Greenspiration News & Events: SolarPunk

Mon Sep 29 15:23:49 UTC 2025

INTERNATIONAL

The New Nuclear Fever, Debunked

Cdn. Journalist Andrew Nikiforuk at his best - MUST READ. References global trends, nuclear white elephants, corporate welfare, climate crimes and corruption, and gov't lapdogs.

https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2025/09/22/New-Nuclear-Fever-Debunked/

Small Nuclear Reactors Will Not Save The Day

Despite the hype, there are currently no operational commercial SMRs anywhere in the world. Not one. So, we’re betting on a technology that doesn’t yet exist at commercial scale, won’t arrive in meaningful numbers before the 2030s, has risks of catastrophic accidents, produces waste that stays toxic for thousands of years, would require thousands of units to significantly contribute to global energy demand, and is many times more expensive than proven renewables. That’s not a strategy. That’s science fiction.

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Small-Nuclear-Reactors-Will-Not-Save-The-Day.html

‘Revival’ Interrupted: World Nuclear Industry Won’t Sustain 2024 Growth, Struggles for Relevance as Renewables Surge

Nuclear can't compete with renewables. Low-income countries are starting to leapfrog to clean, low cost, smart renewables. The Energy Mix covers the recently released World Nuclear Industry Status Report.

https://www.theenergymix.com/revival-interrupted-world-nuclear-industry-wont-sustain-2024-growth-struggles-for-relevance-as-renewables-surge/

Fukushima recovery plagued with setbacks

https://beyondnuclearinternational.org/2025/09/22/fukushima-recovery-plagued-with-setbacks/

The oceans just hit an ominous milestone

A new report sounds the alarm on ocean acidification as Earth breaches the seventh of nine "planetary boundaries."

https://grist.org/oceans/the-oceans-just-hit-an-ominous-milestone/?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us

Rivers are heating up faster than the air − that’s a problem for aquatic life and people

https://theconversation.com/rivers-are-heating-up-faster-than-the-air-thats-a-problem-for-aquatic-life-and-people-263718

CANADA

Where is the ‘brainy and thoughtful’ Mark Carney who warned the world of the dangers of climate change? By Elizabeth May

https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/elizabeth-may-where-is-the-brainy-and-thoughtful-mark-carney-who-warned-the-world-of/article_8408feb5-2aed-4b78-883a-aba1498a55d1.html

Canada's major fossil-fuel producers widen the gap

Growing fossil fuel extraction is expected to be more than double what’s compatible with the Paris Agreement, according to a new international report.

https://www.nationalobserver.com/2025/09/22/news/canada-major-fossil-fuel-producers-are-widening-gap-between-output-climate-targets

Catherine McKenna isn’t buying Carney’s carbon capture grand bargain

https://www.nationalobserver.com/2025/09/24/news/catherine-mckenna-carney-grand-bargain

Lilith Fair - CBC Gem

The untold story of the groundbreaking all-women music festival, started by singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan in the late 1990s.

https://gem.cbc.ca/lilith-fair-building-a-mystery 

ONTARIO

PM Carney and Premier Ford: US Nuclear Reactors are No Way to Build a Nation

Send your message here.

https://www.cleanairalliance.org/mpo/

______________________

______________________

EVENTS

Renewables Now!! 

Mon. Sept. 29, 5:30 - 7 p.m. ET

Marriott Hotel, 525 Bay St., downtown Toronto

Join Toronto East Residents for Renewable Energy outside of the Ontario Energy Conference. Let's be loud while Ontario Minister of Energy & Mines Stephen Lecce gives his remarks inside! Bring your signs & voices to tell Ford, Lecce & gas/nuclear execs that we demand renewable energy for Toronto & Ontario.

https://terrecoalition.ca/

______________________

______________________

Experts discuss what China's new climate pledge means for the world

Mon. Sept. 29, 10 a.m. ET

Carbon Brief is hosting this webinar about China’s new climate goals, revealed during a speech to the United Nations by President Xi Jinping on Wednesday. The panel of experts will discuss China’s first-ever pledge to cut its greenhouse gases and what this means for global efforts towards the goals of the Paris Agreement. There will also be time for questions about China’s new targets and related policies.

