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THE WELCOME MAT
WELCOME TO THE GREENZINE!
WELCOME TO TRANSITION TOWN! Transition is a global concept with local applications. In her articles Cheryl Lyon continues to refine the definition of what Transition means. The founder of Transition Town Peterborough, Fred Irwin, further develops his vision of economic localization as the basis for a community's resilience. Tricia Clarkson list some alternatives to the use of plastic. She also encourages us to appeal to all levels of government, so that our legislators cannot fail to recognize that we the citizens want coordinated action on climate change. Linda Briden shares some of her financial strategies, while Aiden McRae describes the varied benefits of living off-grid. Bill Eekhof reinforces those thoughts with his deliberations on how living in harmony with the natural environment contributes to health and well-being. Brenda Tapp reminds us that ticks, wandering farther north because of the warming of our fields and forest, represent a growing danger. The shorter texts, which appear as “fillers” among the main articles, all come from Paul Hawken's compilation, “Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming”. Amazing and reassuring, this book deserves its place on the New York Times bestseller list!
GREENZINE
is published quarterly by
Transition Town Peterborough Inc. Business Manager Fred Irwin Art Direction/Production KnowAbout Peterborough Editorial Collective Cheryl Lyon, Patricia Remy, Mary Conchelos, Andrea Connell This Issue’s Contributors Bill Bruesch, Linda Briden, Fred Irwin, Andrea Connell, Tricia Clarkson, Bill Eekhof, Rowan Fleming, Jon Hedderwick, Cheryl Lyon, Aiden McRae, Patricia Remy, Brenda Tapp Advertising Andrea Connell
Transition Town Peterborough, 171A Rink St., Suite 166, Peterborough, ON K9J 2J6 General Information info@thegreenzineonline.com www.thegreenzineonline.com Email Art to: art@knowaboutpeterborough.com DISCLAIMER Transition Town Peterborough claims copyright in all original advertising and editorial materials created by its employees or subcontractors and reproduced in this publication. The advertiser agrees that the publisher shall not be liable for damages arising out of errors or omission in ads beyond the amount paid for the space occupied by the portion of the ad in which the error occurred. c 2018
The Greenzine is printed on a 70lb Flo Gloss Sappi paper manufactured with a mixture of post industrial and post consumer recycled fiber and it is tri-Certified: PEFC Chain of Custody certified, SFI forest certified, and Certified SmartWay Transport partner certified. Our ink is vegetable based.
Transition Town Peterborough Inc. www.transitiontownpeterborough.ca
Canada's First Transition Town
In addition, as ever, you will encounter Transition Town's appeal for volunteers and read ads from local businesses, which identify with the goals and values of Transition. The Greenzine Editorial Collective wishes you an informative and encouraging read.
LIVING LOCALLY
We acknowledge that we live on the traditional territory of the Mississauga People of the Anishinaabe Nation. We stand in solidarity with Curve Lake, Hiawatha and Alderville First Nations in the land claim processes, sovereignty, and cultural recovery, and respect for traditional values for future generations.
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EDITORIAL
HYDROCARBONS CLOSE AND PERSONAL PATRICIA REMY - A number of the articles in this issue of the Greenzine ring with an editorial tone, in that they exhort us, individually and collectively, to participate in Transition. So, for once, and perhaps refreshingly, instead of preaching, I'll just relate a few experiences and observations. By the end of this year I will have burned much more than my usual, probably already unfair share of the Earth's hydrocarbons. I will have used them, not for business or social action, but for personal reasons. It was a luxury which, in the near future, I fear, will simply not constitute a sustainable behaviour. This March/April I crossed the United Sates diagonally twice by car. I travelled to California and back, one way on interstates and freeways, the other way on secondary highways (including the old Route 66). The trek had a family background. That's how I rationalized it to myself. What impressed me most was the number of trucks on the interstates. Their presence emphasized the connection of the east to the west, and the central states to the rest of the U.S. The rail yards in St. Louis and Kansas City are massive. (Chicago's would probably make me faint.) Vegetables and fruit from California spread out towards the north and east. Grain from the Prairies is trucked and trained to the tables of the east and west. The sheer volume of traffic, the population of the USA being ten times our own, put this Canadian country bumpkin into a state of shock. I did not need to go anywhere near Dallas-Fort Worth or the Los Angeles airport. I'd have gone catatonic. How all this economic activity is supposed to continue without gasoline and diesel is a very open question. It was spring break for the colleges and high schools, so everyone was underway. Joshua Tree National Park and the Grand Canyon were crawling with visitors. There is a shuttle bus along the Canyon's
