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MP Serré Supports Carbon Credit Refund
On Monday, September 10, 2018, Member of Parliament for Nickel Belt, Marc Serré sent out a media release championing carbon pricing and more specifically giving the money back to the people.
MP Serré said: “Implementing a price on pollution across the country is a matter of fairness for all … I am not objected to the creation of a possible “Carbon Credit Refund” for all Canadians. I plan on discussing this option with my colleagues and Minister McKenna for their consideration upon my return to Ottawa when the fall session resumes.”
His constituent Carole Lavallée, was quoted in the media release too, “we are not reducing our greenhouse gas emissions as we planned. This can only translate into escalating losses and damage for generations to come. I am also aware that a price on carbon is the one approach repeatedly supported by objective research to effectively and efficiently reduce this significant greenhouse gas. CCL believes that no Canadian should be unfairly affected by a price on carbon so it advocates returning the fees collected back to citizens. Price carbon, cash back into our pockets, economy moves in the right direction.”
This is an amazing example of the power of constituent lobbying. Carole is regularly published in her local papers, has secured over two dozen local business endorsements for carbon pricing and is a long time member of her community -- simply put, Carole’s social capital is priceless and she has shared it with the planet. Carole’s grandsons will talk about her to their grandchildren someday as she is one of the many heroes of this movement to put a price on carbon.
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National Post: Why a new study will transform the debate over the Liberal carbon tax plan
On September 20, 2018 a study commissioned by Clean Prosperity on Trudeau's Carbon Pricing Policy was released and the numbers are so compelling that John Ivison at The National Post is right behind them.
For provinces against carbon pricing, they will get the federal carbon pricing policy - which is pretty close to carbon fee and dividend. And that is a good thing because our colleagues at Clean Prosperity found that the federal carbon price will save Canadians money. If this scenario plays out, in five years the net benefit per household ($60,000 to $80,000 income bracket) would be $328 in Ontario, $1,231 in Alberta and $1,711 in Saskatchewan. Lower income families would benefit even greater — for example a Saskatchewan household earning $20-40,000 a year would be $1,864 better off by 2022.
Members of Clean Prosperity have joined us at various CCL events since 2013 . We were thrilled to learn this spring that they were officially supporting carbon fee and dividend.
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Reflections from Education Call with Kevin Taft
Climate change is real, human-caused, dangerous and the solution is to cut emissions. Carbon pricing is an important and effective action for addressing the crisis. Almost all economists believe that putting a price on carbon pollution is the most economically efficient way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions without harming the economy.
Yet, political parties are still arguing about what to do and Canada is not doing its part. In fact, this terrible dance has been going on since the late 1990s.
What is going on? What is stalling action on the climate crisis? To help us answer this question, Dr. Kevin Taft, best-selling author and former leader of the Alberta Liberal Party, was our guest speaker on our September 2018 CCL Canada Education call.
Knowledge is power. Knowing how our democracy has been compromised by some players in the oil industry will certainly help us in our work.
It was an excellent call. Thank you Dr. Taft, for helping us prepare for lobbying next month.
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Blog Round up: Smoke-choked BC skies help catalyze climate conversations
The air quality in much of British Columbia was hazardous for weeks on end this summer due to wildfire smoke. CCLer Judy O’Leary, who co-leads the Nelson - West Kootenay chapter, reflects about her lost summers in BC with a changing climate. Instead of sinking deeper into despair, she discovered how the smoke was a catalyst for some great conversations about climate action. She ends:
The seriousness of our situation has given me more courage to initiate and pursue conversations about what is happening to our planet. I have been surprised that most people seem at a loss about what they can do that would make a difference. This is an opening for us. People are definitely more open to ideas to take action. Last year I got lukewarm responses from friends and acquaintances about writing to their MPs and MLAs on climate charge. This year people are asking me for help on how to do that. We have an opportunity in CCL to take hold of our grief and empower others to push for action on climate solutions.
Judy also reached out to the Huffington Post, and we are excited that her blog was published as part of their new Hometown series, where they feature stories from small towns and rural areas across Canada.
Judy will be leading the Climate Action Training Workshop for new CCLers at our National Conference October 13-16.
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Federal 2018 CCL Canada Leave Behind
Have you ever wondered what exactly we lobby Parliament for?
All of our volunteers use our "Leave Behind" document. It provides our background information and the specific asks we are making of Parliament, forming the basis of the discussions we have with Parliamentarians. It is the document we leave behind at the end of the session.
Gratitude to our Leave Behind Team who crafted this year’s document: Elaine in Sudbury, Adrian in Ottawa, Andy in Calgary, Laura in Nelson, John in Etobicoke and Cathy in Sudbury.
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Last Chance to Register for Conference - Monday, October 1
Canada’s 5th annual national conference will take place next month in Ottawa, Ontario, from Saturday, Oct. 13 to Tuesday, Oct. 16. Registration closes Monday, October 1.
On September 18, the UN chief said: ‘The world has less than 2 years to avoid ‘runaway climate change'.
We are in a race against time.
Our solution to climate change? Democracy. And we need you on our team.
How about joining us at our conference? We have a spectacular lineup of speakers, and artists as well. You will be surrounded by some of the best volunteers on the planet. Read our media release about our conference here.
Journey out of your comfort zone and be empowered to speak for millions. We can change the world! We are the ones we have been waiting for.
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.
Margaret Mead
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Letter to the Editor
CCL Canada has specifically identified “fake news” and “weaponized media” as a threat to effective climate action. Thus, when a columnist in The Hill Times pointed the finger at PM Trudeau for failing to persuade Canadians of the urgent need for carbon pricing, Dr. Elaine Blacklock responded and her letter was published on September 17, 2018:
We the people also need to fulfill our responsibility as citizens to understand global emergency of climate change
David Crane says the Liberals have failed to provide leadership, failed to persuade Canadians of the need for urgent action on climate change and the many merits of carbon pricing as a policy solution.
I agree that not enough Canadians understand that climate change is a global emergency. It wasn’t even a significant issue in the recent Ontario election. And not enough Canadians really understand carbon pricing, or know of the strong consensus amongst economists that pricing carbon is the most economically efficient way to rapidly and drastically reduce our emissions.
However, the question I would ask is this: who exactly has failed and at what?
I am a pediatrician. If families refuse to immunize their children, is it because pediatricians have failed to provide appropriate education and leadership? Or is it a product of the society we live in, where everyone believes themselves to be a potential expert on anything, able to research something and draw conclusions, even while preferentially seeking out sources that confirm what they already believe. Such propensities make us particularly vulnerable to Russian bots, fake news and websites, conspiracist thinking, undercover lobbying from the oil and gas industry and dark money in all its forms.
How, in such an environment, can a government adequately disseminate information, present a compelling, convincing case, and build political will? People choose their information sources according to their own beliefs and world views, and those of their tribe. And media sources can ignore or twist even the best efforts of a government to educate and convince the people. Some even propagate false information as their main product.
Yes, the Liberal government needs to continue to try harder to make the case for climate change and national carbon pricing. However, we the people also need to fulfill our responsibility as citizens, and engage seriously in understanding the urgency of our climate situation and the policy solutions (or lack thereof in the case of Scheer) being proposed by our politicians. Reading Clearing the Air from Canada’s Ecofiscal Commission website would be a good first start.
Elaine Blacklock
Sudbury, ON
PS Elaine will be speaking on our Medical Panel at our Conference. Be sure to register by October 1.
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