What's Inside
NATIONAL
ATLANTIC CANADA CHAPTER
ONTARIO CHAPTER
QUÉBEC CHAPTER /
SECTION DU QUÉBEC
SIERRA YOUTH COALITION |
SCC Board Member Champions
Bluesfest Green Team
Daniel Spence, a new member of the SCC Board of Directors, was
really frustrated with how much garbage was needlessly produced
during the Ottawa Bluesfest. He made a few comments about festival
waste diversion to the right people, and was brought into the
planning by the Bluesfest organizers. He convinced them to go
beyond plastic and can recycling and to convince Molson to provide
compostable beer cups made from polyactic acid (PLA) plastic.
He believed there wasn't much point having compostable beer cups
if they're not going to get composted (i.e. buried in a landfill).
Since un-stacked cups take up an inordinate amount of space in
a garbage bag, Spence invented the Cupsucker, a contraption that
mounts on the side of the garbage barrels, where people will deposit
their used beer cups. The Cupsucker stacks the cups, and is emptied
by volunteers who put them in a separate dumpster to be sent to
a composter.
A letter to the editor in the Ottawa Citizen (Donna Colterman Raise a cup to him, July 15, 2006) expresses it the best:
"Way to go, Daniel Spence, for inventing a cup stacker to allow for recycling at Bluesfest. Your resourcefulness,
innovation and dedication are a breath of fresh air in our over-polluted environment!"
NATIONAL
Changes on the Board of Directors
The National Board of Directors of Sierra Club
of Canada (SCC) is delighted to welcome three
new directors to the Board, as of July 1, 2006.
They are Holly Dressel, Sonja Mihelcic and Daniel
Spence. Learn
more about our new directors.
At the same time, the Board wishes to say goodbye
with great regret to Ian Waddell and Greg Malone,
whose terms have now ended.
Please join us in welcoming these three new
members to the Board.
Caribou Awareness
Dozens of people in 19 cities across Canada
took to the streets this Canada Day to raise
awareness of Canada's most widespread endangered
species, the caribou, whose numbers are quickly
declining in all provinces where they live.
Handing out flags and dressed in antlers and
in T-shirts reading "My Canada Includes Caribou",
members of Caribou Nation - a project of three
environmental organizations - worked the Canada
Day crowds from coast to coast. They asked people
to become citizens of Caribou Nation, complete
with their own passports, and to express their
concerns to their elected officials.
Check out www.caribounation.org
Mackenzie Wild Campaign
Mackenzie Gas Project Hearings Continue
Hearings continue on the massive Mackenzie Gas Project -- a multi-billion
dollar development that would industrialise Canada's North. In
July, Sierra Club of Canada Prairie Chapter Director Lindsay Telfer
rode twelve hours on a bus to testify before the Joint Review
Panel (JRP) in High Level, Alberta.
The hearings now move back North: Mackenzie Wild Campaigner Rachel
Plotkin will appear before the JRP in Yellowknife and Norman Wells
in August. Sierra Legal lawyers, Sean Nixon and Paul Falvo will
cross-examine Imperial Oil witnesses before the National Energy
Board in Yellowknife.
The JRP recently extended its schedule into 2007 -- reinstating
a previously cancelled Edmonton session.
If you can be in Edmonton on December 11, please consider speaking
to the Panel. Other ways to help include sending a written comment
to the JRP (pacholekp@jointreviewpanel.ca),
and signing the Mackenzie Wild Declaration www.mackenziewild.ca
To join our email list please visit: www.sierraclub.ca/mailman/listinfo/scc-mgp.
New Intern
The national office is pleased to welcome Mike Hendren as our summer intern. Mike is a recent graduate of Trent University (Honours Bachelor of Business Administration), and will be working with SCC national office on a variety of marketing and outreach activities, as well as supporting our campaign and administrative needs. Mike will be with us until the end of August.
ATLANTIC CANADA
CHAPTER
Sustainable Living at the Shire: A Green Hobbit Gathering
Don't miss the Nova Scotia Environmental Network & Sierra Club of Canada - Atlantic Canada Chapter's Conference and Annual General Meeting entitled: Sustainable Living at the Shire: A Green Hobbit Gathering Friday, July 28 - Sunday, July 30
Location: The Shire Learning Centre, Carleton, Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia
On 165 acres of wilderness on Mink Lake www.oftheshire.org. Join us for a wonderful weekend in a beautiful setting!
