Greenspiration News & Events: It's city budget time

Mon Jan 16 00:08:01 EST 2023

Send Justin Trudeau a card telling him to vote YES to a National Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform

https://fairvotecanada.good.do/card/Trudeau-card/

Ottawa Mandates 20% EV Sales by 2026, 60% by 2030

20% of all passenger cars, SUVs, and light trucks sold in Canada in 2026 will need to run on electricity under new regulations published just before the holiday by Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault. By 2030, the mandate will hit 60% of all sales, and by 2035, every passenger vehicle sold in Canada will need to be electric.

https://www.theenergymix.com/2023/01/05/ottawa-mandates-20-ev-sales-by-2026-60-by-2030/

How Jersey City Got to Zero Traffic Deaths on Its Streets

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2022-12-28/it-s-been-a-deadly-year-on-us-roads-except-in-this-city 

Windsor City Council must refuse to approve a new polluting gas plant and opt for greener options instead 

#phaseoutgas #go100re

Send a message here: http://ow.ly/Wq7y50Mm86C

The Ford Government's energy plans include ramping up polluting gas power more than 600% - this will burden Ontarians with increasing energy costs and prevent us from meeting our climate targets. We need federal-level Clean Electricity Regulations to stop this madness!

Send a message here: https://www.cleanairalliance.org/open-letters-to-prime-minister-trudeau-and-jagmeet-singh/ 

☢ Nuclear energy is *NOT* a climate solution - especially when Ontario's plans involve the unsafe storage of radioactive waste along #LakeOntario's shoreline. #onpoli #climateemergency #climatenews

Send a message here: https://cleanairalliance.org/storage/ 

No new GTA reactor: https://www.cleanairalliance.org/smrcost/ 

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Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Mon. Jan. 16, 6 - 9 pm ET

777 Bathurst Street, Toronto

A social justice celebration honoring activists, past, present and future.

https://preview.mailerlite.com/z0c6r8y0m6/2125770909825372360/f2r2/

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City of Toronto Budget Hearings 

Tues. and Wed. Jan. 17 and 18

This is a very important week to speak up for climate action and climate justice in the City of Toronto. Anyone can sign up to speak to the budget committee at City Hall, in Scarborough, North York, or Etobicoke, or to speak to them through a conference link on your computer or phone, for 5 minutes, to share your concerns. You can also opt to send in a written deputation, which is really just a letter.  Climate groups are concerned that the funds are NOT being put into the needed actions to make our city Net Zero by 2040. You can find out more and express your views through these links.

- Resources on how to depute: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FKtJoMnUP_JxvvZE7WDrmOXSjHKNWc4dF_txdYxTwy4/edit 

- Find out what Toronto Environmental Alliance is calling for: 

https://www.torontoenvironment.org/teas_key_takeaways_from_the_2023_city_budget 

- Stop TTC Cuts! Tell Mayor Tory to fund lower fares and better TTC service, not policing

https://www.ttcriders.ca/budget2023 

- Support CycleTO's asks via letter link on this page: https://www.cycleto.ca/news/2023-city-budget-what-were-calling

- Watch Toronto City Councillor Gord Perks' Budget Town Hall here:

https://toronto.webex.com/recordingservice/sites/toronto/recording/2bf0a7ac74fc103bafeb0ed245608041/playback

- Watch the national conversation about defunding the police

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2evjR9rgWy4 

- Read the Homelessness Crisis - Open Letter to City Council

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfCeLp1tA8N9ddtwzI2NLxlILxZrfJOI4edZgeDL_UarwtiIQ/viewform 

Share your thoughts with the Budget Committee by registering to speak at its meetings on January 17th and 18th. Speakers are asked to register by 4:30 p.m. on Monday, January 16th by emailing buc at toronto.ca or calling 416-392-4666. Written comments can be submitted by email at buc at toronto.ca.

Also share your comments directly with the Budget Chief, Gary Crawford, at councillor_crawford at toronto.ca and Mayor John Tory at mayor_tory at toronto.ca.

