Climate justice advocate joins race for B.C. Greens leadership
Emily Lowan is the second person to announce their candidacy in the race after Comox town councillor and physician Jonathan Kerr.
The candidates are seeking to replace Sonia Furstenau, who had been leader since 2020 but announced she would step down after failing to be re-elected in the last provincial election.
Lowan says in a news release that her campaign will focus on 'stopping major projects that ignore Indigenous rights, implementing vacancy control, lowering the cost of living, and taxing the ultrarich.'
She says those changes would allow the province to invest in affordable housing, free public transit and 'good green jobs.'
The party says it will release the names of other contestants in the coming days.
It says a town hall will be held in August before a contestant debate in September.
Voting by party members will run from Sept. 13 to 23, with the results to be announced on Sept. 24.
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Cision Canada
8 hours ago
- Cision Canada
The Government of Canada is supporting 13 Indigenous-led clean energy projects through the Low Carbon Economy Fund's Indigenous Leadership Fund Français
GATINEAU, QC, July 8, 2025 /CNW/ - As protectors of the land and water, Indigenous peoples have long been leaders in climate action. In addition to advocating for the care of our planet, First Nations, Inuit, and Métis are making significant contributions to lowering greenhouse gas emissions as leaders or key partners in the development of almost 20% of Canada's clean electricity infrastructure. To further support this leadership, today, the Honourable Julie Dabrusin, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, announced over $40 million in funding through the Low Carbon Economy Indigenous Leadership Fund to support 13 Indigenous-owned and -led clean energy projects across Canada. These projects include the installation of solar panels, wind turbines, and heat pumps, as well as building energy retrofits that will help Indigenous communities save on energy costs and increase renewable energy use. They also help create jobs and leverage economic opportunities to further benefit those communities. The K'ómoks First Nation in British Columbia will receive nearly $690,000 for its community solar project to install residential solar panels. The Kinistin Saulteaux Nation in Saskatchewan will receive over $845,000 for its Kizis–Pimibizaowgamik project to build a charging system to power community EVs for local work and medical transportation. The Makivvik Corporation in Quebec will receive approximately $3.5 million to purchase and distribute solar kits throughout Nunavik. The Thunder Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre in Ontario will receive up to $1 million to install a heat pump system in the Thunder Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre's new building. The Sheshatshiu Innu First Nation in Newfoundland and Labrador will receive over $1.6 million to install heat pumps in community-owned homes on Sheshatshiu Indian Reserve No. 3. The Gitlaxt'aamiks Village Government in British Columbia will receive over $2.8 million to purchase and install electric heat pumps in community homes. The Mushuau Innu First Nation in Newfoundland and Labrador will receive over $5.8 million to purchase and install heat pumps in community-owned homes in the remote community of Natuashish. The Qalipu Mi'kmaq First Nation Band in Newfoundland and Labrador will receive nearly $4.3 million to purchase and install heat pumps in homes owned by community members. The Hiawatha First Nation 162 in Ontario will receive nearly $3.4 million to make the newly built Rice Lake Elder's complex and community building net zero. The Métis Nation of Alberta will receive over $9.2 million to retrofit approximately 500 citizen-owned homes across Alberta. The Seabird Island Band in British Columbia will receive over $5.6 million to improve the energy efficiency of two schools and an administration building. The Métis National Council Secretariat Inc. in Ontario will receive up to $150,000 to conduct an audit of the Métis National Council's operating carbon footprint. The Indigenous Clean Energy Social Enterprise in Ontario will receive over $1.2 million for a collaborative impact project responding to federal best practices for Indigenous participation in program advisory and governance. These investments reaffirm the Government of Canada's commitment to support reconciliation and integrate Indigenous Knowledge, voices, and perspectives in the work toward a sustainable future for all. Quotes "As first guardians of nature and true stewards of environmental conservation and protection, First Nations, Inuit, and Métis across Canada are taking critical action to fight climate change and adapt to its impacts. Today's announcement recognizes the leadership and the important work of Indigenous peoples to preserve the environment and ensure that a habitable planet exists now and for generations to come." – The Honourable Julie Dabrusin, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Quick facts The Indigenous Leadership Fund is a $180 million stream under the Low Carbon Economy Fund. It funds Indigenous-owned and -led renewable energy, energy efficiency, and low-carbon heating projects to support Indigenous climate action. The Indigenous Leadership Fund was co-developed with the three National Indigenous Organizations; First Nations, Inuit, and Métis governments; and Indigenous clean energy experts. It recognizes their unique rights, interests, and circumstances when it comes to addressing the causes and impacts of climate change. First Nations, Inuit, and Métis are key leaders and partners in efforts to address climate change. They continue to lead innovative projects of all sizes across the country, including in remote and northern communities. Supporting Indigenous leadership and co-developing solutions to address climate change in First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities is central to advancing the reconciliation journey and promoting self-determination. By advancing the Indigenous Climate Leadership Agenda, Canada is implementing Article 29 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, which affirms Indigenous peoples' right to the conservation and protection of their lands, territories, and resources. As part of this effort, the Government of Canada is working with Indigenous partners to set a long-term approach to partnership on climate that upholds and implements Indigenous peoples' right to self-determination and to participate in decision-making. These partnerships will help ensure access to predictable and equitable funding for climate action. Environment and Climate Change Canada's Instagram page SOURCE Environment and Climate Change Canada