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south rim. But one arrives there by car. The parking lots were full to overflowing. That's not all. For the autumn, I have bought a plane ticket for Europe. I lived there for 36 years and have close friends. I'll visit them. That's how I rationalize the flight and the emissions. I think of the generation before mine, though, back in the historical mists of the pre-1950's. Two of the girls, with whom I went to public school, had mothers who came to Canada from Scotland pre- and post – World War II. Neither visited her native land and relatives again. Ever. It was too expensive. Basta. Still, life was good in the Fifties. We had our own house and spacious yard, sometimes with a garden. An oil furnace provided heat. A fridge preserved food. There was a car, maybe a pickup truck, too, and bicycles and TV. At school we played sports, had an award winning band (no amps or mic's or mixer). The janitor flooded a rink for the winter months. We hiked and swam in the local river valley. We read. A meal at a restaurant or a night at the movies was a treat. Our parents had jobs. Cataract operations were for the rich. Cancer treatment was brutal and primitive. If push comes to shove, and it will, I can thoroughly imagine going back to the Fifties lifestyle. Perhaps there is a way to retain our medical standards and digital communication, while reducing fossil fuel consumption. I sincerely hope so. One question is how many persons get to use how much? Estimates suggest that the Earth can sustain a population of 200 million to 2 billion. We are currently at 7.5 billion. Politically incorrect as it might be to say so, it will become, at the global level at least, a luxury to reproduce. Maybe a lottery would solve that. Just a thought, folks, much more reflection necessary. Here endeth the rumination from Route 66 between Fox News and NPR. Patricia Remy for the Greenzine Editorial Collective
LIVING LOCALLY
COMMUNITY
HOW WILL WE GET THROUGH IT ALL CHERYL LYON - Informed by the thinking of many who take the rapidly warming Earth as the greatest challenge of humanity, Transition Town Peterborough offers a local community vision for the future. The limitations of magazine format make it look like linear instructions for assembling a gizmo, but think of the following qualities as a circle within which all these things act all at once and together at many levels - organic, messy, like Nature and daily life: + Above all, we are reconnected with the Earth, holding dear all living things, the soil, water and air as sacred, accounted for in all decisions. + We accept that our local situation is not immune from any of the worst effects of the climate crisis (though its manifestations are not yet as critical as, say, islands drowning by rising sea levels or the desertification of California.) + We seek to ensure that the resources and capacity for adaptation will be equal for all regardless of income, status, gender, age or location. + We make decisions affecting the whole Community with full information, transparency, dialogue, and inclusive processes, seeking consensus where possible. + We know who doesn't have a voice in the community, for the sake of the constant dialogue needed in situations of emergence and transition. + Via media, policy, art and education, our organizations, schools and local government participate in telling the new story of what it means to be Human now and what is our purpose. + We no longer depend on fossil fuels and compassionately help each other through the transition off them. + We have a localized economy for mutual provision as counterbalance to the global one until the day the latter has also transformed away from greed and endless growth. We purchase locally above all else to keep our own wealth circulating within the community and supporting dignified livelihoods. + We value money only as means to an end, not an end in itself, promoting and implementing a local money system, with our own local currency and local investment vehicles. + We have Sustainability and Emission Reduction Plans backed up by civic budget priorities. + We use technology to enhance trust among ourselves and to create new networks of sharing and exchanging of life essentials (energy, food, health, culture.) + We allow and create space for experimentation within governments, businesses, schools, arts and neighborhoods, and seek it out from the margins We aspire to reach a critical mass which will overwhelm or radically reform the existing System. There will be risks and disruptions. Creating and sustaining the new Resilient Community will force us to confront deep spiritual questions and face an uncomfortable range of futures. But by staying engaged and co-creating, it will be our Community, our future, not dictated by the dying System.
