We must rise In the face of catastrophe
- Details
- Published on Sunday, 29 November -0001 16:00
- Written by editor
Dear Paov,
Like millions of people in Western Canada, the view from my window in Vancouver looked like a scene from an apocalyptic movie this week. Wildfires raging across BC have cast a blanket of smoke across the region, and led the province to declare a state of emergency for the second year in a row.1
In my home country of Pakistan, the escalating water crisis, driven by year after year of record breaking heat, has led to thousands of premature deaths and could see the country run out of water by 2025.2
Despite a clear moral imperative to keep fossil fuels in the ground, Trudeau’s government doubling down on its support for the fossil fuel industry by purchasing Kinder Morgan’s TransMountain expansion project and backing Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline.
While part of me wants to despair in the face of such devastating tragedies, now is not the time to let up --... it’s the time to grow the movement for climate justice and demand our elected leaders actually lead. Will you join me and communities around the world on September 8th to rise for real climate leadership? Find an event near you -- or sign up to host one.
On September 8, people all around the world will rise up for the climate in a global day of action called Rise For Climate. Just one week later MPs from across Canada will head back to Ottawa for the fall sitting of Parliament. Before they go, let’s send them off with a message: in the midst of climate chaos Canada must keep fossil fuels in the ground.
In this moment of grief and catastrophe, I’m reminded of a quote from one of my favourite authors, Rebecca Solnit: “Hope is not a lottery ticket you can sit on the sofa and clutch, feeling lucky. It is an axe you break down doors with in an emergency.”
These words particularly rung true on Thursday when a judge in the United States overruled Trump’s approval of Keystone XL and demanded a full environmental assessment of the project. This massive win, which is a product of people powered resistance in the courts and on the streets, means this project will face huge delays and lose even more investor confidence.
Even when the world seems to be engulfed in darkness there is evidence everywhere that when we stand up and fight, we can move the boundaries of what is possible.
With hope and urgency,
Atiya
References:
- BC Declares state of emergency as province battles hundreds of wildfires
- Is Pakistan running out of fresh water?
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