The City of Toronto, and Canada as a whole, is in an unprecedented affordable housing crisis. Many struggle to find safe and stable housing in Toronto and Parkdale Activity-Recreation Centre (PARC) wants to be proactive in housing our at-risk community members and has proposed to build 140 new affordable supportive homes at 1499 and 1501 Queen St. West.     Right now, PARC is facing opposition from a group of neighbours in Parkdale who want to reject our proposed development. PARC has been part of the Parkdale community for more than four decades. We already operate supportive housing at 1499 Queen and nearby buildings. We want to replace an aging building with safe, private self-contained units, indoor programming space, and onsite supports to reduce crowding on the sidewalk, and create more dignity, safety, and stability for our community members and neighbours alike.   Supportive housing does not negatively impact communities. Instead, it can enhance community stability and reduce crime rates by providing stable housing environments for vulnerable individuals.     This proposal will provide stable and supportive homes to those who need long-term housing. Supportive housing is one of the solutions to homelessness, and offers stability, on-site resources and ensures the safety of tenants and the neighborhood they are in. It combined affordable rent with supports, allowing tenants to heal, recover and contribute to their communities.    What is PARC’s proposal?  PARC is proposing to build a total of 140 units divided between 1499 and 1501 buildings, as well as enhancing a non-residential portion of the building to improve our community spaces. These new buildings will feature self-contained units with kitchens and bathrooms, laundry facilities, and carefully designed common spaces for tenants to enjoy. There will be on-site programming and support focused on housing stabilization, community integration, and wellness.     This proposal is not only about housing. It is about building a stronger Parkdale that lives its values: a neighbourhood that doesn’t turn its back on people in crisis but instead helps them rebuild their lives.    Join us in supporting the proposed supportive housing development at 1499 and 1501 Queen St. West. Sign this petition and stand up for a more compassionate and equitable Toronto.  

The Truth About Your Role: Your mortgage lending drives up house prices, making homeownership unaffordable. You finance landlords who evict long-term tenants to maximize rents, while your commercial lending criteria reward displacement over affordability. You've erected barriers that block non-profit housing providers from building the homes we desperately need; requiring 35% equity and loan guarantees that corporate landlords never face. And while you've abandoned climate commitments by leaving the Net Zero Banking Alliance, you continue financing sprawl and energy-inefficient buildings without assessing their carbon footprint; locking in decades of emissions while calling real estate "green investment." What We Demand: 1. ⁠⁠Reform your commercial lending practices and risk assessments. Stop incentivizing corporate landlords who raise rents, evict tenants, and reposition buildings from affordable to luxury. Deny financing to those who use evictions as a common business practice, or where patterns of tenant displacement are evident or likely to occur especially as a means of debt financing. 2. Publicly disclose to your customers if their mortgages are packaged and sold to investors. 3. Level the playing field for non-profit housing providers so that they can secure loans to purchase, retrofit or build truly affordable housing.   4. ⁠Invest in solutions by directing 15% of annual profits above $1 billion toward financing affordable housing construction, acquisition, and deep retrofits that maintain affordability in perpetuity. 5. ⁠Honor your climate commitments by assessing and publicly disclosing the climate impact of all residential real estate lending. Stop financing projects that increase emissions and prioritize conversions and adaptive reuse projects that are energy-efficient, and connected to public transit.  Canada doesn't just need more housing, we need a banking system that builds communities instead of destroying them. Read more about the role that Banks have to play in Canada’s housing crisis here.  Sign if you believe banks should be part of the solution, not the crisis.

The Basic Personal Amount in the Canadian tax code needs to be adjusted for inflation. Too many Canadians are living on the brink of survival, and this one simple step would make a huge difference to the poorest working Canadians. If anyone working a full-time minimum wage job could make their first $40,000 tax free, we would all be better off.  Studies all over the world show that putting cash directly in the hands of the poorest folks directly benefits the economy as a whole. This is because folks that don’t have much money tend to spend most of what they have, spurring the economy from the bottom up. 

The Canada Pension Plan (CPP) is supposed to protect our future. But instead, the people managing our national retirement fund are gambling billions on oil, gas, coal and pipelines – putting the financial futures of 22 million Canadians at risk. Now, four young Canadians are taking the managers of the CPP fund to court. This landmark case argues that CPP investment managers are failing to manage the financial risks of climate change while investing billions in fossil fuels – and in doing so, violating CPP’s legal duty to act in the best interests of contributors and future retirees. This isn’t just reckless. It may be unlawful. And it's putting our pensions and our planet in danger. Tell the CPP fund managers: stop fuelling the climate crisis with our pensions. Recommit to net-zero, phase out fossil fuels, and protect our financial future. Learn more about the legal case here.  