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Incentives for Home Energy Conservation Upgrades

Tues. Jan. 17, 6:30 - 7:30 ET

Join us for this live learning session to better understand the 2023 incentives available to homeowners for energy conservation upgrades. At the webinar, you will:

- Learn all about the new and improved rebate program, a combination of Enbridge Gas and Canada's Greener Homes Grant.  

- Learn about accessing up to $10,600 rebates on eligible retrofits like heat pumps, windows, doors, home insulation and more.

- Get the opportunity to ask questions about the program during the Q&A session.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/incentives-for-home-energy-conservation-upgrades-tickets-487134360987

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Storytelling for Climate Action

Tues. Jan. 17, 7 p.m. ET

This workshop helps you develop a deeper understanding of the power of storytelling, expand your storytelling skills & feel more confident and comfortable sharing your personal stake in climate change action.

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcsdemvrDsuG9TfI9Kjn-R8rbsFjAhkNW_D  

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Reconciliation and Organizational Change within ENGOs 

Tues. Jan. 17, 1 - 3 p.m. ET

This panel will outline key principles for organizational change initiatives within environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGOs) to support and create space for Indigenous voices, knowledge systems, laws, rights, and responsibilities. We will hear stories and experiences from environmental organizations that explore intentional approaches to prioritizing Indigenous conservation leadership through strategic planning, hiring practices, communications, fundraising, relationship-building, and more.

https://www.sustainabilitynetwork.ca/events/reconciliation-and-organizational-change-within-engos-a-panel-discussion  

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Join the Movement Against Mining Injustice

Tues. Jan. 17 and 24, 6 pm ET

Do you believe people should come before profits? Do you support Indigenous sovereignty? Are you angered by the violence of Canadian mining companies around the world? Do you want to join the fight against climate change? Do you want to fight to win? Join the Mining Injustice Solidarity Network! We are a small but mighty collective looking for new members, so that we can build the fight against Canadian mining injustice at home and abroad. We are organizing a two-part new member orientation. 

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcrf-2urTkvGdN9DdctpjrkQvXpMkhZ8aVl 

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Ban Plutonium Reprocessing in Canada

Thur. Jan. 19, 7 p.m. ET

Plutonium is a byproduct of nuclear reactors. The separation of plutonium (and other isotopes) from irradiated fuel is called “reprocessing.” It is a dirty, dangerous and expensive process that leads to intractable radioactive waste problems and nuclear weapons proliferation risks. "Reprocessing" nuclear fuel waste was informally banned in Canada in the 1970s. However, the nuclear industry is pushing for plutonium reprocessing and the use of extracted plutonium as reactor fuel in a new generation of so-called “small modular” nuclear reactors, claiming it is required to mitigate climate change. This webinar features three expert speakers who will address the key dangers of the push for reprocessing including nuclear weapons proliferation and the toxic legacy nuclear waste that reprocessing creates. 

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_B6miPpyXQTWY8ztklgsRcg    

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Talking Shop: How to Do Climate Solutions Reporting

Thur. Jan. 19, noon ET

If your reporting discusses only the problem but not its solutions, you're only telling half of the climate story. Good solutions reporting does not cheerlead, it interrogates: Which are the solutions that actually work, and which do not? Covering Climate Now is co-sponsoring this Talking Shop with Solutions Journalism Network, whose Fara Warner and Swati Sanyal Tarafdar will explain SJN’s evidence-based framework for solutions reporting and how to apply it to the climate story both locally and globally. Surveys suggest audiences want this kind of “what can be done?” coverage, so come learn how it’s done!

