Bob Jonkman – Russwurm Family Blogs

1 January 2019

Bill 66 Community Group Meeting

This is not a WR Greens event, but may be of interest to environmentally conscientious members.

From Kevin Thomason of GREN:

Happy New Year!

While the holidays have been a wonderful break from Bill 66, we don’t have much time to send a strong, clear message to Premier Ford about our concerns this Bill could have on our community, farmland, green space, and natural resources.

I’d like to remind you of the upcoming meeting this Thursday at the same room at CIGI as our initial community meeting. Details are as follows:

Date: Thursday, January 3, 2019
Time: 7:00pm
Location: Room A142, CIGI – Centre for International Governance and Innovation – 67 Erb Street West, Waterloo Map
Access: Through main West doors (facing Erb St) near Caroline St. Intersection

A tentative agenda for the meeting is as follows:

update/status of groups working to book Council delegation appearances at municipal and regional councils
update/status of groups working to book MPP meetings in local ridings
time for groups to meet in breakout sessions and figure out next steps/activities
planning/discussion of January 12th Bill 66 training event/protest in Ajax
planning/preparations for January 15th event at Kitchener City Hall with ECO Dianne Saxe and other speakers
other business

We had a tremendous turnout at our initial meeting and It will be important to have at least one delegate from each community group at this next meeting to help ensure a strong, co-ordinated response to Bill 66.

Please share any questions or ideas and I hope to see you on Thursday evening.

Cheers,
Kevin.

P.S. There is a draft Citizens Toolkit for Bill 66 that is coming together as groups across the province aggregate their materials and efforts. It is evolving daily and contains some good background and supporting material against Bill 66.

P.P.S Also attached below are some initial social media images and video that are under development provincially:

Stop Bill 66 | They say it's red tape. | To us, it's our drinking water

Stop Bill 66 | They say it's red tape. | To us, it's home.

Stop Bill 66 | They say it's red tape. | To us, it's precious farmland.

Bill 66 Social Media Video:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQS01jTaPdY?feature=oembed&w=840&h=473]
YouTube: Save The Greenbelt – Stop Bill 66

————————————-

Kevin Thomason
Vice-Chair, Grand River Environmental Network

Phone: +1–519–888–0519
Mobile Phone/WhatsApp: +1–519–240–1648
Twitter: @kthomason
E-mail: kevinthomason@mac.com

30 December 2018

CANCELLED: Post-Holiday Event with @WR_Greens

CANCELLED: Tonight’s Post-Holiday Event

Bad news, our Post-Holiday Event for tonight needs to be cancelled.

An unfortunate combination of last-minute cancellations, car troubles, and unavailability means that expected attendance is down to a handful of people. Rather than having a few people bring potato salad for dozens and having it go to waste, it’s better to cancel now, and have another event later in the spring when more of us can meet each other.

My apologies for the late notice; these things sneak up on you and then explode.

–Bob Jonkman
Event Planning Committee Chair

Hello Waterloo Region Greens! Merry Belated Christmas and Happy Upcoming New Year!

The holidays are half over, and in the usual Christmas madness we’ve only now been able to get ourselves coordinated for our Holiday Event. Bryan Izzard has offered to host at his farmhouse in Baden on Saturday, 5 January 2019, starting at 6:00pm. I guess that makes it a Post-Holiday Event!

Join all your friends of the Waterloo Region Greens for a final celebration of the holidays and 2018’s accomplishments — and since it was an election year, there were many accomplishments!

It’s a potluck event, so bring an appetizer, sweet or savoury snacks, salad, fancy beverages, dinner entree, or dessert. And when you come, please label your dish if it contains wheat, nuts, eggs, dairy, meat, &c.

What: WR Greens Post-Holiday Event
When: Saturday, 5 January 2019 at 6:00pm
Where: Bryan Izzard’s house
Location: 3876 Sandhills Road, Baden, Ontario
Map: https://osm.org/go/ZXnSv4rx-?m=

If anyone needs a ride you can ask your fellow WR Greens on this Discussion List, or send me an e-mail to say whether you need a ride or can offer one, and I’ll sort ride-givers and ride-takers, make a list (and check it twice). Don’t forget to include your address!

And shortly after our Post-Holiday Event we’ll have another regular WR Greens meeting on Wednesday, 9 January 2019. We need to set up candidate nomination dates for the EDAs (there’s a federal election in 2019!), and start planning for the summer’s festival events and other political happenings.

What: WR Greens Regular Meeting
When: Wednesday, 9 January 2018 from 6:00pm to 7:00pm, followed by Social Night
Where: Innovation42 Co-Working Space (tentative)
Location: 2nd Floor, 283 Duke Street West, Kitchener, Ontario
Map: https://osm.org/go/ZXnwU_oa?m=

I’ll send out a reminder early that week with confirmation of the meeting location.

See you all at Bryan’s house on Saturday, 5 January!