There are major ramifications that Premier Ford and Energy Minister Stephen Lecce should know with respect to AI data centres:  1. The major beneficiary of building new AI data centers in Ontario are American companies. Most notably, a single American company: NVIDIA. AI data centers are, essentially, warehouses for Graphics Processing Units, or GPUs. The GPU market is widely understood as a de facto monopoly, with NVIDIA controlling more than 90% of the sales of GPUs (Yahoo Finance, 2025). NVIDIA -- an American company with close ties to the Trump administration (Rapoza, 2025) -- benefits first and foremost from the sale. That is, the primary beneficiary of such a deal is an American company, not an Ontarian or even a Canadian one. 2. Rising electricity and water bills for residents and businesses: Paying higher water and electricity bills will make life more unaffordable for millions of residents and businesses across Ontario. In the U.S., new data centres have already notably increased electricity bills in many cities and small towns. 3. AI data centers contribute to massive increases in GHG emissions, particularly from fossil fuels. Please see Appendix 2 for a draft calculation to reference on the energy intensity and GHG emissions of data centres by Dr. Farhan Samir. 4. AI data centres require massive amounts of water and electricity (particularly from fossil fuels and nuclear), negatively impacting the environment. For instance, “across the globe, Microsoft’s 300 data centres consume more than 125 million litres of water per facility each year. That’s the equivalent of 15,000 Olympic size swimming pools filled with water at each data centre.” Moreover, “by 2030–2035, data centers could account for 20% of global electricity use, putting an immense strain on power grids.” It is crucial to respect nature. There is no economy without clean air, clean water, and a healthy ecosystem. Humans cannot survive without a healthy environment. In other words, we cannot prioritize short-term economic growth over the environment. As stated by Golestan (Sally) Radwan, the Chief Digital Officer of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), “Governments are racing to develop national AI strategies but rarely do they take the environment and sustainability into account. The lack of environmental guardrails is no less dangerous than the lack of other AI-related safeguards.” 5. Local, marginalized communities face disproportionate costs and health impacts: In South Memphis, an overwhelmingly Black neighbourhood has seen a sharp rise in asthma attacks and other respiratory problems since xAI’s data centre began operating there in June 2024. xAI is now facing legal action by the NAACP over air pollution.  6. Excessive E-waste and mineral extraction: Data centres produce large amounts of electronic waste, which often contains hazardous substances like mercury and lead. To explain, “the short lifespan of GPUs and other HPC components results in a growing problem of electronic waste, as obsolete or damaged hardware is frequently discarded. Manufacturing these components requires the extraction of rare earth minerals, a process that depletes natural resources and contributes to environmental degradation.” 7. Lack of transparency: There is a lack of transparency and accountability of AI data centres. To tackle this, there needs to be more opportunities for public engagement and real consultation with climate groups, human rights organizations, and local communities. Throughout the whole process, Indigenous communities must be a partner in the decision-making process and treaty rights must be respected at all times.  8. Uncertainty in the business model of AI data centres: Many data centres have yet to prove that they have a viable business model. Currently, most generative AI services are available for free and it is uncertain whether AI-users would be willing to pay for these services if there was a charge. “The scale of the investment is sparking concerns about a bubble and the potential for a pop that could bring the stock market crashing down from record heights…The money spent this year on AI infrastructure and software has contributed more to GDP growth than consumer spending, according to Renaissance Macro Research's reading of Bureau of Economic Analysis data.” 9. Minimal economic gains for the local community and few new jobs: AI data centres can be expected to create only a handful employment opportunities (sometimes just 10-100 jobs per facility), spurring minimal long-term economic gains to local residents. Many operations jobs for running AI data centres can be done remotely as well, employing workers that are not local, even overseas. We are opposed to economic growth that is not distributed equally and make wealthy tech investors and business owners even wealthier.

Across British Columbia, farmers are facing unnecessary barriers because local governments are misclassifying agritourism accommodations. The Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) and Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) clearly recognize agritourism as a permitted farm use. Yet, in the Thompson‑Nicola Regional District (TNRD), seasonal, off‑grid farm‑stay units are being misclassified as “single family dwellings.” This misclassification threatens the viability of agritourism businesses, undermines provincial policy, and penalizes farms that are operating in good faith under ALR/ALC guidelines. Agritourism is not just about farm stays — it’s about: • Strengthening rural economies. • Supporting local food systems. • Providing authentic educational and cultural experiences. • Building bridges between farms and communities. When local governments undermine agritourism, they undermine the resilience of farming itself. Join Us We urge the TNRD Board to reject punitive measures and instead work with farmers, chambers, and tourism groups to create policies that support agritourism across the region. 👉 Sign this petition to stand with BC farmers and protect the future of agritourism.

