Archive for Participatory democracy

Here’s the flyer for True Democracy.  If you click on the image you can view the PDF.  The text of the flyer is below.     Read more »

Young Greens around the country will be drawing out lines to the advance polls tonight.  When people wake up tomorrow morning, green chalk lines will have appeared on sidewalks all over the country, leading to advance polling stations.

A large group of Young Greens in Toronto will be meeting at     Read more »

With the leaders debates now over, one result is clear: Elizabeth May, as leader of the Green Party, should have been a debater.

Why? Not just to include a woman among all the men, although, as a former human-rights commissioner, I find that an acceptable reason. It’s just not the only reason, because there are at least three others that made her exclusion a national injustice.

Read the whole Globe and Mail article by former Parliamentarian and former Human-Rights Commissioner Reginald Stackhouse.

Just had a Portuguese language interview with Sandro Miranda of PanTV.  He pointed me to a Brazilian campaign to reduce water use.  I have been impressed with the creativity of public campaigns in Brazil on AIDS, abuse of women, nutrition among the poor and other areas.  Brazil routinely achieves tremendous progress on the cheap.  Here’s how they are reducing water use:

This very much summarizes my experience in Cancún.

Watching the youth count the dead brought tears to my eyes now just as it did in Cancún

… with love from Adriana.

Afraid to debate Elizabeth May.

On Thursday, Elizabeth May revealed that the lawyer for the consortium of the five big broadcasters said they had excluded Elizabeth May for fear that the other leaders would boycott the debate.

Stephen Harper, Michael Ignatieff, Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe have now refused to debate Elizabeth.  They have declined a debate from an independent broadcaster.

The good news is that Channel Zero has agreed to do an exclusive interview with Elizabeth instead.  So you can get to hear what she has to say.

Live interview with Elizabeth May
Tonight: Sunday, 2011 April 10, 8pm
CHCH TV, chch.com     Read more »

Andrew Jackson, the chief economist of the Canadian Labour Congress, a research associate with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and lifelong NDP member, has declared that he may have to do a rethink.  As we have been saying, the Green Party platform is both bolder and more fair on the one hand, and more economical and efficient on the other.

A Nanos poll conducted for the Globe and Mail confirms what was obvious to pretty much everyone: Canadians want Elizabeth May in the debate even if they don’t support the Green Party.

We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors: we borrow it from our children.

I am inspired by the visionaries who populate the Green Party and the hope and the fear that drives us all.  But getting anything done about it requires simple hard work.  And that’s what this campaign is all about.  Hard work by dedicated people making careful steps for the better.     Read more »

That kind of sums it up.  What a wonderful send-off I got from my whole team, plus other supporters from this riding and others.

Former Green Party leader Jim Harris at last night’s event: “No wonder the other leaders don’t want Elizabeth May in the debates – because she would mop the floor with them”.

Our first flyers are in and distribution is about to begin.  As of last night, our signs were finally on the presses.  The company had been having problems with their presses, causing a delay of 3 days.  But this weekend we hope to start getting lawn signs out.

I also canvassed my first poll with cards in hand.  That’s what I’ll be doing for most of the rest of the campaign.  Getting out and meeting people.

I’ve been stunned by the number of people walking into our office, many not even Green Party supporters, asking what they can do to help Elizabeth get into the debates.

Here’s what you can do:  Sign the petition.  Find out more.

In the Toronto Star today, Peter Russell explained and demonstrated how we elect a Parliament and not a leader, that any new government must enjoy the support of the majority of elected members in the Commons, and how Harper’s implication that a coalition is illegitimate is, well, wrong.

When we hold an election we do not directly elect a prime minister. We elect a House of Commons. It is this elected chamber of Parliament that decides who governs the country.

There is a good explanation of why we know this is so, with precedents and rules.

