[BNS_members] Sample letter for commenting on the Sustainable Development Goals act, etc

Wed Jul 21 21:21:05 CDT 2021

Hi Everyone.
just a follow-up regarding the Sustainable Development Goals Act comment
period.  The deadline is July 26th and submissions can be made here:
https://cleanfuture.ca/#writtensubmissions
I know it can be a lot easier to cut and paste from someone else's efforts,
so I am sharing my submission here (see the letter below).  The asks are
informed by the Climate Emergency Unit:
https://www.climateemergencyunit.ca/nova-scotia-climate-plan-and-provincial-election

Feel free to use in part or full (just make sure to use your own name ; )
It's also important to communicate concerns about climate action, etc. to
political candidates at this time.

Judy

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Judy Lipp <judylipp at gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Jul 21, 2021 at 10:15 PM
Subject: Comments on the SDG and CC Plan for Clean Growth
To: <info at cleanfuture.ca>

*RE: Nova Scotia Sustainable Development Goals Act and the Climate Change
Plan for Clean Growth*

To Whom it May Concern,

*A prosperous, sustainable future for our children, youth and young people
is a dimming prospect in light of the climate emergency and ecological
collapse we are experiencing.  And that terrifies me, devastates me and
shames me.  All children (human and non-human) want and deserve nothing
more than I did growing up – to live long healthy and happy lives in a just
world.  We owe it to our children and life on earth to take bold, decisive
and collective action to steer a hopeful and healthy path for those that
follow us.   That is why I am making time in my busy summer to write this
note.  *

We all want the best possible future for ourselves, our children and our
children’s children, both in terms of individual health and well-being and
in terms of the world they will inherit. We want our children to be healthy
and happy, caring and committed, resilient and resourceful, justly treated
and respected and have all their basic needs well taken care of. This
implies that the natural world that sustains them is intact and healthy too
and that systems of oppression and racism are dismantled.

The track we are on will not get them there – our actions and inaction
(today and over the past half century) will lead to a world on fire,
indeed, we are already there.   We have precious little time to steer a new
course that limits the climate catastrophe and ecological collapse which
could very well sever us from life sustaining sources.  For Nova Scotia,
the Sustainable Development Goals Act will be the cornerstone of our
provincial response to this moment.

We must seize the moment of incredible collective learning, community
consciousness and provincial pride in which we became the envy of the world
in our Covid response demonstrating what can be accomplished when leaders
lead and we all act in the collective interest.  The same attitude and
determinedness is needed now and as a province we are ready because we have
just proven what we can accomplish.

In that vein, I am adding my voice to the Climate Emergency Unit, Ecology
Action Centre and many others to have the Sustainable Development Goals Act
address and include action on all of the following areas:

   1. Allow no projects that harm water, waterways and watersheds. Water is
   the life force on which we all depend – we cannot afford to tamper with our
   water - fresh or salt water.
   2. Adopt and implement all recommendations from the United Nations
   Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Calls to Action
   from the. Truth and Reconciliation Commission.  Sustainable development
   begins with justice, equity and anti-racism.
   3. End environmental racism: The Province must update its existing
   environmental decision-making process to include a race-equity lens by the
   end of 2021.
   4. Spend what it takes to make the transition to a fossil free future
   based on social justice: 4% of GDP spent on making the just transition and
   at least 40% of this on marginalized and front line communities
   5. Pivot our institutions to get the job done: Efficiency NS becomes GHG
   focused; Utility and Review Board includes environment and greenhouse gases
   within its jurisdiction and performance metrics
   6. Shift from voluntary and incentive-based policies to mandatory
   measures: No more fossil fuel use or extraction
      1. No onsite fossil fuel hookups in new construction starting in 2023
      2. No onsite fossil fuel use in buildings by 2030
      3. Illegal to sell new internal combustion engine vehicles by 2025
      4. No new fossil fuel extraction, exploration or permits starting
      2022.
   7. Support regenerative agriculture that supports ecological systems and
   builds our food security
   8. Halt clear-cutting immediately and support regenerative forest
   practices
   9. Tell the truth about the severity of the climate and ecological
   crisis and communicate a sense of urgency about the measures necessary to
   combat it
      1. NS Climate Communications: Regular climate updates, similar to the
      frequency, detail, and tone of the COVID-19 updates and transparency
      2. Better data: Currently our climate data is very hard to aggregate
      and all greenhouse gas inventories are about at least a year out of date.
      Our data must be easily accessible and frequently updated so we can track
      our greenhouse gas reduction and climate adaptation processes.

