URGENT: Tell Canada what matters to you!
In early June, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced an ambitious commitment to ban certain single-use plastics as early as 2021. This is great news! But with the federal election only a few months away, we need all party leaders to make a commitment to reduce plastic pollution, ban single-use plastics, and hold producers responsible for the plastic waste they create. TAKE ACTION
THIS ELECTION, WHO WE VOTE FOR MATTERS MORE THAN EVER. NOT JUST FOR OUR COUNTRY, BUT FOR OUR CHILDREN'S FUTURE AND THE HEALTH OF OUR PLANET.
JUly 19, 2019 - Environmental Defence Canada
I DEMAND THAT ANY GOVERNMENT THAT REPRESENTS ME MUST:
The power of micro loans - an option for taking actionJuly 8, 2019 - submitted by Jewel Jasmins, ofs
Jewel Jasmins wrote, "At our last OFS General meeting… one of our candidates in formation shared with us her response to our JPIC Reflection, on alleviating poverty. She shared with us that both her and her husband supported this Kiva for years, putting in $20.00 to help a poor person have access to some money to develop a small business in a poor country. The video clip explains how this works. They would always have their $20.00 returned at a later date, and would make it available again to use for this noble cause, or use this contribution as a gift to someone they know, so that this would be in their name."
Commentary: The editors at Franciscan Voice Canada did some checking into this form of helping people, but we found there can be some pros and cons to micro-finances. We recommend you do your own checking to ensure the agency your are dealing with is a reputable one. KIVA seems to have a good reputation - FVC Margaret & Andrew engaging with the youth at climate strikeMay 26, 2019
Margaret Ross ofs, from Coquitlam, B.C. and Andrew Conradi ofs, from Victoria, B.C. are seen here engaging with the youth at climate strike in front of Calgary Municipal Hall on May 24, 2019. This is taking action! The youth who are concerned and taking action are greatly encouraged when we, the older generation, get out there and support them. We thank them both for their initiative!
We must reverse biodiversity loss to save ourselvesMay 17, 2019 - David Suzuki Foundation
Healthy oceans and the plankton they support give us most of the oxygen we breathe and provide food for much of humanity. Trees sequester carbon, produce oxygen, filter contaminants in air and water and prevent erosion and flooding. Polar ice caps regulate global temperatures and ocean currents. From the smallest microbes to the largest mammals, biodiverse animal life keeps natural systems in balance, ensuring that everything in the food web — including us — can find sustenance.
The world’s leading scientists are warning that human behaviour is destroying the biodiversity on which human and other life depends at a terrifyingly rapid rate. Read More and Take Action Canada needs an Ombudsperson with teeth
The latest win for corporate Canada is in an executive order issued by the Prime Minister’s Office that creates the first-ever Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise. Initially, it will apply only to the Canadian garment and resource extraction sectors. The name of the new position, and the government fanfare about it, belie the fact that the Liberals have stripped the new ombudsperson of the investigatory powers that they’ve been promising for years.
Human society under urgent threat from loss of Earth's natural lifeMay 7, 2019 - The Guardian
Scientists reveal 1 million species at risk of extinction in damning UN report
Human society is in jeopardy from the accelerating decline of the Earth’s natural life-support systems, the world’s leading scientists have warned, as they announced the results of the most thorough planetary health check ever undertaken. IMPORTANT - READ MORE
Even more reasons why we can’t be confident in Health Canada’s assessment that glyphosate is safe
Tell big polluters to pay up!April 26, 2019 - Greenpeace
Chemicals giant Bayer is out of control - CEO must step down
April 24, 2019 - SumOfUs
Bayer is dragging suffering cancer patients through court. It’s churning out one toxic pesticide after another while lobbying hard to keep them on the market. And it’s gained unprecedented control over our food supply by merging with Monsanto.
One man is responsible for all this: Werner Baumann, CEO of Bayer-Monsanto. And the time is overdue for him to resign. Chemicals giant Bayer is out of control -- and its CEO must step down before he does any more harm. Bee-killing neonics. Cancer-causing glyphosate. The list goes on and on. It's got to change! Sign this petition to Bayer's top boss, and SumOfUs campaigners will deliver it to him THIS FRIDAY at the company's annual shareholder meeting in Germany Whole Foods: It's Time to Ban Single-Use Plastics!
April 22, 2019 - SumOfUs
Choking out our precious marine life and leaching toxins into our bodies -- no-one knows just how much un-recycled plastic waste is in our oceans, but we know where it comes from.
Grocery stores are a huge source of this plastic waste. But a new initiative from Trader Joe’s could change that. The grocery store is reducing 1 million pounds of plastic waste each year just by scaling back on unnecessary pre-packaged fruit and styrofoam trays. It took about 100,000 signatures from our friends at Greenpeace to win this. Now while we have the momentum, let’s make sure Whole Foods is the next company to ban single-use plastic waste from its stores. SIGN HERE: Tell Whole Foods to ban single-use plastics in its stores. COMMENTARY But should we do more? Yes, we can individually refuse to take plastics where possible, but why not stop plastics at the source. For us here in Canada our biggest grocery stores chains include Loblaws and Sobeys. They have the ability to use less plastic in their packaging. Our Federal government has even greater power by regulating plastics out of the systems. We as voters and consumers have the power to demand the reduction in the use of plastics. Take action! - FVC Pope Thanks and Encourages Greta Thunberg in Her Commitment to Defend the EnvironmentApril 18, 2019 -- Zenith
URGENT: Send your letter to protect the Nashwaak Watershed from Sisson mine waste
Help protect the Nashwaak River, New Brunswick!