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_oW6MXeWkSTG0zH10BTa4Aw  

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Climate Action Workshop

Jan. 19 - Feb 16, 1 - 3 pm PT

Online

During this five-session workshop a wide range of solutions to global warming will be discussed. Participants will develop climate action plans for individuals, family and friends, community, and/or policy levels. Expect to meet with people who are curious and caring, who roll up their sleeves to take action to heal our precious planet. $39.05+GST Register here:

https://adm.viu.ca/eldercollege/course-descriptions#ClimateAction   

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Climate Change Focused Reports from Canada’s Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development 

Fri. Jan. 20, 2 - 3 p.m. ET

Canada’s Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development (CESD) will discuss five climate change-focused reports tabled in Parliament in the spring of 2022. 

https://www.sustainabilitynetwork.ca/events/climate-change-focused-reports-from-canadas-commissioner-of-the-environment-and-sustainable-development  

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Ontario Place – Narrating Past, Present, and Potential

Jan 20 – Jan 29, noon - 8 p.m.

Stackt Market, North Hall Gallery, 28 Bathurst Street, Toronto

‘Ontario Place – Narrating Past, Present, and Potential’ is an exhibition of compiled narratives and design speculations that invite members of the public to contribute their own memories, ideas, and stories. Ontario Place, designed by Eberhard Zeidler and opened in 1971, was deemed one of the most innovative waterfronts in the world. Still active as a public park since its closure in 2012, questions of its future have remained futile. Plans for redevelopment have instigated conversations as to whether the landmark should remain primarily as a public space or bestowed to private partnerships. This exhibition documents Ontario Place’s role as a public asset, allowing users to recognize the cultural significance the park has played during its peak but also during its decline. Speculative narratives are showcased to prompt conversations of Ontario Place’s capacity to realize its original ambition as a place for everyone. 

https://designto.org/event/ontario-place-narrating-past-present-potential/   

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Climate Catastrophe in South Asia - Taking Action in Canada

Sat. Jan. 21, 10 a.m. ET

An online panel discussion. Co-hosted by Seniors for Climate Action Now, Committee for Progressive Pakistani Canadians, India Civil Watch International.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81532241226?pwd=VGJhMHlaa2tnQ1pwMDVPMDFsMkdMQT09#success

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Climate Change as Spiritual Teacher

Sat. Jan. 21, 3 - 5 p.m. ET

A powerful and unlikely spiritual teacher has arrived, sweeping everyone into the shadows of its cloak. This teacher has begun to interrupt life as we know it, showing us the impermanence and fragility of our lifestyle and our way of seeing the world. This teacher goes by the name of Climate Change. The central inquiry we will explore during this gathering is… How can spiritual practice serve this moment?

https://www.purposeguides.org/ccspwithadya 

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Celebrate the Anniversary of Nuclear Weapons being banned on Jan. 22, 2021

The UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons reached the required 50 states parties for its entry into force, and it became law on January 22, 2021. This is having an impact even on nations not yet party to the treaty. The movement is growing. There are currently 91 signatories and 68 states parties, with activists the world over urging their countries to join. Learn more here:

https://worldbeyondwar.org/january22/  

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Why Small Nuclear Reactors are not a climate fix

Mon. Jan. 23, 1 p.m. ET

Small Nuclear Reactors (SMRs) are increasingly being looked at as a solution to reducing emissions and addressing climate change. Yet like most nuclear power projects, SMRs have a history of significant cost over-runs and years-long schedule delays. Join David Schlissel, Mark Jacobson from Stanford, and Naomi Orekes from Harvard as they discuss why SMRs as a tool to fight climate change are not a good idea.

https://ieefa.org/events/webinar-why-small-nuclear-reactors-are-not-climate-fix#author

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Toronto City Budget 101

Mon. Jan. 23, 6 pm ET

Presenters: City Councillor and Budget Committee Member Alejandra Bravo and past City Councillor Mike Layton

https://www.progresstoronto.ca/winter-training-series-jan-23-2023

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For the best Canadian climate and energy news, visit and subscribe to the Energy Mix newsletter.

http://theenergymix.com/  

Democracy Now Daily Show - global peace, justice and enviro news

https://www.democracynow.org/   

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Submissions, subscribes, unsubscribes, and comments: mailto:angela at cleanairalliance.org

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