National Observer
14 hours ago
- National Observer
Inuit podcast takes us inside the Arctic meltdown
Siila Watt-Cloutier remembers gliding by dog sled across the frozen Arctic as a child — past landscapes that are now vanishing before her eyes. Through her new podcast, the Inuk leader and climate advocate is spotlighting Indigenous perspectives and the challenges facing the region. 'We are hit very hard up in the Arctic. We hear and see it every single day,' Watt-Cloutier said. 'Listen to those voices on the ground, not just the politicians.' The four-part, limited series, A Radical Act of Hope, produced by the BC-based Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions draws on her 2015 memoir, The Right to Be Cold, which frames climate change as fundamentally a human rights crisis, rather than solely a scientific or environmental issue. 'Not that many people read books today,' she said. 'With podcasts now being the 'it' medium, why not contribute in some small way a narrative that I believe needs to shift?' The podcast follows Watt-Cloutier's personal journey, from her early years in Kuujjuaq, a remote Inuit community in northern Quebec and speaking only Inuktitut, to her work negotiating the Stockholm Convention to ban toxic chemicals in the Arctic and leading the first legal petition linking climate change to human rights at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. 'This is just a small contribution from my perspective on what I felt has worked for me in terms of changing the minds and hearts of people through the work that I've done,' Watt-Cloutier said. The call for a new narrative comes as she voices concern about the current direction of climate policy. Watt-Cloutier is critical of the current political tone in the climate debate, describing it as 'eco-based, fear-based leadership that is creating even more chaos and more wars.' 'We are hit very hard up in the Arctic. We hear and see it every single day,' said Siila Watt-Cloutier, Inuk leader and podcast host. 'Listen to those voices on the ground, not just the politicians.' As governments fast-track mining and infrastructure projects in the North, she warns the Arctic is increasingly being viewed as a business opportunity rather than an environmental disaster. 'Don't see the Arctic issues — and the rich minerals and resources that are there as a result of the melt — as an opportunity,' she said. 'See it as an environmental disaster, and then work from there to build the economy of the Arctic that's not going to make things worse. It shouldn't be that the economy is going to be the trump card again. Building our economy should not be at the cost of lowering greenhouse gas emissions.' Arctic sea ice reached its lowest winter maximum on record this March, with the National Snow and Ice Data Centre reporting just 14.33 million square kilometres at its peak — more than a million square kilometres below the long-term average and the smallest extent in the satellite era. As the ice vanishes, new shipping lanes and mineral frontiers are opening, fuelling expectations of a scramble for oil, gas and critical minerals. The environmental toll is mounting: permafrost is thawing, releasing methane and carbon dioxide, while coastal erosion and wildfires are accelerating. The project is led by Ian Mauro, executive director of the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions, an environmental scientist and filmmaker who has worked with Watt-Cloutier for over a decade. Mauro said the podcast is a response to a 'green backlash' — the growing pressure to put climate action on hold for short-term economic fixes like expanding fossil fuel projects and accelerating resource extraction, particularly in the face of Trump's trade war. 'We cannot afford to backtrack on our climate ambition at the expense of these other issues,' Mauro said. 'We have to figure out how to multi-solve and be holistic in our approach, which is why leadership matters right now.' Mauro said the series comes at a time when Indigenous knowledge is finally being recognized as essential to climate solutions, both in Canada and around the world. 'We still live in a deeply racist society where people will quickly dismiss these types of knowledge,' Mauro said. 'But we are also in an era of reconciliation where there is a deeper appreciation and respect that has formed culturally in this country, and someone like Siila Watt-Cloutier rises to the surface in that conversation.' Each episode features Indigenous women leaders, including Lena Evic, founder of Iqaluit's Pirurvik Centre, and Nicole Redvers, a planetary health expert. In the final episode, former Greenland premier Aleqa Hammond joins a discussion about Arctic geopolitics and Indigenous sovereignty. 'I didn't want these podcasts just to be my take on conscious leadership,' Watt-Cloutier said. 'I wanted to invite other Indigenous women to share this platform, to share their stories — women that I feel are already leading from that space of consciousness and wisdom.' Co-host Janna Wale, the institute's Indigenous research and partnerships lead, who is Gitxsan and Cree-Métis, called the series 'long overdue.' She said the podcast was designed to break through the 'eco-grief and eco-anxiety' dominating climate news by centring Indigenous knowledge and climate optimism. 'Indigenous people have been climate leaders since time immemorial,' Wale said. 'We have had relationships with the land that have helped to foster sustainability and practices that have contributed to bringing balance to our ecosystems. Centring these voices, centring those ideas, and inspiring the next generation of leaders using that kind of knowledge is so important.' Watt-Cloutier said Indigenous knowledge and leadership are essential as Canada faces accelerating Arctic change. 'The land and culture offer more solutions, I think, than most institutions can,' she said. 'I believe strongly that Indigenous wisdom is the medicine the world seeks in addressing these issues of sustainability … Rather than seeing us as victims to globalization and to pollution and to climate change, we can become teachers if given the opportunities of respect and equality and equity on every front.'
