This week, Premier Doug Ford stood up in front of journalists, and spread harmful, well-worn stereotypes about migrants. [1][2] We need to show Ford that Ontarians are united with the migrant members of our community. If thousands of us sign the open letter in solidarity with migrants, it could nip the Premier’s harmful election strategy in the bud and send a clear message: Ontarians won’t let Ford divide us. Sign now. [1] https://www.thestar.com/politics/2021/10/18/ontario-opposition-leaders-call-on-ford-to-apologize-for-immigrant-remark.html [2] https://www.thestar.com/politics/provincial/2021/10/19/doug-ford-doubles-down-on-comments-about-hard-working-new-canadians.html

Bees are critical to life on earth. They maintain the wellbeing of our ecosystems and pollinate a third of the crops we consume, providing pollination services valued at $2 billion to Canadian farmers every year. [1] Without them, Canada’s food system would collapse. Neonicotinoids were banned by the European Union two years ago because of their devastating impact on bee populations. [2] Neonicotinoids can kill insects on contact, interrupt their ability to navigate and reproduce [3] and threaten to poison our fish, our water, and the foods we eat. In 2018, the Ministry of Health promised to ban the use of neonicotinoids in Canada. But last year, they quietly walked back on their commitment — trading out a decisive neonicotinoid ban with half-measures that come nowhere close to meeting the scale of the problem. [4] It’s time for our government to follow the example of the European Union and ban the use of neonicotinoids. We need to stop the use of this chemical to preserve our environment and stop poisoning ourselves! Sources [1] https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/pollinators/documents/AgCanadaNativePollinators.pdf [2] https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/neonics-neonicotinoids-banned-european-union-protect-bees-pollinators-environment-science-spd [3] https://www.nationalobserver.com/2021/05/31/news/bees-dying-toxic-chemicals-feds-wont-save-them [4] https://www.ctvnews.ca/climate-and-environment/canada-rejects-outright-ban-on-bee-killing-pesticides-1.5370556

We want inclusive, equitable, safe childcare for ALL children and youth in BC.