Doug Ford and his Conservative government are attacking two pillars of Ontario that impact every single one of us: healthcare and education. • Our healthcare system is being dismantled and privatized, putting profits before patients. This affects all of us — from our aging parents who need long-term care, to our children who need access to doctors, nurses, and emergency services. • Our education system is being cut and underfunded. Every child deserves the right to learn in a classroom with proper supports. Instead, Ford is blaming school boards for “overspending” while his government refuses to provide the funding students actually need. The federal government has done what it can, but healthcare and education are provincial responsibilities. The time is now to stop Doug Ford from privatizing the very systems that were created to give everyone — no matter their income — the chance to be healthy and to learn. We demand that Doug Ford and the Ontario Conservatives: 1. Stop healthcare privatization and invest in publicly funded, publicly delivered healthcare. 2. Fully fund Ontario’s public education system so that students, teachers, and families get the supports they need. This is about our future. Our healthcare and our schools are not for sale.

Doug Ford is defunding colleges at a time we need it the most.  Ontario’s college system is on life support. The culprit? Chronic underfunding and the Ford governments' plans to privatize education. 10,000 faculty and support staff jobs in public colleges have been lost already, and 650+ programs have closed across Ontario's 24 college campuses. If nothing is done, we will see colleges merge or close, erasing opportunities for learners, and dealing devastating blows to local economies - especially in rural and northern parts of the province. With economic uncertainty due to Trump’s tariffs, and high youth unemployment: colleges were built for this very moment. But while provincial grants to colleges go down every year, since 2020 we've seen Doug Ford pump $2.5 billion dollars into the "Skills Development Fund", which has doled out massive amounts of money to subsidize corporate training, which have seemingly low to no educational standards or requirements for reporting, unlike colleges. Colleges provide cycle-breaking education for thousands of Ontarians across the country - offering life changing education in their own communities, critical for retraining, non-traditional learners, or for those who leaving a community is just not financially possible. We cannot stand by as Doug Ford tries to privatize our college system. Sign the petition now to call on Doug Ford to fund Ontario's college system, not corporate subsidies.

The Burnaby incinerator, located in an urban environment and near neighbourhoods and farms, is a major source of pollution. Touted as waste to energy, it wastes more energy than it recovers.  Burning solid waste, 20% of the material going in comes out as toxic ash and the remaining 80% is released into the air. Emissions include dioxins, furans, heavy metals like arsenic, mercury and lead as well as nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxides, and many more types that can cause cancer, breathing problems and disrupt endocrine systems. These are harmful to human and environmental health and some can accumulate on agricultural land. It is one of the top 25 greenhouse gas emitters in the province. Very expensive to run, it prevents far better solutions like zero waste actions of reducing, reusing, repairing, sharing, composting and recycling from being implemented. As Metro Vancouver  is developing its new solid waste management plan that they will then ask the Ministry to approve, NOW is the time to push back and ask for the incinerator to be shut down.

The climate crisis is expensive. In just a few hours during July 2024, heavy rainfall in Toronto caused over $940 million in insured damages. A month later in August, a 20-minute hailstorm in the Calgary area led to $3.25 billion in insured losses with 130,000 claims filed in a single day. When we go beyond just looking at the insured losses and account for the cost of these extreme weather events on healthcare, businesses, and social factors, the costs are even greater. For example, Swiss Re estimates that the financial impact of the Fort McMurray wildfires cost around $8.9 billion or 5.2 times greater than insured losses of $1.7 billion. What is the largest contributor to this problem? Fossil fuels. Fossil fuels – coal, oil, and gas – are by far the largest contributor to climate change, accounting for over 75% of global green house gas emissions and nearly 90% of all carbon dioxide emissions. As greenhouse gas emissions blanket the Earth, they trap the sun’s heat. This leads to global warming and climate change. Heat-pumps and Green Building Standards are an important part of the energy transition. Local governments who are closest to the ground must be treated as equal partners in this as they are the ones closest to the ground, understand the needs of the community, and engage in deliberative processes.

Shambhalas last minute decision to go cashless impacts the community for a myriad of reasons.  The most egregious of which is changing the terms under which we bought tickets to this event. It limits our accessibility to essential goods and services ie; Food / Beverages / Ice etc ...  It also limits vendors livelihoods by forcing them to take one less form of payment and giving them little time to prepare for a sudden change. Shambhala music festival has offered little to no information about security measure for they're RFD bracelets and has not answered questions about refunding remaining funds on said pre-loaded bracelet making this a blatant money grab.  With Shambhalas recent infractions / fines from the BC Ministry of Transportation as well as WORKSAFEBC it is well within reason to assume that the "better business bureau" and "ombudsman" would be willing to look into this forced change.  The links to both of which are below.  https://bcombudsperson.ca/complaints/ https://www.bbb.org/file-a-complaint

This shamelessly greenwashed environmental and fiscal misadventure is an absolutely needless waste of taxpayer dollars when a far less costly and environmentally sustainable means of providing a more efficient and upgradable electrical storage facility can be done faster with a battery park on Saugeen/Ojibway land beside the Bruce Nuclear Power Plant in Tiverton Ontario.   Having to run a new high voltage transmission corridor from Bruce Nuclear Power plant to run pumps in Meaford is a flagrant abuse of funds and the environment when a battery park near the power source can be built and service our struggling electrical grid far sooner and for a fraction of the cost.