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/5917588111520/WN_cAzSiQQxRvCvG15COGDypg#/registration

______________________

______________________

Legacy Days

Mon. - Tues. Sept. 29 - 30

Nathan Phillips Square, Toronto City Hall, Queen and Bay

Join us for the Annual Indigenous Legacy Gathering, a vibrant celebration of Indigenous culture, community, and intergenerational connection. Experience a day filled with traditional drumming, dancing, and teachings, as well as live performances and ceremonies that honour our shared histories and futures. Explore artisan booths, community services, and cultural organizations showcasing their work and stories.

https://www.councilfire.ca/indigenous-legacy-gathering-september-29-and-30-2025/

______________________

______________________

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, also known as Orange Shirt Day

Tues. September 30 

This day honours the children who never returned home and Survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. Wear orange to honour the thousands of Survivors of residential schools.

https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/national-day-truth-reconciliation.html

______________________

______________________

Wisdom Weavers: The Lives and Thought of Harold Innis and Marshall McLuhan, by Tom Cooper

Tues. Sept. 30, 5 - 6:30 p.m. ET

Charbonnel Lounge, St. Michael’s College, 81 St. Mary Street, U of Toronto

Wisdom Weavers is the first comprehensive dual biography of two of Canada’s most influential thinkers. It follows the intertwined lives of Harold Innis and Marshall McLuhan, their spirited exchanges, and their transformative ideas on media, communication, and culture—ideas that continue to shape the way we understand technology and society today. Free, no registration.

______________________

______________________

Navigating Conflict: Practical Tools for Conflict Transformation

Wed. Oct. 1, 7 p.m. Et

When conflict comes up (not if, but when), how do we transform it? How can we understand and address the underlying needs that conflict surfaces? How do we repair? In the second part of our two-part conflict series, we will explore what solid conflict infrastructure can look like, as well as what practical tools can help us to approach conflict generatively.

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/8uO3kpFuTUiFAtBlj9EOow#/registration

______________________

______________________

We Create Our Futures

Wed. Oct. 1, 4 - 9 p.m. ET

CSI, 192 Spadina Ave, Toronto

We Create Our Futures isn’t your typical climate event – it’s a living experiment in what’s possible. An immersive celebration of climate solutions through art, fashion, music, and community innovation, co-created by the community, for the community, and Mother Earth. Part solarpunk runway, part open-mic uprising, part joyful rebellion, this evening blends culture, community, and imagination to ask: What if we actually lived in the world we’re fighting for?

https://socialinnovation.org/event_auto/we-create-our-futures/

______________________

______________________

Toronto Climate Week

Wed. - Fri. Oct. 1 - 3

Toronto Climate Week is a citywide celebration backed by city of T.O., that brings together communities, ideas, decision makers, and climate solutions. from grassroots changemakers to clean tech innovators, policy nerds to plant lovers - this week's got something for you. Dozens of events to chose from.

https://www.tocw.ca/events   

______________________

______________________

West End Heat Pump Crawl

Wed. Oct. 1, 6 - 8 p.m.

Meet at the Wychwood Barns Playground, Toronto

See cold climate heat pumps in action. Have your questions answered by homeowners who've had them for years (while sipping hot apple cider, on us). Replacing your gas furnace with a cold climate heat pump is one of the most meaningful one-time climate actions you can take – this single project can reduce your home's carbon pollution by up to 80% and remove a significant source of indoor air pollutants. This will be an outdoor walking tour (rain or shine).

https://www.thenetwork.to/event-details/west-end-heat-pump-crawl-2

______________________

______________________

East End Heat Pump Crawl

Thur. Oct. 2, 6 - 8 p.m.

Meet at 4 Queen Victoria St, Toronto

See cold climate heat pumps in action. Have your questions answered by homeowners who've had them for years (while sipping hot apple cider, on us). Replacing your gas furnace with a cold climate heat pump is one of the most meaningful one-time climate actions you can take – this single project can reduce your home's carbon pollution by up to 80% and remove a significant source of indoor air pollutants. This will be an outdoor walking tour (rain or shine).

https://www.thenetwork.to/event-details/east-end-heat-pump-crawl

______________________

______________________

High Energy, Higher Stakes: Can AI Solve More Than It Consumes?