Keynote: "A Veteran Journalist's View of the Environmental Challenge"
by Ralph Surette, Freelance Journalist and Popular Herald Columnist
Registration: $65 Student / Low-Income: $45 One Day: $25 (includes carbon offsets, all meals, childcare, tenting & conference fees, display space)
For full details and to register on-line, please visit www.sierraclub.ca/atlantic/aga06.htm or email atlanticcanadachapter@sierraclub.ca, phone (902) 444-3113 or visit us at Sierra Club of Canada Atlantic Chapter, 1657 Barrington Street, Suite 507, Halifax.
Maritime Youth Gathering 
ECOTOPIA is a youth gathering put on by youth at the Atlantic
Canada Chapter for youth across New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI
and Newfoundland. It will be a living, breathing sustainability
experience where a multitude of environmental and social justice
workshops and leadership activities will be led by local community
leaders. It will also be space where youth can celebrate their
actions through music, dance, puppetry and theatre. Ecotopia is
for youth 13-18 and will be held in Tatamagouche NS on a sustainable
farm. To register for this exciting and fun event or for more
information visit- www.sierraclub.ca/atlantic/ecotopia/index.htm
or call 902-444-3113.
ONTARIO
CHAPTER
Volunteers needed
in Toronto!
The Ontario Chapter is
gearing up for several environmental campaign actions in and
around the city of Toronto. We need your help as
volunteers to ensure their success.
Ontario Electricity Campaign
Dalton McGuinty needs to be constantly reminded of his nuclear
mistake (dmcguinty.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org).
You can help by writing the Premier, Energy Minister Dwight Duncan,
and Environment Minister Laurel Broten.
Address and contact
information is available at olaap.ontla.on.ca/mpp/daIndex.do?locale=en
Car Free Day in
Toronto
Sierra Club of Canada's
Ontario Chapter and the City of Toronto are working together
to present Toronto's first major, downtown, weekday, Car Free
Day signature event!
We need lots of help to ensure this event runs smoothly.
If you can help and volunteer a few hours on September 22nd please
let us know at ontariochapter@sierraclub.ca.
On Friday September 22nd,
from 10:00am- 3:00pm, Yonge Street from Shuter to Dundas
will be closed to cars and open to those interested in
exploring the other mobility options available to
Torontonians! This stretch of Canada's longest street,
and Dundas Square will be THE place to be for pedestrians,
cyclists, transit riders, walkers, strollers, and
roller-bladers.
There will
be:
- Musicians and bands, dancers, bike stunt performers and other
entertainment;
- Local celebrities, speakers and the reading of a Toronto Car
Free Day proclamation; and,
- Informative
environmental displays, interactive programs, encouragement
and tips on how to be more car free!
Toronto Car Free Day 2006
Goals
- To encourage people to
rediscover their local community and open our streets to
greater public use and access.
- To educate individuals on the issues of air pollution, climate
change, personal stress, health, and public safety as they relate
to an over-dependence on the private automobile.
- To help reduce traffic
congestion, automobile-related accidents and injuries, smog,
and greenhouse gas emissions.
- To emphasize the need
for more and better public transit.
- To highlight the
public health benefits of alternative modes of
transportation – active modes of transportation like
walking, cycling, and rollerblading allow individuals to get
more exercise and stay healthy.
- To increase
interaction among community members and neighbourhoods in
the space usually reserved for cars.
Keep an eye on www.carfreeday.ca for
more details as they develop.
QUÉBEC CHAPTER
/ SECTION DU QUÉBEC
Sierra Club of Canada Quebec Chapter Goes Swimming in
Montreal's Old Port with Fellow Environmentalists / Le Sierra
Club du Québec plonge dans les eaux du Vieux Port de Montréal
avec des compatriotes
 On
the early morning of Friday, July 7, Claude Martel, the new Quebec
Chapter Director, was invited to join an informal group of environmentalists
to jump in the St. Lawrence River, from a pier in Old Montreal.
The action drew attention to the need for the city to provide
access to river for swimming near the downtown area.