–Bob Jonkman
Event Planning Committee Chair

—-

Bob Jonkman mailto:bob.jonkman@greenparty.ca
Green Party Member in Kitchener — Conestoga +1-226-476-4529
Web: https://bobjonkman.ca/ Twitter: @BobJonkmanGPC
Vote for the person who will best represent you in your riding!

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17 December 2018

Mobilize resistance to Bill 66

This is not a WR Greens event, but may be of interest to environmentally conscientious members.

Laura Hamilton from Divest Waterloo writes:

I’m writing with some urgency today as we have very little time to mobilize resistance to Bill 66, known as Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act. I have included more information about this Bill below.

Grand River Environmental Network | www.gren.ca GREN is planning a preliminary meeting next Tuesday December 18th at 7pm at CIGI (67 Erb Street West, Waterloo, Ontario Map) in room A-142 to discuss the environmental implications of this legislation and to plan next steps for January.

Please extend this invitation to others whom you feel would be interested and able to support our efforts.

I apologize for the short notice and appreciate the difficulty of this request coming so close to the holidays. Our next meeting in January will be on Thursday the 3rd. Consultation closes on January 28th, so we really cannot delay.

Background on Bill 66

Last week, the Doug Ford government introduced Bill 66, known as “Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act.” Among its targets is the Greenbelt Act. Bill 66 would allow municipalities to circumvent Greenbelt protections by enacting “Open for Business” bylaws under which they could approve factories and business parks within the Greenbelt. Smaller municipalities (under 250,000) would simply need to show the Ford government that their Greenbelt development would create 50 jobs. For larger cities the requirement would be 100 jobs.

Related measures in Bill 66 would empower municipalities to exempt developers rules designed to protect wildlife and municipal water supplies, including the Clean Water Act, which was enacted following the Walkerton water tragedy in 2000 when seven people died after drinking the town’s contaminated water.

–Geoffrey Stevens, The Record Dec 10/18: Doug Ford’s hypocrisy on the Greenbelt

Other Acts targeted by the Ford government in the astonishing broad scope of Bill 66 include:

and * numerous other protections.

Bill 66 if approved could destroy our environmental regulations, contaminate our drinking water and circumvent good planning by haphazardly opening up farmland and natural areas for development with no requirement for public meetings or communications and no opportunity for appeal to any decisions.

It is a reckless bill to enhance the profits of only a few large businesses and corporations who would bypass important rules and safely regulations at a huge cost to every Ontarian.

We have just 42 days to stop this major threat to public safety, our environment, and natural resources we all depend on before the Ford government will attempt to approve this Bill. It is been called the biggest and most significant environmental rollback in a generation and we need to act now to mobilize as a community and kill Bill 66.

* Other Laws impacted by Bill 66

Agricultural Employees Protection Act, 2002
Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014
Education Act
Employment Standards Act, 2000
Farm Registration and Farm Organizations Funding Act, 1993
Highway Traffic Act
Labour Relations Act, 1995
Long-Term Care Homes Act, 2007
Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Act
Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998
Pawnbrokers Act
Pension Benefits Act
Personal Property Security Act
Planning Act
Private Career Colleges Act, 2005
Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000
Wireless Services Agreements Act, 2013

27 November 2018

Kitchener South — Hespeler Green Party Inaugural AGM – Wed, 28 Nov 2018

Cartoon silhouettes This Wednesday the Kitchener South — Hespeler Green Party of Ontario Consituents Association will be having its inaugural Annual General Meeting.

When: Wednesday, 28 November 2018 at 7:00pm

Where: Borealis Grille and Bar

Location: 4336 King Street East, Kitchener , Ontario Map

An Executive will be elected, consisting of a President and Chief Financial Officer, and other Principal Officers.

Everyone is welcome to attend, although you must be a Green Party of Ontario member in good standing to be nominated, and also resident in the Kitchener South — Hespeler electoral district to be eligible to vote.

The Annual General Meeting for the federal Kitchener South — Hespeler Green Party of Canada Electoral District Association will also be held. You must be a member in good standing of the Green Party of Canada in order to vote at this AGM.

Please RSVP to David Weber via email at david.weber@greenparty.ca

If you’re on Facebook, you can leave a message on the
David Weber – Green Party Facebook Page
at https://www.facebook.com/DavidWeberGPO/
(and “Like” the page while you’re there!)

2 November 2018

Warmer, Wetter and Wilder with Dr. Blair Feltmate, hosted by #NithValleyEcoboosters

This is not a Green Party event, but since Sustainability and Ecological Wisdom are core values for all Green Parties everyone is encouraged to attend

Nith Valley Eco Boosters The Nith Valley Ecoboosters are pleased to present an informative and timely talk featuring Dr. Blair Feltmate. Dr. Feltmate is Head of the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation at the University of Waterloo. He has written textbooks on environmental science and sustainable development and is involved in the creation of several national climate adaptation Standards involving the National Research Council, Standards Council of Canada and the Canadian Standards Association. Blair is also Chair of the Federal Government of Canada Expert Panel on Climate Adaptation.

