Our local drug store is a key part of our daily lives - a place we trust and feel safe. Let's keep it that way! It's a place where your Mom and Dad or grandparents get their medications safely, where you shop for a card or cosmetics. It is NOT the place where anyone should be exposed to active cases of COVID-19. This is best accomplished in Health Unit organized stand-alone locations.

Conservative Alberta Premier Jason Kenney just inked a deal with the Federal Government for $10/day child care. [1] Ontario could also have more affordable child care if they work with the Federal Government — but surprise, surprise: Premier Doug Ford is a blocker. [2] Since Premier Kenney and Prime Minister Trudeau jointly announced an affordable child care plan for Alberta on Monday, the spotlight has been on Doug Ford. Parents are questioning why Ford’s holding out when Ontario has among the highest child care costs in Canada. [3] Eight provinces and one territory have already penned a deal for $10/day child care. Doug Ford’s case for not signing on is getting weaker by the day. [4,5] So let’s build a huge people-powered petition now, while the spotlight is still on him, to drive home the message: Ontarians want him to stop blocking $10/day childcare. Add your name now. Sources [1] https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/ottawa-alberta-reach-child-care-deal-1.6248936 [2] https://ipolitics.ca/2021/11/10/ontarios-10-day-daycare-delay-based-on-wrong-numbers-ottawa/ [3] https://www.policyalternatives.ca/TheAlarm Page 8 [4] See [1] [5] See [2]

Almost 90,000 seniors will have their benefits slashed because of an administrative oversight. Seniors who accepted financial support to help them weather the pandemic are now having their benefits clawed back by the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA). [1] Seniors who receive the guaranteed income supplement (GIS) can earn less than $19,248. [2] But rather than support them when they need it more — the CRA is pulling the rug from under their feet. As winter approaches, more and more stories are emerging of seniors who are struggling to make ends meet and don’t know how they’ll get by as their income is cut. One senior in Edmonton has to keep the lights off and the heat so low that her home is freezing cold, because she can’t afford to pay the bills. [3] It’s unacceptable. After a pandemic that disproportionately affects older populations, it’s disheartening to see the government roll back support for seniors. But this isn’t going unnoticed. Several MPs and advocacy groups are already sounding the alarm. [4,5] Now we need a wave of public pressure to get this on the government’s radar. The more signatures we get, the harder it will be for Ministers Freeland and Khera to ignore. Sign this petition now to add your voice. Sources [1] https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/cerb-cra-gis-payment-clawback-1.6237311 [2] See 1 [3] https://globalnews.ca/news/8347132/low-income-seniors-gis-struggle/ [4] See 1 [5] https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-loss-of-gis-because-of-pandemic-benefits-is-creating-a-financial/

In May of 2021, the International Energy Agency issued a bombshell report: if we're to avoid the worst-case climate crisis scenarios, fossil fuel expansion needs to stop immediately - not in 2030, not next year, but today. [1] Despite that, fossil fuel companies are continuing to expand - and financial institutions are giving them the money to do it. [2] As a credit union, Meridian is meant to deliver community-focused investments. But it remains invested in fossil fuels doing irreparable harm. [3] Prior to accepting a role as CEO of Meridian, Jay-Ann Gilfoy was an executive at VanCity Credit Union. Vancity is Canada's largest credit union, has fully divested from fossil fuel investments, and has pledged to net-zero emissions across its entire portfolio by 2040. [4] It's time for Gilfoy to bring that same commitment to sustainability to Meridian. CEO Gilfoy, match VanCity by commiting to rapid divestment from fossil fuel investments at Meridian and net-zero across all investments by 2040. References: 1: IEA Report: https://www.iea.org/reports/net-zero-by-2050 2: Fossil Fuel Financing in Canada report: https://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/press-release/49591/canadian-banks-defying-climate-science-by-increasing-fossil-fuel-finance/ 3: Credit unions on climate report: https://www.toronto350.org/choosing_a_climate_friendly_credit_union_in_toronto 4: VanCity's net-zero by 2040 commitment: https://www.bcbusiness.ca/Vancity-beats-other-Canadian-banks-and-credit-unions-to-net-zero-pledge

This grotesque, untimely and out of scale development might be have been possible 20 years ago, but now it is clearly destructive to the River and landscape which makes the area unique. It is disrespectful of First Nations eons of care for the land and waters. It disregards local settler communities and their heritage village. And it sets a precedent for development and pollution along the banks of the Grand to Lake Erie.

