From the Western media, you may not have known that a historic climate change conference was held last week in Bolivia. Hard on the heels of the failure in Copenhagen, Evo Morales, Bolivia’s first indigenous president, proposed the people’s conference as a counterpoint to the pessimism and big power politics in Denmark.

Over 30,000 people attended the conference and met in 17 + 1 working groups to hash out a people’s agreement. Along with a proposed universal declaration for the rights of Mother Earth, enormous energy and spirit is being unleashed in the Global South to bear on the existential threats facing the human species, something to keep in mind in the complacent North that is sleepwalking through the unfolding disaster.

And despite the predictable and almost deliberate media blackout, it is again the South that is taking the lead, and amongst them, the poorest of the poor.

David Suzuki Foundation invites you to “Plenitude: The New Economics of True Wealth”

Date:
Wednesday, May 05, 2010 from 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM (ET)

Location:
Center for Social Innovation
215 Spadina Avenue
Suite 400
Toronto, Ontario M5T2C7
Canada

Can you attend this event? Respond Here

For more information click here

Your chance to hear from participants in the World People’s Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth, held in Cochabamba, Bolivia, April 19-22.

Time: Friday, May 7, 2010, 7pm
Location: Steelworkers Hall Toronto, 25 Cecil Street
(east of Spadina, south of College)

Donation $5 or pay what you can.

Principal speakers

- Robert Lovelace, Ardoch Algonquin First Nation
- Ben Powless, Mohawk from Six Nations in Ontario, member of the Indigenous Environmental Network
- Kimia Ghomeshi, Campaign Director, Canadian Youth Climate Coalition
- Danny Beaton: winner of the National Aboriginal Achievement Award for Environment and Natural Resources
- Delegation from Toronto Bolivia Solidarity

Plus

- Messages from supporters and sponsors
- Bolivian dance troupe and First Nations indigenous drumming.
- Bolivian food and beverages.

Sponsoring organizations

- Canadian Youth Climate Coalition
- CAW-Sam Gindin Chair in Social Justice and Democracy at Ryerson
- Climate and Capitalism
- Common Frontiers
- KAIROS Toronto Center
- Latin American Solidarity Network
- Ontario Public Interest Research Group (OPIRG)
- Toronto Bolivia Solidarity
- Toronto Climate Campaign
- Toronto Forum on Cuba
- Toronto Haiti Action Committee

To add your organization to the Sponsors’ list, email Torontoboliviasolidarity@gmail.com

For more information please see the poster and flyer.

The following appeared in the Friday, April 16, 2010 edition of Y-File:

Simple steps mean a lot when it comes to climate change.

During the month of March, students in eight undergraduate residences on Keele campus and two on the Glendon campus took many simple steps as part of a collective effort to reduce their personal energy consumption.

The students were competing in York University’s second annual Res Race to Zero challenge, which saw students in the 10 residences work together to reduce their personal carbon footprint, and in turn, that of their residence. Led by 9 residence environmental ambassadors, the 2,500 students competed against each other and tried, in true competitive spirit, to bring home a personal best with respect to energy saved.

Right: Residence Environmental
Ambassadors leading the Res Race to
Zero challenge are, clockwise from
the bottom, Farrahnaz Bulsara,
Madeline Neff, Adellah Chimbindi,
Jason Vuu, Yulia Lobacheva, James
Marzotto and Ives Spritzer

“I’m sure the students must have been living in the dark or studying by candlelight,” joked Helen Psathas, York’s senior manager of environmental design & sustainability.

Congestion charging. Priced networks. High Occupancy Toll Lanes.

These road pricing systems are being implemented internationally in order to fight traffic congestion, reduce pollution and generate dedicated revenues for sustainable transportation infrastructure. Yet, when the discussion begins, road tolls are usually described as “controversial”, “audacious”, “explosive” and even “radioactive”. A recent Ontario poll has confirmed the findings of many other domestic and international opinion surveys: the majority of citizens yearn for a much improved transportation network to serve their needs but are reluctant to pay for it in a direct manner.

With the help of our delegates and partners, Transport Futures has been exploring this conundrum since our inaugural forum in November 2008. Now a perfect storm of economic, social and environmental challenges compels us to continue our non-partisan discussion by examining the critical role of leadership and road pricing.