TZEPORAH BERMAN
Contributed to The Globe and Mail
Last updated Friday, Sep. 19 2014, 10:46 AM EDT
As I prepare to attend the largest climate march in history this weekend, I open a drawer that contains, among other mementos, a Canadian flag. I stare down at it – wondering if I can bear to bring it with me, unfurl it, and walk under it through the streets of New York.
I am reminded of a conversation I had with an elderly European diplomat at the UN climate negotiations in Durban, South Africa. This was after it became clear that Canada planned to pull out of the Kyoto agreement. He said: “I remember when we signed the Montreal Protocol to ban CFC’s and heal the hole in the ozone layer. It happened because of Canada’s determination and leadership. What has happened to Canada?”
This is a question we all should ask. … I have had many conversations with people from government and industry about the oil sands. The conversations usually go something like this: “Yes, we need to address the growing threat of climate change and yes, oil sands expansion is driving greenhouse gas emissions growth in Canada. But the fact is, we need a strong economy, and the world needs oil. Besides, Canada’s emissions are small potatoes against coal from China.”
What bothers me most about these conversations is the lack of ambition and leadership inherent in this view of our role as a nation in addressing what the majority of the worlds scientists, governments and banks now call “the greatest threat humanity has ever faced.”
Read More: http://m.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/why-im-nervously-carrying-a-canadian-flag-at-the-climate-march/article20687044/?service=mobile
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