Canadians for Action on Climate Change | Volunteer with Us | Help Build a Movement
The idea of global responsibility and global citizenship, of seeing ourselves as one global family, is an emerging movement. Although many people in power have a very materialistic, industrial, linear frame of mind bounded by concepts of ‘national security needs’ and ‘economic growth’ many ordinary people have not forgotten our roots in the interconnected life-web of which we are but one species. We perceive that our life support systems around the world are deteriorating and dying. Not only have most of our natural forests been destroyed but also the life in the oceans. The basic security of healthy and vibrant living eco-systems upon which we can base our own human societies is no longer intact. We can see, feel, hear, breathe and taste the death of the life-support systems all around us. There are reports from ordinary people all over the planet telling us of new diseases and decreased fertility in many species including our own, of contaminated and dwindling fresh-water supplies, soil-erosion, forest destruction, desert encroachment, mass extinction of other species, climate change, and mass social dysfunctions and we can see the evidence in our own areas. The good news is – we can change this … it is possible to redesign the way we think and live – but there isn’t much time left. The window of opportunity is rapidly closing in on us.
Why Volunteer?
For the sake of our survival we must acknowledge that the further we are from the physical and personal impact of our actions or the human effects of our decisions, the less moral responsibility we feel. The longer and more complex the chain of events, the more moral responsibility gets dispersed and reduced. Then the point comes when the system may be guilty of an appalling crime against humanity, even our environment, yet no individual feels obliged to own the consequences of their actions. Regardless of the actions of governments and corporations we, global citizens, must peacefully experiment with alternatives, reclaim our humanity, build up our communities, reclaim our land, rebuild the commons, reclaim morality and law, empowering ourselves and others in the process. We will join our struggles, to learn from and with each other – not allowing ourselves to be imprisoned and domesticated by our governments and corporations. We live locally but we choose to demonstrate our global responsibilities seriously with care and deep consideration.
“By far the most dangerous foe we have to fight is apathy – indifference from whatever cause, not from a lack of knowledge, but from carelessness, from absorption in other pursuits, from a contempt bred of self satisfaction”
| William Osler quotes (Canadian Physician, 1849-1919)
Our mission is to develop and support policies that will transition us to a zero carbon society, while creating millions of jobs throughout the world, and offering economic independence for developing countries.
We need ambitious volunteers to assist with the following:
- Maintenance of Websites & Tweets
- Media Work
- Monitoring Climate Change News
- Development of a Canadian Climate Emergency Network
- Writers – Letters to Editor | Op Eds
- Reviewing, Commenting & Writing Policy – Municipal, Provincial and Federal
- Adopt a Councillor – Municipal
- Municipal Elections Work in 2010
- Graphic Design | Posters, Buttons, Stickers, etc.
- Environmental Film Festival in co-operation with Cinema Politica – our sister organization
- Editing & Launching of the ‘Canadian Declaration on Climate Change’
- Development and launch of ‘eco detectives’ curriculum in elementary schools
- Working with the UWO law school on case studies of potential lawsuits RE: environmental / climate change
- To continue working on drive-thru bans (first ban achieved last month) Visit us at Drive Thru Lies
- Fundraising & Grant Writing
- Build data base of volunteers & NGO contacts
- YOUR ideas … _______________________
Contact us at canadiansforactiononclimatechange@bell.net with your ideas and questions, please.
“I myself was terrified when I saw these numbers.”
| October 2009, Hans Joachim Schellnhuber – One of the world’s half-dozen most eminent climate scientists.
He urges governments to agree in Copenhagen to launch “a Green Apollo Project.” Like John Kennedy’s pledge to land a man on the moon in ten years, a global Green Apollo Project would aim to put leading economies on a trajectory of zero carbon emissions within ten years. Combined with carbon trading with low-emissions countries, Schellnhuber says, such a “wartime mobilization” might still save us from the worst impacts of climate change.
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