We cannot delay on these actions. They can all be done and quickly if the
same sense of urgency and crisis mitigation is brought to bear that we
witnessed during Covid.  We all came together during the last 18 months to
do what needed to be done – we pivoted at a moment’s notice, supported each
other and made sacrifices for the good of the community.  The willingness
to do the same for the climate crisis is evident across this province and
country, but we need government leadership, now!

Give our children a reason for hope, give our children the liveable and
prosperous future they deserve.  We owe it to them and to ourselves so we
can look in the mirror and say – we acted just time!

Thank you for your attention

Judy Lipp

-- 
Judy Lipp
*she/her*
Flying Squirrel Adventures <https://valleyflyingsquirrel.wordpress.com/>
Program Coordinator
Flying Squirrel Adventures facilitates immersive nature programs for young
and old in the Annapolis Valley.

On Sun, Jul 18, 2021 at 10:51 AM Judy Lipp <judylipp at gmail.com> wrote:

> If you haven't done so already, it's time to comment on the Sustainable
> Development Goals Act. *The comment period ends July 27th. *Below are
> some links, resources and inspirations to get'er done!   Apologies for
> cross-posting.
>
> Back in October 2019 hundreds of people called upon the NS government to
> amend Bill 213 to include stronger GHG emission targets and environmental
> goals. Despite hundreds of emails, phone calls, as well as presentations
> from the public to the law amendments committee, the bill was passed with
> no changes. The Sustainable Development Goals Act needs teeth. We need to
> make our voices heard. Go to https://cleanfuture.ca
> <https://u1584542.ct.sendgrid.net/ss/c/Mqag7sW8TIW-nixyBdulQoNCEF15apFhgF5_z0dWBNHRId5WRwpZx_IgSZqGiQQ9aGfJN7okkaOb5PHvhbOznRGdG75u62PpxkIuC-iMpFhnXM0yeM79CBmRg0S28z0WMjXTV9ZSTP4stdm6a15fYdPM9mKgCPlQ0xUiVAEHnV_yPkteDb7y547eh37M4m9HtN5keN21tSFonAKTfs3nhCNJA_6w54jdIKKgOcGAHrRQhnY_a45MVVXVYWCtGDqg6hOa8pDVgUDng-SiNt2E2mXBs53Lg6KcJC1IWpPN5JU/3dn/WNHlI5NpR9Cho5v8fc9YAA/h0/F2B9e0nBC_ny9sd8MLyOT4WH4dHruaLu8j_Q89MMZD0>
>
> Check out Sierra Club Atlantic's SDGA Consultation Resources page
> <https://u1584542.ct.sendgrid.net/ss/c/atcYNHk4Eh2YdGnwBh-YDLJEPTwZFLkPx32oMApD5vxmb9M2KzUybTqwAfgL3BErKfGHB5FRE1u0YE1gNT9Z9bfSdkg6RWk9X2Hw-Mk3PYmPQTW8O7i-Hy82AqBjqdf3K7ZkyrnytBcCbNJQg1p7_AvJVJWh9x6QwHSwT_DUuCtoFUw7EDqBc2FOpqpQf8m-dKuGGNT39_qrg8_2CRec0I6myPLMlGfo0GevszY97HLxJZWDGS2L10i9Ve5F-M38q4CEX6cYxEu_NhQK88MNWF6Lm1OcAE0LHs5L7023bcQtv-Ezqo1oddFP4djV4ZKPrDsJY_fpN8A62L-OVS7-ry_LyloG52omuq4jCF9xX1p9rZTqAk4Pki75HiEWoZlqHaMj2Q5KSjPChkFBsIhMfeTOtNfYNpE6Tjqjcpm9rY2m5SYXBQShEZOoE4HG8W8izxEHQ7pDA5kIKc7mFNQLv-IJQuyLuJkppYVWm6Igy2ZPnEsYXVUI2g7EFFinTO4H90T92MEnS6O8Z4w85nnqKtcRpwdP0psyMGxdEUL1ZyDk5ylFRMaFhGAXxRUOhUR9/3dn/WNHlI5NpR9Cho5v8fc9YAA/h1/DCsM4b-ZTTDftVpdU-qR-rfKi-QL9gV3VRgN0c18uEU>
