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!

The Disabled people are the most vulnerable population and they have very little voice. Governments often neglect them.

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.

*UPDATE* Five Councillors - Shelley Carroll, Mike Layton, Josh Matlow, Gordon Perks and Kristyn Wong-Tam - have signed a letter denouncing the violence and asking the Mayor to change course: https://www.cp24.com/news/city-councillors-call-on-tory-to-stop-extreme-show-of-force-when-dismantling-encampments-1.5521002 ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The scenes that have unfolded across Toronto over the past month of forced evictions are seared into our collective consciousness. The photos and videos speak volumes of our shame. Armed and militarized police forces physically assaulting civilians in the name of "public safety". Weapons deployed to beat the unhoused and their supporters alike. Choke holds responsible for numerous deaths in the United States deployed right here in Toronto, caught on camera for the world to see. [1-4] The actions of Toronto Police in destroying the camps where people have fled both the housing crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic are reprehensible, and unless our elected leaders immediately denounce the violence and halt the evictions, they make us all complicit. There is no universe in which it can be credibly claimed that paying people to assault our neighbours with weapons serves the cause of public safety. And yet that is exactly what Mayor Tory claimed this effort was about when confronted with images of the violence. [5] It is clear that the way public safety is delivered in Toronto must be completely reimagined. The first step on that road is for every elected leader in city government to go on the record unequivocally condemning the extreme police violence deployed in Alexandra Park, Trinity Bellwoods Park, and Lamport Stadium, and to put a halt to all further use of force against our unhoused neighbours. Housed or not, Toronto is our home. We all deserve to feel safe here. But it won't happen on its own. It's clear we can't count on the police to deliver that safety. It's up to us to demand it. A massive petition will show Mayor Tory and the Council that the entire city is fed up with the cycle of abuse and aggression - and with an election next year, that just might be enough to get them to start making some changes. Add your name today and spread the word. *Note* For more ways to help, check out the No Encampment Evictions Toolkit: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xc_P333h8UuoWyx970rxqNgw07BlUVzPZR2ncKq0eOs/edit Sources (note: some of these photos depict violence committed by our public servants and can be disturbing) 1) Photo of a dangerous "knee to neck" chokehold TPD claims they don't use: https://twitter.com/canto_general/status/1417958275774025736?s=20 2) Photo of TPD officer using a weapon to beat a person: https://twitter.com/lorrainelamchop/status/1418273031621906435 3) Several photos, including one of a TPD officer grabbing a person by the throat: https://twitter.com/ChrisYphoto/status/1418210773097230336?s=20 4) Photo of TPD throwing a person to the ground to arrest them while racing to grab another onlooker: https://twitter.com/EVYSTADIUM/status/1418274967867871235 5) Vice: "Toronto Cops Say They Did 'Tremendous Job' After Beating People, Destroying Homeless Camp" - https://www.vice.com/en/article/z3xgza/toronto-cops-say-they-did-tremendous-job-after-beating-people-destroying-homeless-camp

Join us - Because now we are older, wiser, angrier. Because we know that action builds hope.

Nurses carried Alberta through the pandemic. But instead of rewarding them for their heroic efforts, Jason Kenney is threatening them with a 3% pay cut. [1] It’s a slap in the face. Nurses have worked flat out to care for us and our loved ones amidst this unprecedented health crisis, scrambling to keep up with surging COVID-19 case numbers, understaffed hospitals, and inadequate medical supplies. Add in the constant threat of contracting the virus, and it’s no wonder many nurses have been at the breaking point for months. [2] If you agree that we should support - not punish - our hard-working nurses after they’ve done so much to care for all of us - will you sign the petition calling on Kenney to pay Alberta nurses the wages they deserve? Sources [1] ​​https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/alberta-nursing-union-says-government-wants-them-to-take-a-3-pay-cut [2] https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2021/07/08/barely-out-of-a-pandemic-heres-why-jason-kenneys-government-is-picking-a-fight-with-alberta-nurses.html