Winnipeg Free Press
a day ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
What to know about the troops and federal agents in LA's MacArthur Park
LOS ANGELES (AP) — U.S. military troops and federal immigration officers made a brief but mighty show of force Monday at a Los Angeles park in a neighborhood dubbed the 'Ellis Island of the West Coast' for its large immigrant population. The operation left local officials and organizers with many questions. Here is a look at what we know. What happened and was anyone arrested? About 90 National Guard troops and dozens of federal officers descended on MacArthur Park in the morning. But it was nearly empty, since word spread of a potential raid. Mayor Karen Bass said she pulled over on her way to City Hall to witness officers on horseback and soldiers in tactical gear walking past a playground as children at a summer day camp were rushed indoors so they would not be traumatized. The troops and officers left after about an hour. The Department of Homeland Security did not say whether anyone was arrested. Associated Press journalists who arrived as the troops and agents entered the park did not see anyone detained. Some activists showed up to take videos and record the scene. When asked about the appearance in MacArthur Park, the DHS said in an email that the agency would not comment on 'ongoing enforcement operations.' The Defense Department referred all questions to DHS. Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom called it a political stunt and spectacle meant to intimidate the city's immigrant communities. What's the history of MacArthur Park? The park dates back to the late 19th century when the city received a mudhole and trash dump spanning 35 acres in a land swap, according to the Los Angeles Conservancy. After a 'generous application of fertilizer,' it said the area was turned into Westlake Park with a small boating lake. In 1942, the name was changed to MacArthur Park for Army General Douglas MacArthur, who fought in WWII. Since the 1980s, the Westlake neighborhood has evolved into a densely populated immigrant neighborhood with the settlement of Indigenous people from Mexico and Central America and other groups. It is also home to several immigrant rights organizations and legal aid offices. Eunisses Hernandez, a council member whose district includes MacArthur Park said the park 'was chosen as this administration's latest target precisely because of who lives there and what it represents: Resilience, diversity and the American dream. It is no coincidence that the president would target a place that so clearly embodies the values he has spent his time in office trying to destroy.' In recent years, the park has drawn homeless encampments. Outreach teams work there regularly, treating people with drug addiction. In 2007, the park was the site of large May Day rallies to demand amnesty for immigrants without legal status that ended with police firing rubber bullets at protesters. Demonstrators later sued the city and received a $12.8 million settlement. What did the Guard do? Defense officials had said 90 National Guard troops and over a dozen military vehicles were sent to protect immigration officers. The defense officials told reporters that it was not a military operation but acknowledged that the size and scope of the Guard's participation could make it look like one to the public. That is why the officials spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details about the raid before it happened. The operation in the large park about 2 miles (3.2 km) west of downtown LA included 17 Humvees, four tactical vehicles, two ambulances and the armed soldiers, defense officials said. The decision to have the soldiers provide security on the raids moves troops closer than ever before to carrying out law enforcement actions such as deportations, as President Donald Trump has promised as part of his immigration crackdown. Why were military troops in Los Angeles? Trump ordered the deployment of about 4,000 California National Guard troops and 800 active duty Marines against the wishes of Newsom in early June to respond to a series of protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in Los Angeles. The federal troops' domestic deployment has raised multiple legal questions, including whether the administration would seek to employ emergency powers under the Insurrection Act to empower those forces to conduct law enforcement on U.S. soil, which they are not permitted to do except in rare circumstances. The Marines are primarily assigned to protect federal buildings while hundreds of the National Guard troops accompany agents on immigration operations. Newsom has sued the administration over the deployment and the case is ongoing. How did the community react? Immigration advocates urged people to avoid the area before the heavily armed troops and federal officers arrived in armored vehicles. Betsy Bolte, who lives nearby, came to the park after seeing a military-style helicopter circling overhead. She said it was 'gut-wrenching' to witness what appeared to be a federal show of force on the streets of a U.S. city. 'It's terror and, you know, it's ripping the heart and soul out of Los Angeles,' she said. 'I am still in shock, disbelief, and so angry and terrified and heartbroken.' Chris Newman, legal director for the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, said he received a credible tip about the operation Monday. The park is normally busy with families picnicking and vendors hawking food and toys but since federal agents have been making arrests around Los Angeles, Newman said fewer people have been going out. 'The ghost town-ification of LA is haunting, to say the very least,' he said. ____ Watson reported from San Diego. Associated Press journalists Damian Dovarganes and Eugene Garcia in Los Angeles; Sophie Austin in Sacramento, California; Amy Taxin in Santa Ana, California; and Tara Copp in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.