With catastrophic mine waste spills on the rise and the fact that the Sisson mine’s permitting process did not adequately examine the possibility of a tailings breach, there is reason to worry about the future of the Nashwaak Watershed.
Mining companies dump tailings, the waste left over after ore has been mined and processed, into dams for permanent storage because it is cheaper than other methods that are considered less risky to the environment such as the dry-stack tailings method. 
According to Wuest, if a tailings breach were to occur at the Sisson mine, the volume could be four times more than that spilled at the Mount Polley site. If the tailings dam did fail, according to Wuest, the tailings would travel down the Nashwaak River and reach Stanley in 17 to 18 hours and Fredericton in three days. If we think about the size of the tailings pond, 8 km long and 87m high, the possible danger is unfathomable. READ MORE -- VOICE YOUR CONCERN HERE
World Youth Day and next steps for you!
Painting at ecological park
The young people of Panama, like young people everywhere, face an uncertain future....Young people will bear the brunt of the consequences of climate change. At World Youth Day and across the globe, they’re stepping up to take action. We invite you to stand with young people. Contact your pastor, parish council, or director of religious education to encourage them to incorporate creation care into children’s education.
Click here to see a template email you can use. THE MIGRANT CARAVAN:
|
|
On December 10, Brother Louis Cinq-Mars, provincial superior of the Capuchin friars and president of the CRC, has written to the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau expressing deep concern for the disturbing situation faced by migrants coming from Central America and Honduras at the American border. Consider taking action as well and also write our Prime Minister. - FVC |
Alberta's cutting oil and gas production for the wrong reasons
December 3, 2018 - 350.org
Last night, when Alberta Premier Rachel Notley announced her plans to temporarily cut oil production in the province, she missed a golden opportunity.
What do Justin Trudeau and Canada’s Premiers have in common? They’re all failing us on climate change. We’ve run out of time for incremental changes. We need a bold, progressive vision for tackling climate change in Canada.
That’s why we’re calling on Canada’s political leaders to support the Good Work Guarantee – a new vision for tackling climate action in Canada.
What do Justin Trudeau and Canada’s Premiers have in common? They’re all failing us on climate change. We’ve run out of time for incremental changes. We need a bold, progressive vision for tackling climate change in Canada.
That’s why we’re calling on Canada’s political leaders to support the Good Work Guarantee – a new vision for tackling climate action in Canada.
See BBC Video: Sir David Attenborough: Climate change 'our greatest threat'
Join the call for a 100% clean world
World leaders are about to meet to decide how to respond. The EU is proposing an urgent plan to reduce carbon pollution to ZERO -- but Trump and his allies are doing all they can to kill it off.
We can’t let that happen -- this is suicide vs survival!! The summit is in days, and together we can land our massive global call for 100% Clean energy right in the heart of it, to save our future and everything we love. Add your name and tell everyone!
We can’t let that happen -- this is suicide vs survival!! The summit is in days, and together we can land our massive global call for 100% Clean energy right in the heart of it, to save our future and everything we love. Add your name and tell everyone!
Bayer/Monsanto: Drop your appeal against Dewayne Johnson
December 2, 2018 - SumOfUs
FILE – In this Aug. 10, 2018 file photo, Dewayne Johnson reacts after hearing the verdict in his case against Monsanto at the Superior Court of California in San Francisco. (Josh Edelson/Pool Photo via AP, File)
Dewayne Johnson made history this year when he sued Monsanto for causing his terminal cancer -- and won.
But Monsanto’s parent company Bayer is a sore loser. It won’t pay Johnson the compensation it owes him, even after a judge reduced the payment by over two-thirds. Instead, Bayer is forcing this father of three small children to spend the rest of his life in court, fighting appeal after appeal.
Now, Johnson needs your help. He doesn’t want to spend his remaining days in a drawn-out legal battle. But he also wants to make sure Bayer is brought to justice and pays what it owes. That’s why he’s personally asked us to campaign on his behalf to get Bayer to drop its appeal.
But Monsanto’s parent company Bayer is a sore loser. It won’t pay Johnson the compensation it owes him, even after a judge reduced the payment by over two-thirds. Instead, Bayer is forcing this father of three small children to spend the rest of his life in court, fighting appeal after appeal.
Now, Johnson needs your help. He doesn’t want to spend his remaining days in a drawn-out legal battle. But he also wants to make sure Bayer is brought to justice and pays what it owes. That’s why he’s personally asked us to campaign on his behalf to get Bayer to drop its appeal.
Kellogg’s: Stop destroying rainforests for cheap palm oil!
