Climate Week Archives - Climate Challenge

Revolution – Friend’s House

Please join us for another Toronto Climate Film Festival screening hosted by ClimateFast and Greenpeace Canada.

After four years and fifteen countries, acclaimed Canadian filmmaker Rob Stewart brings us on an adventure 3.5 billion years in the making. Revolution is an ambitious and optimistic adventure in the evolution of life on earth to the revolution that all ages from across continents are engaged in to save our planet.

Following the screening Lyn Adamson, who knew Rob Stewart and is co-chair of ClimateFast, will speak on climate activism at a crucial time. She will introduce the Kitchen Table Climate Conversation campaign, designed to bring our communities together to address our climate challenges with the knowledge and tools we need to make a difference.

The screening will open with a short video documenting the impact of development on the Beaver Lake Cree nation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lG4-kjguKws.

Tickets are PWYC and donations will be gratefully accepted! Any donations which exceed our costs will be donated to ClimateFast and Greenpeace.

Climate Strike Concert

On September 27th, Toronto will see its biggest strike and march for climate justice. It is hosted by Fridays For Future Toronto, who invites adults to join youth strikers in solidarity, and is backed by the S27 Coalition, a diverse group of activists, union members and individuals just like yourself.

We can no longer continue with business as usual. This is a crisis. Our governments need to treat the climate crisis like the emergency it is.

Schedule:

10:00 Pre-Strike Street Mural 4 Climate Action – south end of the Queen’s Park grounds near the Sir John A. Macdonald Statue 11:00 – Rally at Queen’s Park

11:45 – 1.5 Minute of Silence to remember those who have already lost their lives to the climate crisis

12:00 – March. Route: east on Wellesley; south on Bay; west on Queen; north on University back to Queens Park.

2-3:30 – Concluding Rally and Music Performances

Speakers include:

Beze and Vanessa Gray from Aamjiwnaang First Nation

Cody Looking Horse, a young indigenous activist who was at Standing Rock

Carolynne Crawley, a Mi’kmaq food justice advocate

Dianne Saxe, the former Environmental Commissioner of Ontario

Sonam Chokey, Students for a Free Tibet speaking about the meltdown of the Himalayas and Tibet

Maya Menezes from No One is Illegal and The Leap;

Fridays for Future youth

Performers include:

Bangerz Brass

Moscow Apartment

Wolf Saga

Lido Pimienta

Jim Creegan (Bare Naked Ladies) with Mike Evin

Nai Musicians

Bring your own water bottle!

Help us make this a zero-waste event – take away your own litter!

Accessibility:

There will be an access van (2 wheelchairs, 5 ambulatory) for those who need it.

There will also be ASL interpreters for the rally.

The S27 Coalition is a self-organizing group headed up by Climate Justice TO and includes individuals representing Indigenous Climate Action; Toronto Environment Alliance; ClimateFast; Toronto350; Rising Tide Toronto; People’s Climate Movement; Greenpeace; David Suzuki Foundation; The LEAP; Toronto & York Region Labour Council and union members; TTC Riders; $15 and Fairness; Artists for Real Climate Action; Canadian Union of Postal Workers; Kairos Canada; Artists for Climate, Migrant Justice, and Indigenous Sovereignty; Disability Justice Network of Ontario; Elementary Teachers of Toronto; Extinction Rebellion Toronto; Indigenous Environmental Justice Project; No One Is Illegal TO; Students Say No; Parents for Future, and others.

Official demands for the strike can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GAF-G2Fhj0Usn95Z5fQIyk4dfJR4zi8wp04FLyxtFLg/edit?usp=sharing

Climate Action Song Circle

Sing for climate action.

Nothing builds connection and inspiration more than singing together.

In preparation for the Sept 27 Climate Strike rally and march, let’s gather to share songs calling for climate action and community and justice.

The songs we sing in this circle will become the songs we will be singing on the march.
All welcome!

UN Climate Summit: Youth Speak Out!

September 23 is the day of the UN Climate Summit in New York City. In Toronto, we bring you a panel of seven speakers on the Youth Emergency Platform for Climate Justice.

From ClimateStrike Canada – Emergency Platform for Climate Justice

We, as citizens, therefore call upon all political parties and politicians to create and commit to a science-based and human rights focused Emergency Plan for Climate Justice that limits global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

We would like to see the following demands included in their Emergency Plan for Climate Justice:

1. Bold Emissions Reductions Targets: Legislate greenhouse gas emission reductions of 65% by 2030, reaching net zero emissions by 2040.

2. Separation of Oil and State: Reject all new fossil fuel extraction or transportation projects, eliminate fossil fuel subsidies, and price pollution.

3. A Just Transition: Transition to renewable energy and sustainable transportation infrastructure while guaranteeing opportunity for fossil fuel workers in the new economy.

4. Environmental Rights: Enshrine in law, the fundamental right to a healthy environment. This would include, but is not limited to, the right to safe air, clean water, and healthy soil.

5. Indigenous Rights: Commit to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in full.

6. Conservation of Biodiversity: Maintain and protect old growth forests, restore cut blocks, reduce habitat fragmentation and strengthen the protection of at risk species.