> for ways to get started.
>
> OR take this online workshop on *Wednesday, July 21st,* and come out of
> it with a letter to send our lovely government. The Ecology Action Centre
> and Climate Emergency Unit are "co-hosting a letter-writing and
> storytelling workshop, as a first action to start building a collective
> across all our various orgs to call for policies that truly address the
> climate emergency.
>
> With the help of story-telling, live feedback, and music, we'll support
> you to write compelling narratives. You'll leave the workshop with a
> personalized letter that you can use for the current climate plan
> consultations, letters to your elected officials (or political
> candidates!), letters to the editor, or all of the above.
>
> You'll also learn about the four markers of true climate emergency
> policies.
>
> *What:* NS Climate Emergency Letter Writing & Storytelling Workshop
> *When: *Wednesday, July 21st, 2021
> *Time: *6:30-8:30pm ADT
> *Location: *Online via Zoom!
>
> *Register here to get the link:*
> https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/nova-scotia-climate-emergency-letter-writing-story-telling-workshop-tickets-162061623679
> <https://u1584542.ct.sendgrid.net/ss/c/Mqag7sW8TIW-nixyBdulQnSWqsDhqc3D9ZLUV5Ju2K3ZNjG-0dU94r2FPwQIHlGOR_3m1Pp_kIms4e6gmZByFfrEK06E_LS2m2bXuezBPQhGnM0VwaacT1IR2dQju9Vu6OUZamokJovKasu91YCW8gliZo7D_kYePz39g9iylwBjsqf1pPnWoja3cIol2toDESn_VB8Caef-_WQrmWbdIChNyOMiJo4CLOT7y-m6OTsYAbW6u-KwG4JSQQ-AJQeSlwoKeO2WzB4_-YzO6cSI-A5Kbkr1fzQoUUSxkJS1CGgEjeGELPs2kncogAubyajmZ69bSZ4w1KwtczUEN8H8l-Y8DO1bRNzr-BDUH8vkqbi1aOoMX5iaUAAHj1RHUgdY2XUeIs8VPy3zk8hpMJPDwJH89INKhdUH8ZVQyBqWjfaL8RIa1_HyoR4hZt5VFzkWjAkpSga4EzzG9Q6MkY0aGuEtFhaOgQgnpvU2Mycrejl6IJTwZdzoFIXMoucVW72i0SkgNhjw8Xo-5xgkwP9GEx-N1iOsv5GWTZzlq0eA252lemzUyDhx7ZM0euCx06Qk9geA5GdkZYVH878_L1xUDAs8-1S01P3CZ1QKUEbahdBqIJwx8ENsiqn9GwPg94n0XuiW6wBQh4MFI9xNNUU25g/3dn/WNHlI5NpR9Cho5v8fc9YAA/h2/W-KKSXfFIn5szXbdTjp-wBUuJAa4oE-PvM_p0eXsW2M>
>
> If you need a little boost to get your submission in for the public
> consultations for the Nova Scotia Climate Plan and Sustainable Development
> Goals Act, this is your chance to get 'er done with some really great
> support from your climate action community!
>
> We hope to see you there. Please spread this invitation to your networks
> and bring a friend!"
>
> --
> Judy Lipp
> *she/her*
> Flying Squirrel Adventures <https://valleyflyingsquirrel.wordpress.com/>
> Program Coordinator
> Flying Squirrel Adventures facilitates immersive nature programs for young
> and old in the Annapolis Valley.
>

-- 
Judy Lipp
*she/her*
Flying Squirrel Adventures <https://valleyflyingsquirrel.wordpress.com/>
Program Coordinator
Flying Squirrel Adventures facilitates immersive nature programs for young
and old in the Annapolis Valley.
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