Thur. Oct. 2, 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. ET

Metro Hall, (King and John), Toronto

Artificial Intelligence is shaping the world faster than most of us can keep up, but what does that mean for the climate, our resources, and our communities?

https://luma.com/ClimateNorthAI?tk=VJFqdV 

______________________

______________________

How To Debate Conspiracy Theorists

Thur. Oct. 2, noon - 1 ET

Join Rabble for a lively discussion on decoding the world of conspiracy theories, where facts meet fiction, and minds are challenged.

https://rabble.ca/political-action/you-are-cordially-invited-to-attend-rabble-cas-october-2nd-workshop-how-to-debate-conspiracy-theorists/

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/how-to-debate-conspiracy-theorists-tickets-1716239411279

______________________

______________________

Water is Love - Film Screening & Panel

Thur. Oct. 2, 6 - 8:30 p.m. ET

Fox Theatre, 2236 Queen St. E, Toronto

Calling all environmental enthusiasts, eco-activists, youth innovators, and water-lovers! Join MPP Mary-Margaret McMahon in collaboration with Regenerating Toronto and Water Docs at the legendary Fox Theatre for a free screening of Water is Love: Ripples of Regeneration followed by a scintillating interactive panel featuring Swim Drink Fish and U of T Trash Team that explores how water can embody transformation, restoration, and collaboration around the world, and in our own East End communities.

https://luma.com/ml9khgur?mc_cid=61cbf81faa&mc_eid=48c86714b8

______________________

______________________

The Body is an Archive: Unearthing Hidden Histories of Radiation and Public Trust Through Baby Teeth

Fri. Oct. 3, 3 p.m. ET

What can a child’s tooth reveal about history, risk, and trust in science? In his talk on Fri, October 3 at noon PT, Professor Jeffrey Sanders will trace how the St. Louis Baby Tooth Survey turned thousands of donated teeth into powerful evidence that Cold War nuclear fallout was entering children’s bones—evidence that helped secure the 1963 Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. He follows the surprising afterlives of this archive, from rediscovery in a New Jersey garage to cutting-edge research today that uses lasers to link early exposures to later health effects. Along the way, he asks enduring questions about science, activism, and public trust: Who gets to measure risk, control knowledge, and decide what stories our bodies can still tell? Part of the Nuclear Waste Scholar Series.

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Fn65SAKXRkWuWzmUfA4FKw#/registration

______________________

______________________

Plastic People: The Hidden Crisis of Microplastics

Fri. Oct. 3, 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. ET

1RG, Dundas and Dupont, Toronto

Plastic People is an award-winning feature documentary that chronicles humanity’s fraught relationship with plastic and one woman’s mission to expose shocking new revelations about the impact of microplastics on human health. Followed by panel discussion.

https://luma.com/80ff45jc?tk=rQfPGf 

______________________

______________________

Ontario Climate Summit

Fri. - Sun. Oct. 3 - 5 

Various venues downtown Toronto

In this 3-day summit, climate activists from across Ontario will connect, build skills, and collaborate to drive inclusive, effective, sustainable, and coordinated climate action in Ontario’s municipalities. The summit’s focus: Building Climate Action in Ontario Municipalities.

https://www.tickettailor.com/events/urbanclimatealliance/1820101

______________________

______________________

Nuit Blanche

Sat. Oct. 4, 7 p.m. - 7 a.m. ET

Join in a free all-night celebration of contemporary art that transforms Toronto’s public spaces into unexpected landscapes and animates cultural sites throughout the city. Featuring three exhibitions located in North York, Etobicoke and downtown and more than 85 works by local, national and international artists, the city becomes a living book created not just with words, but through sights, sounds, movements and shared spaces.

https://www.toronto.ca/explore-enjoy/festivals-events/nuitblanche/

______________________

______________________

For more Toronto events, check out: https://showuptoronto.ca/ 

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/ 

_______________________

_______________________

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

Share this newsletter on social media using this link: http://greenspiration.org/news-events/

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://list.web.net/pipermail/greenspirationto-l/attachments/20250929/be872e78/attachment-0001.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 54217 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://list.web.net/pipermail/greenspirationto-l/attachments/20250929/be872e78/attachment-0001.jpg>