Nous sommes musiciennes et musiciens, réalisatrices et réalisateurs, interprètes, comédiennes et comédiens, conceptrices et concepteurs, autrices et auteurs. Nous avons fait le choix de vivre de notre art. Ce choix implique son lot de sacrifices et d’abnégation : cadences effrénées des tournages, efforts pour maîtriser les caprices d’un violoncelle, la dureté d’un ballet sur nos corps, les heures interminables d’écriture dans la solitude… Mais à ces sacrifices s’ajoute le fait que, devant la loi québécoise, les dizaines de milliers d’artistes ayant perfectionné leur métier pour gagner leur vie doivent renoncer à de larges pans de droits en matière de travail – des droits fondamentaux, reconnus par nos chartes et pourtant accessibles à l’ensemble des Québécoises et des Québécois. Comment expliquer, en 2021, que les deux principales lois en matière de santé et de sécurité au travail ne s’appliquent pas automatiquement aux artistes ? Comment comprendre, en dépit de tout ce que le Québec a traversé au cours des dernières années, que les dispositions législatives pour contrer le harcèlement psychologique et sexuel en milieu de travail ne s’appliquent pas d’emblée au milieu artistique, qui n’a pourtant pas été épargné ? Comment justifier que les associations d’artistes dont nous sommes membres en soient réduites à quémander, lors de la négociation de nos ententes, des dispositions pourtant prévues par les lois du travail et auxquelles tous les employeurs du Québec doivent se conformer ? Le gouvernement de François Legault a promis de réformer les lois sur le statut de l’artiste au cours d’un premier mandat. Toutefois, le refus de son gouvernement la semaine dernière à l’Assemblée nationale de s’engager à déposer un projet de loi en ce sens nous apparaît des plus inquiétants, notamment en raison de l’échéance électorale de 2022. Colmater les brèches Il est ici opportun de rappeler – même si là n’est pas notre revendication – que les artistes n’ont jamais été couverts, ni par les normes, ni par le Code du travail. C’est en constatant ce vide juridique, mais aussi les conditions de pauvreté et de précarité qui prévalaient à l’époque, que l’Assemblée nationale avait adopté en 1987 les deux lois sur le statut de l’artiste. La première Loi (S-32.1) a permis aux artistes de négocier des ententes qui établissaient des conditions de travail de base. Le fait qu’une majorité de producteurs reconnaît et met en œuvre des ententes collectives négociées a amélioré, à plusieurs égards, nos conditions de travail et de vie. Il faut néanmoins souligner que ce droit à la négociation collective n’a jamais été conféré aux autrices et aux auteurs du Québec encadrés par la Loi S.32.01 dans les domaines du livre ou du théâtre, cette loi n’obligeant pas les éditeurs et les diffuseurs à négocier des conditions minimales de travail et de diffusion. La réforme annoncée des lois sur le statut de l’artiste doit donc corriger cette injustice en protégeant ces autrices et ces auteurs au même titre que leurs collègues d’autres disciplines comme le cinéma et la télévision. Sur d’autres plans, de nombreuses failles de la loi doivent également être corrigées : trop de producteurs trouvent encore le moyen de se déresponsabiliser de leurs obligations d’employeur en refusant de reconnaître les ententes pourtant appliquées par une large majorité d’entre eux. Ou encore, en étirant les négociations pendant parfois plus de 20 ans, rendant obsolètes les dispositions des ententes antérieures dans une industrie sans cesse en évolution. Cette pression à la baisse de nos conditions de travail n’est pas étrangère au fait que, plus de 30 ans plus tard, le revenu médian des artistes se situe toujours aujourd’hui sous le seuil de pauvreté. La réforme tant attendue des lois sur le statut de l’artiste doit pouvoir contraindre l’ensemble des producteurs à appliquer les conditions minimales de travail qu’on retrouve dans les ententes négociées par les associations d’artistes. Quand l’État finance en fermant les yeux… Comment peut-on aujourd’hui accepter que l’État et ses organismes publics puissent cautionner des producteurs qui refusent de se soumettre à l’esprit de la Loi ? En effet, les nombreux programmes de subventions et d’appuis financiers (sous forme de crédits d’impôt) du gouvernement à l’industrie culturelle sont alloués sans qu’aucune forme de vérification n’ait lieu quant au respect ou non d’une entente collective au cours de la production. Toute forme de financement de l’État doit impérativement être conditionnelle à l’application de conditions minimales de travail reconnues. Quand on sait à quel point l’aide publique est essentielle au secteur des arts et de la culture, il s’agit là d’une façon efficace de s’assurer que les droits du travail de tous les artistes soient respectés. Au gré du temps, nous avons l’habitude d’être qualifiés de bohèmes, de rêveurs, de boute-en-train, de fous du roi, voire de marginaux ou d’iconoclastes. Nous demandons aujourd’hui que la loi cesse de nous considérer comme une catégorie à part afin d’avoir les mêmes droits que tout le monde. Parce qu’on travaille, comme tout le monde.

The SPFA compliments existing protections found in s. 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, removing any room for interpretation regarding the extent of student journalists' rights to freedom of expression and of the press. The apparent school administrative doctrine that students shed their Charter rights upon entering the doors of a public school is one that is both at odds with Canada's Constitution and as a democratic society, we must reject in its entirety. Oftentimes, student journalists shed light on the specific experiences of their campuses, as well as the pressing issues facing youth. They can report on the state of our education system, bringing a view from the inside. As members of a younger generation, one highly susceptible to misinformation, they can act as the first responders to fake news and falsities spreading in their community. Student journalists can do all of these things, but they need to freedom to do so, and they need that freedom to be protected. What happened to The Nest happens to student journalists across the country. Students are denied their rights simply because they are students. That's unacceptable in a country like Canada. The SPFA needs to pass to ensure no students in the British Columbia school system are denied their fundamental rights and ensure that their voices are heard in our society.

"Observed increases in well-mixed greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations since around 1750 are unequivocally caused by human activities...Each of the last four decades has been successively warmer than any decade that preceded it since 1850." -IPCC Assessment report 6, working group 1 https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6_WGI_Full_Report.pdf The climate crisis does not end here. We know what we need to do to lower emissions. It is essential and only fair for students to have required and updated climate curriculum to spread the awareness we need as fast as we need it.