LIVING LOCALLY
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COMMUNITY
WHERE IS YOUR MONEY? LINDA BRIDEN - Full disclosure: I am no financial expert. But, I am careful with my money. I think I internalised my parents’ values: they never had a mortgage and if they didn’t have the money in the bank, they didn’t buy it. My husband and I never carry any debt on our credit cards and tried to raise our children to be similarly responsible. Our family practised ‘thrifting’ long before it became trendy. Today, the definition of being financially responsible extends beyond being frugal. How we spend our money reflects our values. Because money is a limited resource for most people, necessities of life dictate how they spend it. I admit, I am at the age and stage of life where my necessities, barring unforeseen circumstances, are covered and I am fortunate enough to have a little left over for charitable donations or social financing and for traditional investing. Not wanting to be frivolous or take unnecessary risks, I investigate before I contribute and am cautious with my investment dollars. Back in November 2018, CBC reporter Pete Evans did a bit called, “Money for Change: Sustainable Investing Hits the Big Time.” cbc.ca/news/business/sustainableinvesting-1.4899734 . Pete reports that “New numbers in Canada and the United States show that sustainable investing is no longer a niche trend, but rather has become a powerful force in money management that won’t be ignored.” Suddenly, investments are being viewed through environmental, social and governance principals (ESG) and these are becoming a major influence on where folks like me decide where to put our money. Even those who manage CPP and the Ontario Teacher’s Pension Plan are catching on to the growing demand for green investing. For a time, a negative bias suggested that sustainable investing would mean weaker returns. CBC’s David Common does a follow-up to the “Money for Change” article on Dec.2nd. www.sustainableeconomist.com David talks with Tim Nash, a Toronto-based investment counsellor. Nash says, “The (financial) industry is realizing that there is no trade off. Looking at sustainability considerations actually does not entail
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losing return and potentially can even improve it.” Nash also points out that the average Canadian portfolio is connected to more carbon emissions than anything else we do in our daily lives, even driving! We don’t only share in the profits of a company we invest in, but we share the responsibility too – their carbon footprint becomes our own. The United Nations has 6 core principles required for a company to be entitled to call themselves socially responsible. See here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principles_for_Responsible_Investment
Being a part of Transition Town Peterborough reflects my values, including a belief in the strength and power of community, and the importance of building resilience locally in the face global changes. I believe in the Kawartha Loon local currency (KL), buying local, networking and sharing resources with my neighbors. I might use cloth shopping bags, ride my bike and reject chain restaurants, but increasingly these micro-efforts are just not enough. For true change, we need to kick our actions to the level of holding governments and corporations responsible. I’m an enthusiastic, potbanging protester, and diligently sign and forward socially conscious petitions, but I want to broaden my impact to a more macro level. Where is your money going? Whomever you consult about your finances, ask questions. Tell them you want to divest away from fossil fuels. Ask if the companies you may be investing in are practicing Corporate Social Responsibility? Where do these companies stand when viewed through the lens of the UN’s core principles? What efforts are they making to reduce carbon emissions? If you are not satisfied that they are doing due diligence, move your money. My tiny portfolio alone may not cause much of a ripple, but if we act collectively, we can generate a wave of change in corporate culture. And in David Common’s very Canadian words “Look at where the puck is going…not where it is!” And the smart money is going towards environmentally and socially responsible investments. Linda Briden is a semi-retired elementary school teacher and an active Peterborough volunteer.
LIVING LOCALLY
WATER
Water For Your Health! ROWAN FLEMING – Our bodies are 75% water, so it is essential to our wellbeing. Experts have ranked water second only to oxygen as a necessity of life, mainly due to having such an important role in nearly every major body function. Such roles would be regulating body temperature, protecting organs and tissues, as well as cushioning joints. Other benefits to drinking water include: Increased Energy and Reduced Fatigue - Over 75% of our brain is water, so by staying hydrated you will notice an increase in concentration and energy levels. Fatigue is first sign of dehydration. Helps Digestion- Drinking the recommended daily amount of water helps boost metabolism and assists with the breakdown of food which enables your digestive system to work well and prevent constipation. Relieve Headaches - Headaches (migraines/ joint pain too) are often caused by dehydration. Drinking plenty of water helps keep body hydrated reducing headache symptoms. Aids Weight Loss - Drinking water before a meal will help curb your appetite because water tricks the stomach into thinking it's full thus helping with weight loss efforts. It should be noted that many times when you feel hungry, you're actually thirsty. Flushes Toxins- Water helps flush out the wastes that could harm our bodies through sweat and urine. It also helps promote kidney function and reduces risk of kidney stones.
