Live Green Now

Environmental activists who have been following climate change for longer than just the last few years say that the time for talk is over.  Both veteran and new activists agree that 2008 is the year to demand new legislation and firm deadlines for reducing the greenhouse gasses that the United Nations says are causing human induced climate change.

 

With environmental issues at the top of Canadian's awareness and a priority for mainstream political parties activists are hoping 2008 will be the year that talk turns to action.  One of The Vancouver Sun's emerging environmental leaders, Bill Wareham, worked environmental research jobs for resource industries and has seen how the government and corporations file away reports without changing their practices.  Wareham now works for the David Suzuki foundation after discovering that, "industry and government are trying wear environmentalists down so they move on to other things and they can continue to do what they want".

 

 Environmental veteran Mark Angelo, recognized with a United Nations Stewardship Award and an Order of Canada, knows that "The interest we're seeing now in climate change didn't happen over night" and that younger people who care about the environment need to be prepared to fight long-term battles.  Another veteran on the Sun's list, Joe Foy, advises the next generation of environmentalists to dream big, warning that "People call you a radical - say you're asking for to much - but often you're not going for big enough change".  It is interesting but that approach seems to happen with all environmental issues.....the people that first raise them are attacked and then eventually the issue becomes mainstream-so I guess we should all be thanking the so called "radicals"!

 

(All cited quotes & figures are from Crusaders For A Greener Planet Standing United - The Vancouver Sun, Feb 17)