7. Protection for Vulnerable Groups: Recognize Canada’s disproportionate role in the climate crisis and subsequent responsibility for the protection of the most vulnerable. Include the addition of climate displacement as a basis for refugee status. Provide climate aid to lower and middle-income countries, as well as Arctic Canada, which disproportionately experiences the impacts of the climate crisis.

You can register and donate $5 – $20 on-line or pay what you can (pwyc) at the door.

Co-sponsored by Greenpeace and Fridays for Future

Poster For Oct 7th Global Rebellion

Let’s spread the word across the city! 👊

Meet up with other rebels in the courtyard in front of the Greenpeace Building.

Please bring tape, paintbrushes, staple guns, wheat paste if you have them. We will have some, but this is a very ad-hoc low-organization postering meet up.

You can also just pick up posters and bring them back to your neighbourhood.

Ideal to bring a buddy.

Zero Waste Café with PlasticFreeTo

Are you looking to learn more about reducing your carbon footprint as a Torontonian? Have you ever felt isolated speaking with friends about environmental concerns? Are you looking to make a difference but aren’t sure where to start?

This month we have Plasticfree Toronto coming to Climate Ventures and talking about the Zero Waste lifestyle.

Consider it as a space where Torontonians can meet other people concerned about their personal impact, discuss issues and solutions.

This event is free and open to the public, but RSVP is required
RSVP to: info@wisebird.ca

U of T Trash Team Urban Litter Challenge

Please sign up through the link : https://www.shorelinecleanup.ca/cleanups/ykmqg

Join the U of T Trash Team’s inaugural Urban Litter Challenge and help us prevent litter in our watershed from entering Lake Ontario and connected tributaries. Teams will wander the neighbourhood surrounding St. George Campus while keeping track of what is collected. Prizes will be awarded during a celebratory lunch at the conclusion of the cleanup.

***Supplies are provided but to help keep waste minimal, please bring a pair of gardening gloves and a reusable water bottle (refill stations will be available) ***

The cleanup runs rain or shine, so dress for the weather! See you there.

Register in advance at https://www.shorelinecleanup.ca/cleanups/ykmqg

UofT Global Climate Strike Rally: No TMX, No TMT!

On September 20th and 27th, millions of people all around the world are walking out of their workplaces, classes and homes to demand an end to the age of fossil fuels. Meanwhile, UofT’s administration continues to be complicit in the climate crisis and in violence against Indigenous peoples, from its continued investment in the fossil fuel industry to its support for the Thirty Metre Telescope project threatening the sacred mountain Mauna Kea.

Join the UofT climate strike coalition at 11am on September 20th to bring the global climate strike action to the doorsteps of Simcoe Hall. From the fossil fuel industry driving pipelines through Indigenous territories, to the TMT project on Mauna Kea, to Ford’s cuts to education here in Ontario and the UofT admin’s own failure to address the campus mental health crisis, universities such as UofT are helping to perpetuate the crisis that makes our future unlivable. This week, students are pushing back!

Keep watching for updates as we publish our demands this week!

This event is part of a series of climate strike events and actions at UofT. Find the full list here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/383965738951770/

The Fire Within: The Stories the Earth Speaks Through Us

THIS EVENT HAS TWO SHOW TIMES TODAY

We are at a time when we are being called to put focus on our relationship to the Earth, the fires burn loud to draw and keep our attention. Overwhelmed, seeming like nothing can be done, we unite to touch into the complexities of our relationship to the Earth, to ourselves as an expression of the land, to our desire to exist in harmony. The journey of climate crisis and justice is full of all that life offers and with it comes many stories and the spectrum of emotion.

The Fire Within: Stories the Earth Speaks Through Us will be an improvised InterPlay performance where we explore the fullness of the climate justice story from our own lived experience – the grief and fear in the destruction in equal part to the precious connection we nurture as part of Earth community. We will also invite you, the audience, to share some of your fears, hopes and questions during these firey times.

Performance Dates & Time:

Saturday, September 28^th @ 2pm

Saturday, September 28^th @ 7pm

Location:

Majlis Art Garden (majlis meaning “a place to sit” in Arabic)

163 Walnut Ave. (located between Queen & King, a few blocks West of Bathurst St.)

This venue is an intimate and whimsical indoor/outdoor space – so please do bring layers and a blanket if the air is cool. To learn more visit: www.majlisarts.com

Cost:

$20 suggested donation or PWYC (pay-what-you-can)

All are welcome – this performance is appropriate for all ages depending on your child’s comfort with hearing and experiencing stories with full range of emotion.

InterPlay is an improvised practice that invites us to play with our birth right of sound, song, storytelling, movement, dance and stillness. It is a chance to connect to our deep inner wisdom, create space for the diversity of stories within us to be told and affirm what brings us joy and hope in life. To learn more visit: www.interplay.org

Toronto Climate Action Week: Documentary & Discussion

A national Climate Emergency was declared in Canada this summer following the findings of a government report that Canada is warming at twice the global average. Climate Action Week programs are community contributions towards increasing public awareness of issues and helpful actions in response.

Documentary & Discussion

with Emmay Mah – Executive Director, Toronto Environmental Alliance

Date: Friday September 20, 2019

Time: 6:30 – 8:30

Location: Lower Social Room, Noor Cultural Centre

Admission: Free

Tag: Climate Week