In partnership with Climate Change Newmarket-Aurora, NewmarketToday brings you a regular series of columns aimed at creating awareness and engaging our community to take action on climate change.
It is 1998. The August doldrums. A sleepy, lazy in-between time of boredom and lamenting lost time. It’s an odd moment for a change of perspective. On the state of things. Of the world. This is, of course, before Y2K, 9:11, Iraq part II, Afghanistan, recession, Brexit and that C word that came to the planet’s attention in early 2020. For me, it is a time of reading. Among other books – From Naked Ape to Super Species, Doctor David Suzuki’s look at the state of the environment.
It's odd – in a way – what inspires us. I have always had an affinity for nature and animals. I was a huge fan of the Nature of Things and documentaries growing up. But I had never considered myself an environmentalist. Still don’t. But I would be remiss to say Mr. Suzuki’s book didn’t inspire me. Not in any Eureka! sense. More a warming of the bathwater: those few hot drips that slowly transform the grey and cold to something else.
Fast forward two decades and our years pile up and turn like the chapters in Mr. Suzuki’s books. Our planet is in crisis. The evidence is indisputable. One can get a sense of déjà vu while doom scrolling on our phones. Haven’t I read this before? I suppose none of us should be surprised.
Environmentalists have been talking about catastrophe for years. We should be ready for this. Prepared. But now that it’s here one gets a sense of forgetting one’s lines in the crux of our big moment. We know what needs to be done. We know the facts. The solutions are apparent. But it all just seems so overwhelming, doesn’t it?
Failure is inaction. Plain and simple. A rule that can be applied to any profession. Stand still and the world passes you by. But that realization can be our salvation. One small action is movement. A collection of small movements is momentum. And momentum – when combined with the action of others — planned, co-ordinated and executed, can effect change.
We don’t need to be David Suzuki. And we don't have to be scientists, writers, or clever television presenters. We don’t need a motive in a grander plan. But just one small action – recycling, walking to work, conserving a little water; turning the car off in the drive-thru, using reusable gift wrapping – can help make things better.
And if you’re so inclined, join others who are like-minded. That bit about a collection of movements – that’s a real thing. Newmarket and Aurora’s very own Climate Action Newmarket-Aurora (CANA) is the proof in the pudding. CANA is not a group of celebrities. They’re you; they’re me. Normal people on the move: Planning; co-ordinating, executing — people making real, tangible, measurable differences in our community. Ordinary folks who made movement a priority and took that one tiny spark of action and gave it to someone else.
If you’d like to learn more about what CANA is doing to effect change in our community, visit: www.climateactionna.org.
Inspired by the international organization Project Drawdown, Climate Action Newmarket-Aurora seeks to engage citizens, institutions, and policymakers in actionable and measurable solutions to stop catastrophic climate change as quickly, safely and equitably as possible. You can contact them at [email protected], and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.