dishwasher and other appliances, but softeners add some sodium back into the water, which often leaves a briny taste. A Reverse Osmosis (RO) Drinking Water System can be installed on a dedicated tap or hooked up to your fridge, and removes the salt, as well as other impurities, improving the taste for drinking, cooking and other home needs. Municipal water usually contains chlorine, which is added to control algae and eliminate microorganisms, such as bacteria and viruses. When chlorine interacts with organic matter, new chemicals can form and remain in the water, called disinfection or chlorination byproducts. THM (trihalomethane) is one that's been shown to raise the risk of certain cancers. Do yourself a favour and don't consume chlorinated water. RO will remove chlorine, but to make your family really happy, go with a Whole Home Carbon Filter and remove it from every tap! Rowan Fleming is the owner of McLeod's EcoWater and passionate about helping people with their water solutions. McLeod's EcoWater has been helping people for 40 years improve the taste and purity of their drinking water, as well as treating the non-health related parameters of the well (hardness, iron, sulphur, TDS, tannins).
Improves Hair & Skin - Hydration is key to looking and feeling our best. Drinking enough water helps moisturize the body's largest organ, preventing dry skin. Organs also work a lot better with pure water flushing them. Chlorine will cause hair to become brittle and damaged, and you may develop a rash or sinus problems from inhalation of the fumes. If your water tastes good and if you have confidence in its purity, you will drink more and your body will thank you. Aesthetically, you should be able to enjoy showering and bathing, your laundry should be as clean as possible and the dishes and glassware should be clear and free of scale build up. Well water should be disinfected by UItraviolet (UV) light to eliminate bacteria and viruses. Because hardness scale coats UV sleeves, the water usually has to be softened before disinfection can work. Soft water increases the lifespan of your hot water tank, LIVING LOCALLY
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PERMACULTURE
Shifting Focus to Connection ANDREA CONNELL - Stress levels are rising. People are distracted. Absent -minded. There are too many things that require our attention in a day; kids, work, bills, commutes, groceries, home repairs, flooding, other family responsibilities, doctor's appointments, politics, climate change, on and on and on it goes. Unable to think about everything, we choose instead to draw our attention in on a few squeakiest wheel things. A quiet fear of inadequacy, a deep sadness, and finally guilt starts to seep into our daily functioning. We begin to feel that there isn't enough time to do enough good. Fear and guilt are disabling emotions. They can stop us dead in our tracks. They can make us cling to known, often out dated, patterns of belief and behavior in the vague hope that everything will either stay the same or that they are eventually bound to get better if we stay the path. Neither is true. Underneath the daily grind of sameness there is an undercurrent stirring. In the quiet, despite the rising stress there is also, simultaneously, an arising of a new social consciousness that begs us to get involved and to do something out of the ordinary. With it we become aware of an emergent vitality that feels hopeful and inspired.
Socially, we can see that our 'garden' is changing. The fabric of the society we live in is becoming more diverse and multi-cultured. We have more options available and therefore a rich abundance of perspective, method and purpose now ebbs and flows through our society. Suddenly we have more accessible skills, knowledge and intelligence with which to tackle the problems that sit before us. New truths, new approaches and indeed a new reality begins to emerge. Permaculture principles teach us to be patient, watch and observe Nature without trying to do a single thing. We eventually learn to feel the energy of life as it presents in the garden space and to respond timidly, taking small steps, making small changes. The philosophy acknowledges that there is more going on in any moment that is beyond our ability to replicate it. We can only do small things to further enable certain outcomes we may desire. In the light of this new emerging reality we become fully aware that our lives are in fact interdependent and interwoven. There is no such thing as “going it alone”. One person's actions will eventually affect many. One person's thoughts and experiences can shift possibility exponentially in this new emergent culture. We have a new responsibility to discover our own authentic expression and what holds value for us. We are coming to deeply understand that it is the relationships we form with one another, with our work, with Nature that will determine the quality of our lives. It is through these relationships that we will find meaning and purpose and respect. And ultimately, it is through these relationships that we will heal ourselves, each other and our planet. In this dynamic process we discover our symbiotic nature. The part of us that resonates with the other life forms around us, with other human beings, with plants and trees, with places in nature, and even with earth herself. A shift of focus to the timeless, egoless throb of life force energy that continues to pound throughout nature will certainly restore the mind and reinvigorate the heart. By shifting our focus to what is vibrantly alive and emergent we will once again be able to successfully mobilize enough energy to do the work that is now required of us in every moment.
