Hello,

October 1 is both Canada’s National Seniors’ Day and the International Day of Older Persons. To mark the occasion—and to draw attention to the ever-worsening climate crisis—Seniors for Cl!mate is hosting events across the country to “act Canada-wide on climate with actions that demonstrate our growing concern about the impacts of climate change and our desire to rebuild a healthy environment for future generations.”

Seniors for Cl!mate is a group of “seniors deeply alarmed by the climate crisis” that is aware that seniors represent a quarter of Canadians, and so have “outsized political, economic and social power.”

In Ottawa, the local Seniors for Climate Action Now! (SCAN!) chapter is hosting an event that day at Knox Presbyterian,120 Lisgar, from 1 - 4 pm. To spread the word, SCAN! passed along the following message:

On October 1 we are using National Seniors’ Day to bring attention to the worsening climate emergency. Our goal is to build a Canada-wide community of seniors to ensure a liveable and sustainable future for all generations to come. We need to come together to demand faster and effective climate action at all levels of government. There will be over 50 events like this taking place across Canada. We have a major role to play. We are motivated, we have experience and, we vote!

The main event will take place at Knox Presbyterian,120 Lisgar, from 1 - 4 pm. Come and join us for an interactive round table with Ecology Ottawa, CAFES, Horizon Ottawa, ACORN Ottawa, the Ottawa Renewable Energy Cooperative (OREC) and Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE). Expect stimulating and informative discussion, musical guests, great camaraderie, and a clear path to further engagement. Admission is free but pre-registration via Eventbrite is recommended as space is limited. Pssst .. . we have an electrifying surprise for those who show up at 12:30. Doors open at 12:45

Visit our Facebook page or web page for more information. Donations to help defray our Ottawa October 1 event expenses can be made via Zeffy or by eTransfer to [email protected]

You can read what The Energy Mix has to say in the lead up to Seniors for Cl!mate Day here.

Stories from the PEN!

This month’s stories from the PEN include:

• In Degrowing the Economy, Alex Keenan writes about transitioning economic systems away from a singular focus on growth and GDP to instead accept “strategies that allow us to live healthy, happy, meaningful lives in a connected and equitable global society, while living within reasonable planetary limits.”

• Preserving the Rideau highlights recent accomplishments of the Rideau Roundtable since its inception in 2002.

• And Aditi Tupe and Hannah Rockburn write about a series of webinars tailored to help environmental organizations navigate the troubled waters of the non-profit world.

From The PEN Archives

The PEN’s 1997 PEN Insider discussed the then-recently implemented tax incentive for Canadian Renewable and Conservation Expenses (which is still in effect today). It was intended to help people who were looking to develop renewable energies like wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, and some co-generation projects.

Other News

• Ottawa Community Housing has announced a new development that will build 336 new affordable homes downtown, in the area bordered by Somerset Street, the O-Train Trillium Line, and Preston Street.

• The Ottawa Community Land Trust exceeded its target for raising $1.7 million from community members buying bonds to fund the Trust’s purchase of affordable rental housing units that were up for sale. OCLT has now raised its target to $3 million.

• Ottawa’s rural municipal leaders are worried about how return-to-office mandates will affect their constituents and undermine businesses in the area.

• Ontario’s provincial government plans to restrict cities from removing existing traffic lanes to create bike lanes. Who would have thought that the Doug Ford government would value cars over bicycles?

  • If the plan is implemented, it will undermine Ottawa’s Transportation Master Plan that “envisions that by 2046, more than half of all travel in the city will be by active transportation, public transit, or by carpooling,”

• The average cost to rent a one bedroom apartment in Ottawa has now risen above $2,000.

• In early September, The Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee approved changes to City planning processes to make reviewing development applications more efficient. The Committee aims to accelerate housing construction across Ottawa. The changes would ensure the City is aligned with the Province’s recently enacted Bill 185, Cutting Red Tape to Build More Homes Act.

• Ontario’s provincial government launched a 5,000 megawatt procurement process to increase electricity capacity. At first it was targeted to “non-emitting” energy sources. Then, it was amended to take a “technology-agnostic” approach—ie., it would include projects that produce emissions. And some parts of the application use a framework that makes it hard for renewable energy projects to compete with fossil fuels, unless they are also paired with energy storage.

I look forward to connecting with you again next month through the PEN Newsletter. In the meantime, please use the comments section of the newsletter or email [email protected] with thoughts or questions.

—Christopher Bonasia, PEN editor

PERC appreciates all of our readers for giving us this chance to connect with members of our community, and we love being able to provide you with a forum to discuss pressing environmental and social justice issues.

But we also rely on your support to make this happen. If you are interested in helping our organization continue to use storytelling and networking to help individuals, non-profits, and community groups work locally for a greener and more peaceful world, please consider making a donation to the Peace and Environment Resource Centre.