100% Possible - Climate March - November 29

What’s happening on Sunday November 29th? We'll be marching from Ottawa City Hall to Parliament Hill!

We will come together at Ottawa City Hall at 12:30PM, where there will be speeches and activities. We'll then march from 1:30pm to 2:30pm towards Parliament Hill. Between 2:30 and 3PM, we'll stand on Parliament Hill before dispersing.

It's a family friendly march at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, the day before the UN Climate Summit in Paris begins. Join us to celebrate justice-based climate solutions and urge our new government to take bolder action on climate change.

100% Possible: Marching for Climate Solutions and Justice is part of a Global Climate March on November 29. Partners around the world are organizing a series of actions in major cities, with the 100% Possible March in Ottawa as Canada’s flagship event. We will march on Sunday the 29th at Parliament Hill, the seat of our government and focus of our message.

Think green: clothing, posters, facepaint – anything and everything. Green is the symbol of renewable energy, the environment, and hope. We also encourage you to dress up as whatever climate solutions inspire you – be creative! Bring flyers, posters, and banners. Our politicians needs to see and hear us!

Are you ready to tell our new government that a 100% clean economy is 100% Possible, before they head to Paris?

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Why Should You Do This

November 29, Ottawa. On the eve of the Paris Climate Summit, let’s show our new government that a 100% clean economy is possible. We can solve climate change in our lifetimes. Canada is at a crossroads. The solutions to the climate crisis exist, solutions that:

• Create low carbon jobs
• Respect Indigenous rights
• Stop tar sands expansion

We can create a clean, renewable energy economy, for everyone.

A 100% clean economy by 2050 is not only possible, it is NECESSARY. It’s a vision for a healthy, diverse economy that leads to a safer, more sustainable, and more just future. This fall, we have a historic opportunity to be HEARD by our new government in their first month in power, on the eve of their first international meeting in Paris.

On November 29, let’s show our leaders that 100% clean is possible, together.

How Will We Do This

There is a growing consensus globally that we can and must get to 100% clean energy economy by 2050 in order to save the planet from devastating climate change. But what does this mean and how do we get there?

Clean, renewable energy creates electricity using natural systems such as the wind, sun, and water – harnessing the energy around us to power cars, heat homes, and sustain communities without creating harmful GHGs. Nuclear energy, while producing low GHG’s, is not part of the future we want to see due to the potential of catastrophic risks to the environment and human health.

Canada has historically been caught between a rock and hard place when it comes to weaning ourselves off fossil fuels and on to clean energy. Not only have we built communities that are dependant on fossil fuel for energy – part of our economy and many jobs rely on the fossil fuel industry.

But there is more then just hope that we can change – there is proof. There are already more jobs in clean energy than direct jobs in the tar sands. Cities, states, provinces, companies, and countries all over the world are increasing their supply of clean energy and phasing coal and oil. They are building clean energy infrastructure, creating jobs, and rapidly reducing their dependency on fossil fuels.

It is no longer technology that stands in our way. That’s why we call on Canada’s federal government to take the following actions to get us to a 100% clean economy by 2050.

POLICY ASKS

Start building and supporting clean energy infrastructure

In order to provide more clean energy to consumers, we need polices that allow solar, wind, and other clean energy industries to flourish. By creating a business friendly environment, Canada can attract investment and the clean energy sector will prosper. And the benefits are immediate – as more clean energy supplies the gird, less fossil fuel will be used to support your home and community..

Stop building infrastructure that perpetuates Canada’s dependency on fossil fuels.

Energy infrastructure is big and expensive and it lasts a long time. Infrastructure that gets built now defines the world we live in 40 and 50 years from now and limits the choices we will be able to make. Building a pipeline, approving new tar sands mines, constructing oil rigs in the Arctic – these kinds of infrastructure lock us into a fossil fuel dependant future. Getting to 100% clean energy by 2050 means weaning ourselves off fossil fuels and one of the first steps is saying no to more fossil fuel infrastructure.

Implement the International Declaration on Indigenous Rights

Any policies for a more sustainable future must start by respecting the rights and title of Indigenous communities. Indigenous peoples have been leading the challenge in protecting our shared natural environment from damaging resource extraction projects, including at the source of the tar sands and all associated pipeline infrastructure. Implementation and adhesion to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is critical in ensuring Indigenous peoples are equal participants in the decision making and development of the strategies for new economic and energy transition plans.

Invest in clean, low-carbon jobs

Investing in a clean economy means supporting jobs in sectors that build a stronger, more livable country and providing retraining services for those in carbon-intensive industries to fully contribute to the clean energy economy. But low-carbon jobs don’t only involve clean energy. Many important sectors such as teachers, health care, and community service workers provide important services yet have often been the hardest hit by generations of austerity budgets.

About the Climate Movement

The climate movement is growing in size, diversity, and power – each and every month, in Canada and around the world. Already this year, we’ve seen 25,000 gather in Quebec City to tell Premiers they can’t Act on Climate while approving new tar sands pipelines. One of the biggest marches in a generation saw 10,000 converge in Toronto for Jobs, Justice, and the Climate.

But we can’t stop now. The fossilized thinking of our political leaders is so embedded in yesterday’s economy that we need to keep pushing them to take the bold action necessary to solve the worldwide climate crisis.

The November 29 100% Possible March for Climate Solutions and Justice is organized by a growing alliance of national and Québécois environmental groups, community organizations, unions, First Nations, faith groups, and other communities. We are united by a vision that Canada can be a leader on climate change, by making the world better instead of being part of the problem.

[With thanks for the text to our partners at www.100possible.ca, the site for people who don't live near Ottawa]