November 14, 2018 - Change.org
|
Only last month a Greenpeace investigation found that Kellogg’s are still buying their palm oil from companies that destroy rainforests and kill orangutans. The report said that palm oil traders Wilmar were responsible for more rainforest destruction than any other, and they and companies like them, are selling to Kellogg’s. So we are asking Kellogg’s to stop using these suppliers immediately and to tell the public exactly which palm oil companies they buy from.
|
|
Twenty five orangutans are killed every day due to palm oil. As well as wiping out rainforests and wildlife, cheap and irresponsible palm oil companies are also killing people - due to the toxic gases of burnt down trees, around 110 people die a year. ......READ MORE
Write For Rights - Write a letter. Change a life.
November 7, 2018 - Amnesty International - Canada
Join us for the world's largest human rights event on International Human Rights Day: Write for Rights with Amnesty International.
Women human rights defenders are under threat worldwide - so under threat that Amnesty International has chosen to focus all of this year's Write for Rights cases on courageous women peacefully advocating for human rights.
Every year around International Human Rights Day on December 10, hundreds of thousands of people around the world send a letter or e-mail on behalf of someone they’ve never met.
Women human rights defenders are under threat worldwide - so under threat that Amnesty International has chosen to focus all of this year's Write for Rights cases on courageous women peacefully advocating for human rights.
Every year around International Human Rights Day on December 10, hundreds of thousands of people around the world send a letter or e-mail on behalf of someone they’ve never met.
Does your member of parliament recognize your legal right to a healthy environment? Help us find out!
October 21, 2018 - Bluedot
In the lead up to the October 2019 federal election, we have a unique opportunity to make environmental rights a campaign issue and find out which politicians support your legal right to a healthy environment.
That’s why, over the next year we’re asking MPs and federal candidates to demonstrate their support for environmental rights by signing the MP pledge for environmental rights.
That’s why, over the next year we’re asking MPs and federal candidates to demonstrate their support for environmental rights by signing the MP pledge for environmental rights.
September 30, 2018 - Environmental Defence
SumOfUs.org writes, "The key ingredient in Monsanto's cancer-causing Roundup is pervasive in our children’s food. A just-released study found cancerous glyphosate in common foods like Timbits, KD, Cheerios, Ritz Crackers, and Quaker Oatmeal.
The message is getting around that glyphosate is dangerous. Just this August, a California jury ordered Monsanto to pay a school groundskeeper $289 million because glyphosate was found to be the cause of his terminal cancer.
Environmental Defence's study has blown the lid on how common cancer-causing glyphosate is in our food. It's time for Canada to keep cancerous ingredients out of our food."
READ MORE and sign the petition
The message is getting around that glyphosate is dangerous. Just this August, a California jury ordered Monsanto to pay a school groundskeeper $289 million because glyphosate was found to be the cause of his terminal cancer.
Environmental Defence's study has blown the lid on how common cancer-causing glyphosate is in our food. It's time for Canada to keep cancerous ingredients out of our food."
READ MORE and sign the petition
Plastic-Free Future: Take Action!August 12, 2018
Disposable straws, cups, and plastic utensils are consumed by millions of people every day in Canada. But there are reusable alternatives that can cut down on this unnecessary waste and stop it from ending up in landfills, rivers and oceans. So why not ask local cafes, bars and restaurants to be part of the solution and stop offering disposable plastic items? Learn more. Take Action! |
|
Plastic-Free July is coming to an end, but that's no reason to stop taking action.
July 26, 2018 - Greenpeace
|
To change attitudes and inspire new habits, information is key. And that’s why we encourage you to get the message out there about plastic pollution and the solutions we need to see.
If you haven’t already, download Action #1 of our Toolkit for a Plastic-Free Future. There you'll find tips for organizing events and information sessions, plus links to documentaries and ready-to-use PowerPoint presentations. We’re here to support you every step of the way, so please share your experiences, questions or comments by writing to actsofblue.ca@greenpeace.org. |
Join the wave of resistance against oil pipelines
July 9, 2018 - Greenpeace
Aerial shot of the enormous tailings ponds at the Syncrude mine in the Canadian tar sands. Canada’s tar sands are an oil reserve the size of England. Extracting the crude oil called bitumen from underneath the unspoiled wilderness requires a massive industrialized effort with far-reaching impacts on the land, air, water and climate. Greenpeace is calling on oil companies and the government to stop the tar sands, for the sake of the people and the planet. Photo –William Akehurst
Learn more and act
Learn more and act
TRANSLATE THIS PAGE
Disclaimer: Franciscan Voice Canada offers translations through Google Translate. Because Google Translate is an external website, we do not control the quality or accuracy of the translated content, and translations may be incorrect.
Read, judge and act...
FVC alerts its readers to causes which come to our attention via our readership. We are free to read, judge and act according to our individual beliefs in support of the Gospel and our Franciscan values.
|
The Canadian
|
Products & Companies
Action: Where to find Fair Trade products
Action: Where to find Fair Trade products
Take Action
Recycle your electronics
Find a location near you.
Contact Information
Franciscan Voice Canada
Email:
contact@franciscanvoicecanada.com
Email:
contact@franciscanvoicecanada.com
For future use