As a non partisan organization the DSC Campus Organizing Committee sees the decision by Elections Canada as a violation of student rights and freedoms and could even be considered a tactic of voter suppression. We know that students experience increased barriers to voting than the general public including; access to transportation, housing precariousness (making where to vote and how to vote more confusing), and less time to vote due to the constraints of both working and going to school. Furthermore we know that these barriers have been exacerbated by the pandemic and the timing of the election being so close to when students are in transition and settling into new routines. We also know this is a crucial election in Canada’s ability to respond in a timely and effective manner to a number of crises that will have a lasting effect on this generation of students including but not limited to; climate, housing affordability, and wealth inequality. Anything that can be done to encourage students to vote will be a good thing for our democracy. We hope you agree!

Elections Canada is not setting up voting booths or offering special balloting on campus for students in this important election. Young people are the largest voting block and tend to vote progressive-- this is extremely concerning. Their reasoning is also unjustified. They claim the problem is the pandemic and minority government having a snap election. This is voter suppression. People and students are rightfully angry about not being able to justly and equitably access their voting rights and Elections Canada has been getting backlash all day. We need to ensure voting is as accessible as possible to increase turn out. Our ask is very simple. Elections Canada: open voting booths on campus across the country. If we can ramp up the pressure on Elections Canada while they’re feeling the heat on their announcement, it could be enough to force them to reverse course and set up voting booths and special balloting on campuses across the country. Otherwise thousands of students will be barred from voting. Add your voice now to show the importance of accessible student voting!

Stop greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel (natural gas and coal) power stations in Alberta and BC which would generate up to 10,000,000 Megawatt-hours per year of electricity exported to the USA for a period of 10 years. This would produce up to 40 million metric tons of carbon dioxide addition to Canada's greenhouse gas emissions. The intention of the petition is to ensure that the Canada Energy Regulator refuses to authorize the application by Heartland Generation Ltd. dated 13 August 2021 to export this energy. The recent IPCC report has stated in no uncertain terms that fossil fuel emissions are driving climate change and that these emissions must be reduced as soon as possible to avoid future climate catastrophe. This application to export electricity which would increase Canada's emissions is unconscionable.

This is a matter of public health. We need to protect the most vulnerable including children who can't be vaccinated yet, people who are sick, people with disabilities and the elderly. The delta variant is more contagious and more dangerous. We can't afford to sit and watch another wave take over. It's time to act.

Update: The fourth wave is sweeping through the province. As of Sept 27, more Albertans are in the ICU with COVID than ever. A growing number of experts are warning that the province’s health-care system is on the verge of collapse due to a staffing crisis, overwhelmed ICUs and insufficient government action. Experts say the worst is yet to come and that the province needs COVID public safety measures to ease up pressure on hospitals. [original petition] Last week, Premier Jason Kenney lifted all COVID-19 restrictions in Alberta — including contact tracing and mandatory quarantines for people who have tested positive for COVID-19. [1] Alberta is on the precipice of a fourth wave fuelled by the Delta variant — and the spread will be especially dangerous for unvaccinated Albertans. [2] Medical professionals are already speaking out about Alberta’s reopening plans: the Canadian Paediatric Society has called the plan an “unnecessary and risky gamble.” [3] Nurses, medical officials, teachers, parents and community members have taken to the streets demanding the return of basic COVID-19 safety protocols to protect all of us. All that’s missing is a wave of public pressure aimed directly at Kenney. [4] Add your voice to the petition calling for Kenney to bring Alberta’s reopening plan in line with the science. Sources: [1] https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/federal-health-minister-pens-letter-to-alberta-asks-for-science-behind-plan-to-lift-covid-19-rules-1.6130917 [2] https://globalnews.ca/news/8087850/alberta-covid-19-measures-hajdu-shandro/ [3] https://globalnews.ca/news/8073936/alberta-covid-measutes-canadian-paediatric-society/ [4] https://globalnews.ca/news/8074090/alberta-doctors-rally-covid-19-rules/

This year alone, we have seen an unprecedented amount of disasters all over the world, such as deadly heat waves, wildfires, tornadoes, over one billion sea creatures possibly boiling to death in the oceans, melting icecaps causing northern parts of the world to become inhospitable, to countless floods and other major disasters. All of these issues and much more serve as a grim reminder that the Earth is a fragile place that requires immediate action. Climate science has shown us time and time again that our way of living is unsustainable, but those in power refuse to acknowledge these facts for monetary gain. The worst is yet to come, and we will be the ones to inherit a desolate planet if we do not do our part. Not our children, or our children's children, but those of us here now. We at Green Tomorrow Niagara refuse this fate, and so we are calling on you to stand with us and demand more from your leaders, and prove to all that sustainable is attainable.