Significant damage from high winds, heavy rain and floods is becoming a more frequent occurrence. Members of our community need to know how to protect themselves and their property so that the effects of severe weather can be minimized. Dr. Feltmate will begin his presentation by establishing that climate change is real, and is causing extreme weather events – particularly in the form of flooding. This “new normal” situation has proven to be costly for all regions of Canada. In an effort to help limit future losses, the discussion will then address practical and cost-effective steps that home owners and communities can take to lower their flood risk profile. Dr. Feltmate will be happy to take questions from the audience throughout his presentation.

Doors open at 7:00PM and the presentation will begin at 7:30PM. Light refreshments will be served at approximately 8:45PM.

This event is sponsored by:

The Nith Valley Ecoboosters
The Imperial (New Hamburg)
Intact Insurance (London)
John Zehr Insurance (New Hamburg)
Zion United Church (New Hamburg)
Grant Holdings/Grant Jutzi (New Hamburg)
Nith Valley Construction (New Hamburg)
Kindred Credit Union (New Hamburg)
Town Pantry Health Food Store (New Hamburg)
The Baden Outlook
Jonathan Barker Illustration (New Hamburg)

What: Warmer, Wetter and Wilder with Dr. Blair Feltman
When: Tuesday, 6 November 2018 from 7:30pm to 9:30pm
Where: Zion United Church
Location: 215 Peel Street, New Hamburg, Ontario Map

Mirrored from: Warmer, Wetter and Wilder – Dr. Blair Feltmate Tickets, Tue, Nov 6, 2018 at 7:30 PM | Eventbrite

11 October 2018

Yes! Cambridge Town Hall Meeting on #RankedBallots — Thursday, 11 Oct 2018

Hi WR Greens: Did you know that voters in Cambridge have a referendum question on Ranked Ballots this municipal election:

Are you in favour of the City of Cambridge using a ranked ballot voting system for the 2022 municipal election?

The Yes! Cambridge advocacy group is holding an informational Town Hall Meeting on Thursday, 11 October 2018 at 7:00pm for anyone who wants to know more about how Ranked Ballots could work, and what the effects might be on campaigns and elections.

Note that this is not a Green Party event, but since electoral reform is a fundamental Green Party policy I expect it’s of interest, especially for those people living and voting in Cambridge.

What: Yes! Cambridge Town Hall Meeting on Ranked Ballots
When: Thursday, 11 October 2018 from 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Where: Wesley United Church
Location: 6 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, Ontario Map

If you’re on Facebook, sign up for the Town Hall Meeting at Town Hall: What is the Cambridge referendum all about? | Facebook

For more info at send e-mail to info@yescambridge.ca

–Bob.

(Full disclosure: I’m working with the Yes! Cambridge team!)

17 September 2018

Partnering With Nature To Heal The Biosphere

Note that this is not a Green Party event, although Green Party members are encouraged to attend

Earth is in crisis, but there is much we can and should do. How can we work with nature to heal the wounds we’ve inflicted?

A handful of leading-edge thinkers will be presenting their solutions at a public forum. All speakers have been involved in research and practices that contribute to the reversal of greenhouse gas emissions through natural agricultural approaches and tree-planting to restore land, and from environmental activists who see the need to encourage any and all methods to draw down existing carbon that will complement the technological methods of preventing future emissions.

This event will honour Michael Purves-Smith, who initiated the project, but did not live to see it take place. Michael’s goal was to raise awareness in Waterloo Region of the urgency for a holistic solution to the crisis of the biosphere.

Partnering With Nature To Heal The Biosphere

Welcome and IntroductionJohn Jackson
Start
Susan Bryant and Shannon Purves-Smith
4 per 1000 Initiative
Jodi Koberinski
Climate Smart Food
Lloyd Helferty
Soil, Organic Matter, Decomposition
Dr. Paul Voroney, University of Guelph
Q & A
with panel
Population, Importance of Educating Women
Shannon Purves-Smith
Restoring Nature, Restoring Ourselves
Martin Tamlyn, Ignatius Centre
Nature Bonds and Transforming Taxation
Niara van Gaalen
Q & A
with panel

When: Tuesday, 16 October 2018 from 6:30pm to 9:00pm
Where: Kitchener Public Library Theatre
Location: 85 Queen Street North, Kitchener Map
Register: Partnering with Nature to Heal the Biosphere Tickets | Eventbrite

This event is being brought to you by Shannon Purves-Smith with support from the Grand River Environmental Network.

Mirrored from: Partnering with Nature to Heal the Biosphere Tickets, Tue, 16 Oct 2018 at 6:30 PM | Eventbrite

Bill 66 Social Media Video:

Faith and Climate Transformation

Partnering With Nature To Heal The Biosphere