decisions or careless mistakes;

3. describing actions or decisions marked by a lack of intelligence or care

*****

The five pillars of Environmental Literacy are:  Awareness, Knowledge, Attitudes, Skills, and Action. In order to be environmentally literate, one must be very well informed, able to see the patterns that connect, and able to ruthlessly fact-check. The sources used for assembling that knowledge must be legitimate practising, peer reviewed, and published – the 3Ps. Otherwise we will get garbage in, garbage out.

*****

Which begs the question, dear adult voters living in Dufferin-Caledon: Why would we re-elect Kyle Seeback? Why, after knowing that the last MP who actually did anything significant for us was when we were represented by farmer Murray Calder, a Liberal MP who held the position from 1993 to 2004 when our riding was rearranged to become Dufferin-Caledon. Then a conservative lawyer, David Tilson was elected. Tilson was a former Progressive Conservative MPP who had joined the anything but progressive Conservative Reform Alliance Party. David Tilson served as MP from 2004 to 20019, spending most of that decade warming his political briefs on the backbench. He did virtually nothing for Dufferin-Caledon.

Mr. Tilson was succeeded in 2019 by Kyle Seeback, another conservative lawyer who has also warmed the backbench, again doing nothing significant for Dufferin-Caledon and Canada as a member of a hostile, divisive opposition party.

Yes, Dufferin-Caledon needed a change all right. We are entering an era of economic and political threats from the USA President, we are entering an era when the old spectre of western separatism is being stoked by far right conservatives, and we are already immersed in an era of global social and environmental upheaval. We needed someone who would fight for our security and sovereignty, not another bench warming Conservative Reform Alliance Party lawyer.

The way I see it.

 

The Morning After the Night Before

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Dawn rose on a new Canada this morning. Instead of the Conservative majority predicted by pollsters at the start of the campaign, Prime Minister Mark Carney wins his seat and the government of Canada will be Liberal. One of the greatest reversals of fortune in Canadian political history. To add insult to injury, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre loses his seat and a place in the House of Commons. Didn’t see that one coming.

New Democrats lose their Party Status, and Jagmeet Singh also loses his seat and graciously gives up his leadership as soon as a successor can be chosen. Elizabeth May, so-leader of the Green Party wins her seat and a place at the table. While votes in close races are still being tabulated it appears at this point that we have a Liberal minority that will need every vote from the few NDP, Green, and Bloc seats to advance their agenda.

We are going to need a united front to deal with the Trumpian threats from the south, yet it appears unlikely that a bitterly disappointed Conservative Party will be anything but the obfuscaters and obstructionists they have been for the last ten years. If you look closely enough you may see that the “lost decade” as Mr. Poilievre calls it, really had nothing to do with ten years of Liberal governance. There were global financial crises, global health pandemics, and the rise of far right politics that gave the stamp of approval to nasty, divisive behaviour.

The Conservatives frequently liked to state that because of Liberal policies, Canada was ranked last of the G7 countries in terms of GDP. True, but what they didn’t clarify was that Canada also has the smallest population of the G7 countries. When you look at the rankings, each country’s place in the list corresponds exactly with its population.

So, when we calculate how Canada is doing using GDP per capita as our guide, lo and behold, Canada comes out in #1 spot at $38,000 per person. The USA and UK are next at $35,000, Germany at $34,000, Japan at $33,000, France at $31,000. and Italy at $29,000. Gee whiz, Conservative Reform Alliance Party, you’ve been lying to us for the last ten years! Shame. Canada is actually #1 in the G7. Not last, NUMBER ONE.

And you never told us that the real reason that house prices and inflation went out of control was caused by a global financial crisis, and greedy developers, land speculators and real estate agents who all got richer while most us us got quite a bit poorer. Very little to do with our government. Dear Conservative Party, please tell all those young Gen Z people who flocked to the size of your rallies, your seductive sloganeering, and your rabble-rousing rhetoric that you’ve been pulling the proverbial wool over their eyes.

When the forces from the South come looking to plunder the richness of our lands, and when the next election comes, we are all going to need to see very clearly.

The way I see it.