Being a slow news day and a nice day, this third annual event
attracted 30 environmentalists… and 20 journalists. We became
the good news of the day in most electronic media and got coverage
the next day in all Montréal dailies (except The Gazette),
including the front page of La Presse. As for Claude,
he made the local CBC news that day and the Saturday edition of
Le Journal de Montréal. Not bad after a first week of
work.
Au petit matin du 7 juillet, Claude Martel, le nouveau directeur
du SCQ, accepta l'invitation d'un groupe d'environnementalistes
pour plonger dans le fleuve St. Laurent, au niveau du Vieux Port
de Montréal. Cette action était pour souligner la demande que
la Ville de Montréal construise des points d'accès au centre ville.
Etant donné que cette belle journée présentait peu de nouvelles,
cet évènement a été bien remarqué. Trente plongeurs, et une vingtaine
de journalistes. Nous sommes devenus la bonne nouvelle du jour,
et avons paru dans tous les journaux quotidiens de Montréal (sauf
The Gazette), et même la première page de La Presse.
Quand à Claude, il a fait une entrevue à Radio Canada, et dans
l'édition du samedi du Journal de Montréal. Pas mal pour
sa première semaine au travail.
Sierra Club of Canada Quebec Chapter Meet with Bill Graham,
Interim Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada / Des membres
de la SCQ rencontrent Bill Graham, chef du Parti Libéral du Canada
Bill Graham, interim leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, requested
an hour working session with the Quebec Chapter to hear our comments
on the Quebec government's Kyoto Plan and other local environmental
issues. This meeting, followed by a press conference, was be held
on Thursday, July 27th.
Bill Graham, Chef intérimaire désigné du Parti Libéral du Canada, a demandé
une réunion de travail spéciale avec le SCQ pour entendre nos commentaires sur le plan
du gouvernement du Québec au niveau de Kyoto ainsi que sur d'autres questions concernant
l'environnement. Cette réunion, suivie par une conférence de presse, a eu lieu le
27 juillet.
SCQ Invited to Join a Protest Against the Rabaska Project
/ Participation du SCQ à une manifestation contre le projet
Rabaska
Saturday August 19th is your chance to see a completely different
side of the Quebec City Area. Come and join Sierra Club of Canada
- Quebec Chapter (SCQ) as we peacefully demonstrate with a local
group of concerned citizens against a potential liquified natural
gas port in front of Ile d'Orléans. For more information (in French),
visit www.appellevis.org.
If you want to participate, please contact Claude Martel, Quebec
Chapter Director, at claudem@sierraclub.ca
L'A.P.P.E.L. (Association Pour la Protection de l'Environnement de Lévis) et ses collaborateurs
(Rabat-Joie et Association contre le port méthanier de l'Ile d'Orléans) ont invité le SCQ à venir manifester pacifiquement avec
eux samedi le 19 août 2006. Nous serons de la partie. Pour plus d'informations, veuillez voir www.appellevis.org.
Si vous souhaitez participer et pour partager le transport, communiquez avec Claude à claudem@sierraclub.ca.
SCQ Annual Picnic / Pique-nique annuel du SCQ
It's coming soon. Sunday August 13, join SCQ for our second annual picnic at Parc Jean-Drapeau. Bring your basket,
some friends, and some outdoor family games. We are meeting at 1:30 pm in front of the Jean-Drapeau metro station.
Everyone is welcome to this free event.
Le second pique-nique annuel du Sierra Club du Québec arrive à grands pas. Rendez-vous dimanche 13
août à 13 h 30, devant la station de métro Jean-Drapeau. Apportez votre panier, amenez vos amis et des jeux de
plein air. Ouvert à toutes et à tous et c'est gratuit.
SIERRA YOUTH COALITION
The Sierra Youth Coalition
presents: BE HEARD, LEARN HOW
 We are touring the country this summer and we
want you to be there with
us! .
We're stopping in major cities
to:
1.
Meet you!
2. Give a high-energy & inspiring
presentation (+ short film & dynamic
discussion).
3. Talk with you about who we are, what
we do, and how you can get involved!!
Tour Dates
Victoria Aug 3rd
Toronto Aug 8th
Ottawa Aug 14th
Halifax Aug 22nd
For POSTERS and other DETAILS go to www.syc-cjs.org.
To help with the tour, contact Zoë Caron atlantic@syc-cjs.org |
