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People all across the world have been waking up to alarms, health warnings and evacuation alerts because of wildfires, storms, flooding and dangerous air quality. They couldn't ignore the climate crisis and neither should our politicians. 

That’s why, the morning of the Trans Mountain crown corporation annual meeting, we’re sounding the alarm.

To all Canadians,

Our government in Ottawa proposes to order 88 fighter jets at a cost of over $19 billion. This comes at a time when we are investing in a recovery from CoVID-19 and aiming to slow down the effects of climate breakdown. Therefore, only projects which sustain the health, safety, and well-being of people and the planet can be justified in these difficult times.

When the Truth and Reconciliation report was released in 2015, many saw it as a chance to finally acknowledge the past and move forward together in a harmonious relationship with the Indigenous peoples on whose land we live and work. Fast forward to five years later and while the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic continues to threaten peoples’ health and disrupt their lives, industry is pushing ahead with projects that disregard Indigenous rights, including the right to Free, Informed and Prior Consent. From east coast to west coast, we continue to see racist harassment and violence directed against Indigenous people, often in the name of land and resource theft. Government is complicit in these ongoing acts of colonial violence whether they support industry outright or stand aside and do nothing. Both stances are an abdication of duty. They are the continuation of a genocidal Canadian protocol that puts profits above the health and wellbeing of Indigenous communities, valuing industrial projects more than human rights.

Well, that was fast.

On September 23^rd, we heard the speech from the throne in which the Liberal government promised many things with many nice words. A lot of those promises centred on environmentalism and upholding Indigenous rights. Yet here we are, only a week later, and already it feels like we’ve been fed a bunch of lies yet again.

photo: janrune-smenes-reite

We're in the week of climate justice action let by Fridays for Future here in Toronto! You can find a compendium of events at climatechallenge.ca.

On Tuesday September 22nd, a few activities mark the Fridays for Future pillar, Livable Futures for All.

Call to action for Canada to act now to secure a just and livable future for all.

We at Toronto350 call on the Canadian government to follow through on its recent commitments to “build back better” and invest in a green recovery in the wake of COVID-19. This moment presents a critical opportunity to shift our course toward a better future. Either we plan to meet our Paris Agreement targets, and invest in the health and wellbeing of our communities, or we leave a legacy of defeat in an ever-warming future. As COVID-19 lays bare the appalling inequalities and injustices ever-present in Canadian society, our demands grow more urgent. Paying lip service to the issues that impact us is not enough. Dangerous climate warming leading to more extreme weather events; a growing socioeconomic gap; the rights of workers to sick leave and other basic entitlements; access to affordable and decent housing; respect for Indigenous sovereignty – these are just a few of the issues we face that are crucial to address. We cannot and will not return to the “old normal”- we know that building back better means prioritizing people before profit and investing in ways that safeguard the health and well-being of all.

Yet again, the traditional lands of the Haudenosaunee Six Nations near Caledonia are being invaded by developers and the authorities in the municipality of Haldimand. The developers, Mackenzie Meadows, want to build a housing development on unceded Haudenosaunee land, profiting from territory that does not belong to them. To do this they must steal the land from the rightful owners, the Six Nations of the Haudenosaunee.

When the current Ontario government came into power with a majority, the first thing they did was reverse the climate initiatives that were well underway. They cut funds to energy efficiency programs, rolled back renewables and clean industry projects and put out a climate plan with significantly less ambition. The new plan reduced greenhouse gas emission cuts by about a third, allowing for 30MT more pollution!

Now, the Ontario government wants to ramp up Ontario’s gas-powered plants, undoing a third of the gains made from coal plant closures and increasing Greenhouse gas emissions 300% by 2025 and 400% by 2040. In fact, they just spent $2.8 billion on 3 gas plants to do so!  To supply the plants, Enbridge wants to build a new pipeline through Hamilton to import fracked gas from the U.S.