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LIVING LOCALLY
CULTURE
Human Rewilding and the Epic of Gilgamesh JON HEDDERWICK – As writers we take our inspiration from the world. Living in an urban setting, much of my work has reflected on concrete; on states of decay; the way paint peels to reveal the old girt of crumbling red brick walls. The artifice of the city, the great symbol of our separation from the natural world, is rife with irony and metaphor. Still, I know I am not alone in feeling out of balance in this environment. Removed from the natural world, busy becomes a Band-Aid. Work and play cover a deep existential angst, masking concern as people, closer to the earth than I, warn of impending danger. I think a lot these days about the things that separate us from nature. For many of us, this is a deep and ancestral separation, the weight of which has been bearing down on us for millennia. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, a poem I return to often, a tyrannical, halfgod king rips the first city from nature over 5000 years ago in ancient Mesopotamia. It is the oldest story in the cannon and the mythological playground out of which the Abrahamic religions were spawned. Gilgamesh is revered for his power and feared for his wrath. The people pray to the gods that a force may come into the world and temper their leader. In answer, the gods create Enkidu, a beast-like creature, strong and gentle in the image of nature, who is equal to the demi-god Gilgamesh in every way. A battle ensues and ends in a stalemate. The scale is balanced. The king relents. The people are saved. Of course, the story only begins here. Enkidu, separated from nature, falls into melancholy. Gilgamesh, obsessed with glory and control, convinces Enkidu to join him in taking on the gods. In the end, the pair are punished. Nature's compromise with humanity at the god's behest is costly. The parable is complicated, but in reflecting on it, I wonder how deep our estrangement from nature runs in some of us. These days, I feel called to go back into the forest. Often, I go alone with as little as I can carry; sometimes for nights on end. It is nourishing. I have begun to think of these trips as experiments in rewilding, my effort to restore the connectivity between myself and the natural world. To give up control and be guided in my search for balance and understanding by things that are bigger, deeper and older than I am. Jon Hedderwick is a Poet, Spoken Word Artist, Community Organizer and Employment Counsellor of mixed Ashkenazi Jewish and Scottish heritage living, working and wandering in Nogojiwanong-Peterborough, Ontario. He has performed across Canada as a member of the Peterborough Poetry Slam Collective and is currently working on a long performance piece on the Epic of Gilgamesh. LIVING LOCALLY
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CULTURE BOOK REVIEW
This is the Greenzine's featured book for the second quarter of 2019. It's amazing and encouraging that it made its way onto the New York Times bestseller list. It is an exhaustive and inspiring compendium of strategies and technologies for building a low- and nonemissions economy. The “fillers” in this issue, dispersed among the articles and ads, all come from Drawdown. Drawdown lists the various approaches for reducing greenhouse gases in order of effectiveness. The first ten are the following: refrigeration, onshore wind turbines, reduced food waste, plant-rich diet, tropical forests, educating girls, family planning, solar farms, silvopasture, and rooftop solar. We have the knowledge. Let's muster the political will and get to work!!
Wind power has been harnessed since 500-900 A.D. in Persia. The Dutch were famous for their windmills and in the first half of the 20th century, windmills dotted the rural landscape of Prairie farms. The cheap fossil fuels of mid-century put wind power into decline. It's a question of energy returned on energy invested (EROEI). Fracking has opened new venues for oil, but done environmental damage without reducing greenhouse gases one bit. Alternative energy sources are the way of the future, if there is to be a future for humanity. Denmark now covers 40% of its energy requirements with wind. Combining wind with solar, connecting wind generation centres with shuttle grids, and establishing wind farms away from the migration routes of birds and bats, eliminates the usual objections to their presence. Their widespread use could reduce greenhouse bases by an equivalent of 84.6 gigatons of CO2. Drawdown, p. 2-3. PAGE 10
LIVING LOCALLY
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WELLNESS