Friday, 2011 March 25, 4 to 6 pm
Room 144, University College, University of Toronto
15 King’s College Circle

The General Meeting of Science for Peace will host a talk, Is Parliament Broken?, by Peter Russell, Emeritus Professor of Political Science, University of Toronto. Members of the public are cordially welcome.     Read more »

I’m a worrier. For most of my life, I’ve fretted over my children like many mothers do. Their health, their grades, their social development. The last few years I’ve been worried at a whole new level. When I was a young woman, analysts predicted a clean future powered by the sun and wind. They pointed out the urgency of starting this great transformation because a few decades later it would be too late. For multiple reasons including climate change, the imminent decline of oil and the stress on vulnerable but critical water and other resources, delay would bring on miserable results. That was a now a few decades ago. We are more dependent than ever on oil, our emissions keep rising, water tables are declining all over the world and food stresses are leading to riots in countries all over the world. Governments in North Africa are tumbling to populations that demand to be fed.

I remain hopeful that by investing in a green economy, we may still turn things around in time and deliver a future not too unlike the present for our children. That is what I’m working for, that is what I want to see – a Canada much like the Canada we all know, but moving boldly into a transitional economy from which we will emerge into a more permanent economy that’s more efficient and respectful of our limits.     Read more »

The Green Party of Canada calls for an end to smear campaigns and attack ads.  Let’s run an election trying to win hearts and minds on the strength of our own policies and principles.

View their attack ad on attack ads and ask representatives of all parties to stop the negative campaigning.

Tim’s action to block the sale of federal lands for mining rights to the fossil fuel industry was one of those pure, spontaneous and beautiful expressions of nonviolent public opposition to monstrous policy. The publicity raised by his actions led directly to the withdrawal of the mining leases by the incoming Obama administration. Nonetheless, yesterday Tim DeChristopher was convicted and faces prison time.  He is a hero.

A few years ago, Elizabeth May said that we need to plan cities around the child, instead of around the car.  There’s now a movement around 8-80 cities that calls on cities to be planned with two groups of people in mind – 8 year olds and 80 year olds.  The theory is that if you take care of the young and old, the able-bodied in between will be able to look after themselves.  It’s a compassionate approach to community building with the goal of safe streets, local economies and cohesive neighbourhoods, rather than maximum mobility.  And it’s very much at the heart of what the Green Party is all about.

2011 March 6 – 10

Leadnow’s (Re)Generation: Voices for Canada is a cross-country event that will bring generations of Canadians together to share ideas and goals for our country and our future, and help draft a Declaration for Change – a commitment to create a better future for all Canadians.  Leadnow will challenge Canadian politicians to work together for progress on the Declaration’s goals, and will call on people to commit to take action and vote for the politicians who will rise to the challenge.     Read more »

The Green Party is looking for student volunteers to work near your secondary school in the Toronto-Danforth riding. This fun opportunity can be used toward your required 40 hours of community service.     Read more »

In clear pre-election mode, this last Wednesday evening, Jack Layton held a live over-the-phone “town hall” meeting, where he answered questions in real time and polled listeners on their priorities.  It was a great way to outreach to the community and worked quite well.  If elected, I’ll keep that in mind as a way to engage people who prefer the comfort of their own home.  But I’d also like to have in-person town halls and simply attend meetings with local groups.     Read more »

Elizabeth May calls on the Canadian Government to urge Hosni Mubarak to resign as President of Egypt.

سياسات حزب الخضر من كندا هي ترتكز على ستة مبادئ اساسية هي …

GPO Annual General Meeting
Friday – Sunday, 2011 April 15 – 17
Huntsville, Ontario     Read more »

Wednesday, 2011 January 26, 7 to 9 pm
Trinity St Paul’s United Church
427 Bloor St West — Free

Join JustEarth for an exciting talk by political experts on political solutions to a climate in crisis.

Speakers:

• Glen Murray — Liberal MPP, Minister of Research and Innovation, former chair of the National Roundtable on Environment and Economy, and former mayor of Winnipeg.
• Lynn McDonald — Professor Emerita, former MP, sociologist and author.
• Peter H. Russell — Constitutional Expert, Professor Emeritus at the University of Toronto, and author.
• Moderator: David Neelands — Dean of Divinity at Trinity College, University of Toronto.