Western Tour: Victoria – “Cochabamba in the Garden City”
Susan Draper, KAIROS’ BC-Yukon Regional Coordinator, sent us the following thoughts from the G20 Climate Justice Tour town hall discussion that took place in Victoria on Monday, June 14.
Attendees listen to a speaker at the Victoria stop of the KAIROS G20 Climate Justice Tour.
I rejoice in the fact that 90 people from the city of Victoria chose to come together on a lovely summer evening to learn about climate justice.
Francois Pihaatae’s slides of his country made the problems very real for us and his words touched our hearts. Dr. Stephen Tyler from the Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives at the University of Victoria described the effects of climate change on Vietnam and China and asked us to compare our government’s inaction on this file with the bold steps currently being pursued by governments in the Asia-Pacific. Harjap Grewal from the Council of Canadians connected the personal with the political and spoke about the radical changes that will need to be embraced if we are to bring our own carbon emissions down to zero. Tria Donaldson from the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition was encouraged by the diverse solutions explored during the discussion period.
Everyone engaged in the process and out of that came a sense of community. It was Cochabamba in the Garden City! At the end of the evening, we left feeling more determined to keep talking about this critical issue. Business as usual won’t cut it anymore with this group of Victorians!