Safe, accessible public transit is the backbone that keeps a big city like Toronto moving. It’s an essential part of our lives — enabling people who live and visit here to efficiently commute from home to work, to a doctor's appointment, or to pick up food at the grocery store Thousands of people rely on public transit every day in Toronto, especially those who are struggling the most to make ends meet and don’t have access to a car or taxi. But right now, the TTC is planning to slash services as soon as this month. [1] Imagine you’re a frontline worker. You rely on transit every day to get to work. Your daily commute usually takes you 30 minutes but lately it’s been taking you up to an hour to get to work. You have to wait in the freezing cold at a bus stop every day, because TTC services are being cut. This could be the reality for many of us if TTC service cuts go ahead. [2] A huge wave of public pressure could force the city, provincial and federal government to save the TTC — but only if we all speak out. Sign the petition now to stop the cuts and save the TTC. Sources [1] https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2021/10/27/ttc-plans-service-cuts-starting-in-november-because-of-workers-who-havent-complied-with-vaccine-mandate.html [2] https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2021/10/06/its-too-much-of-a-risk-riders-left-the-ttc-in-droves-over-covid-19-could-that-trigger-a-public-transit-death-spiral.html

Demand those assistance receive a benefit that is indexed to inflation, demand an end to claw backs and allow people to embrace union with another without facing penalty for doing so!

This is big. As part of COP26, the global climate change conference, 19 countries are announcing a commitment to end all public financing for international fossil fuel projects by 2022. [1] Canada is one of the world’s biggest public financiers of fossil fuel projects at home and abroad. [2] But right now, the Canadian government is dragging their feet on joining this commitment. This isn’t climate leadership. Our sources have told us that fellow countries are pushing the Canadian government hard to join the commitment—and they’re wavering. This decision is going down to the wire. A big flood of public pressure as the government is deciding could show them that the world’s eyes are on them and that we need them to deliver. [1] https://www.reuters.com/business/cop/19-countries-plan-cop26-deal-end-financing-fossil-fuels-abroad-sources-2021-11-03/ [2] https://environmentaldefence.ca/2021/02/04/us-uk-eu-leadership-pressures-canada-end-fossil-finance/

Not all disabled people can operate a car, or afford to own one. And sidewalks are often too narrow, and/or uneven for mobility aids. The climate emergency requires that we give everyone the opportunity to travel using low-carbon modes of transportation. Bike lanes host many types of users, who move at different speeds - including some with disabilities. Many cycling advocates and other organizations support access to cycling facilities by people using electric mobility aids.

The Vancity Board are our friends. Vancity has committed to leadership in the financial services sector on climate. https://rethink.vancity.com/ The Board cares about what we have to say. We need to let them know this is important to us.

The public needs to be reminded that there are many possibilities that could have led to this catastrophic event, and without a completed investigation, there is no way for Mission Group to assure public safety. BC Minister of Labour Harry Baines said himself when asked about increased regulations for developers and construction trades that it would be “inappropriate to comment until the investigation is complete.” We are asking: is it not equally inappropriate for construction to resume on the same site until that same investigation is complete in case there are recommendations that are necessary to ensure this doesn’t happen again. “There are so many painful layers to this experience so far. It is all still raw for everyone. We are just asking for a little time without being reminded of what those buildings took from our families. When the accident first happened I felt a connection to the site as it was where Cailen took his last breath. The memorial site now has construction all around it and the memorial looks to become insignificant in the big picture of the project and the site itself. This is going to be a long grieving process and the families need a place to go and remember their loved ones and not be reminded of the tragedy with all the surrounding construction. Our loved ones are not collateral damage, they mean more than deadlines and money.” -Chris Vilness Mission Group itself expresses one of their core values as “building it right,” and goes on to describe themselves as, “honest, transparent and committed to doing the right thing with uncompromising integrity. We know that what is right is not the same as what is easy, and while we may fall short at times, we always make it right. This is our foundation.” Given this commitment, we feel it should be a very easy decision to right this wrong. They either comply with these requests to pause, connect, and consult, or make it clear that these words on their website are nothing more than that- words that do nothing to honour five souls gone too soon in favour of profit over integrity.

During last summer’s heat wave, I was luckily able to spend $700 on an AC unit just in time to find some relief. While those 600 people were in an actual fatal emergency, my partner and their two cats were feeling very stressed and desperate in their hot 1950s building in south Vancouver. In the 1950s the buildings were made to store and hold heat because they had little clue the opposite was a more vital need. They didn’t expect the changes in the climate we’ve seen now. Luckily I could house my partner and their cats for a couple weeks, and we made it through with the AC. Not everyone was as lucky — but the most vulnerable in our communities shouldn’t have had to spend hundreds to survive. As British Columbians, we are currently living in fear of unnecessary deaths and climate hardship this summer and into the future. We need government action right now. Sources [1] https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-heat-dome-coroners-report-1.6480026?utm_medium=email&utm_source=actionkit
 [2] see [1] 
 [3] https://council.vancouver.ca/20210720/documents/b5.pdf [4] https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/10/05/canada-disastrous-impact-extreme-heat