THE CURRENT STATE of TESTING for and TREATING LYME DISEASE in ONTARIO BRENDA TAPP ND - The topic of ticks and Lyme disease (LD) is very controversial. In this article, I am going to be as informative as I can be with a limited word count, while remaining rather neutral in my discussions. This article is targeted for those new to the world of Lyme, not necessarily for the advanced Lyme patient. Let's start by defining the term LD, as it can be used in one of two ways. It can refer only to the infection caused by the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, or it can be used as an umbrella term to describe not only the symptoms caused by B. burgdorferi, but also to those caused by common infections that get transmitted alongside B. burgdorferi, from the tick to the human host (eg. Bartonella, Babesia, Ricketsia, etc). Most of what you hear about LD is acute Lyme, meaning the symptoms that develop within 30 days after a tick bite; however, what we are seeing more of is chronic LD. Acute LD symptoms include: joint pain, fatigue, fever, muscle aches (flu-like symptoms). Chronic LD occurs when acute LD is missed or treated ineffectively. Symptoms include: heart palpitations, chest pain, extreme fatigue, hot flashes, arthritis, nervous system symptoms, migraines, rage, cognitive dysfunction, etc. It is commonly referred to as the great imitator, because it mimics diseases like MS, arthritis, fibromyalgia, dementia, and hypothyroidism. How can Lyme disease be missed? 1. Current Ontario testing is two-tiered, meaning first your blood sample is tested with an ELISA, if it comes back positive, that result needs to be confirmed, so it is run through a Western blot. Both tests require an immune reaction to be mounted against the infection. That reaction can take 7-30 days to mount, which means if you have the blood test performed too early, the results will come back negative, resulting in a false negative and no treatment given. 2. The B. burgdorferi bacteria can hide from the immune system. It is shaped like a spiral, giving the bacteria improved motility, and power to corkscrew its
way out of the bloodstream and into organs, cells, and extracellular matrix. The bacteria can also create what is called a “biofilm, a protective coating of polysaccharides, proteins, and metals, that effectively shield the infection from an immune response and theoretically, also from being treated effectively by short term antibiotic use. 3. The saliva of the tick contains immunosuppressant molecules, e.g., Salp15, a feeding-induced tick salivary protein that inhibits white blood cell activation and proliferation by binding to T-cells. Since the blood test for LD requires an immune response, the bacteria can evade detection in blood testing. This is also called a false negative.
How can Lyme disease treatment be unsuccessful? 1. Current Ontario treatment guidelines recommend using 7-10 days of oral doxycycline to treat an infection. As you have read about in the paragraph above, the bacteria can create a protective barrier, shielding it from the harmful antibiotics. It also has the ability to live inside human cells, which also allow it to evade treatment. It can stay in hiding for long periods of time. 2. The bacteria can exist in several different forms/life stages, not all of which are effectively treated by doxycycline: spirochete, spheroplast, cystic form. Sometimes a combination of antibiotics (herbal or pharmaceutical) is required. A lot of physicians are facing irritated patients, because they refuse to prescribe longer than 10 days of antibiotics. There is a reason for your physicians' hesitancy, so please don't be irritated with them. The College of Physicians and Surgeons could reprimand them, or even revoke their license if they find physicians are making recommendations that do not next page...
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LIVING LOCALLY
WELLNESS
follow guidelines. We are also facing an epidemic of antibiotic resistant infections, so antibiotics need to be used sparingly. It is best to work with a Lyme Literate Doctor, or a Lyme Aware Doctor. You can ďŹ nd a list of these on ILADs website (ilads.org), or by contacting LymeOntario. When being diagnosed with (or without) LD, it is important your healthcare provider take into consideration more than just your blood results. Make sure they also take into consider the following: 1. History of tick bites
2. Presence of bullseye rash (also known as erythema migrans - EM) within 7 days of a bite. This rash will only appear in approx. 50% of tick bites. According to the CDC, diagnosis of LD should not be based solely on the appearance of EM. 3. Totality of symptoms; consider ďŹ lling out the Horowitz Questionnaire, if you are unsure if your symptoms are related to LD or not. Dr. Brenda Tapp ND Peterborough Centre of Naturopathic Medicine Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians
PETERBOROUGH CITY, COUNTY AND FIRST NATIONS
GREENZINE Building Our Local Living Economy
www.thegreenzineonline.com LIVING LOCALLY
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WELLNESS
LOVING LIFE ON THE LAND AIDEN MCRAE – As we move into the uncertain age of climate change, it's a natural reaction to feel a certain amount of guilt from our human role in this new reality. It's important not to turn away from nature, though. Now, more than ever, is the time to strengthen our relationships to the natural world. I believe that living close to nature raises our physical and especially our mental wellbeing. Along the way, we become more resilient for challenges that lie ahead. There are countless health benefits to being in nature, with more and more research investigating the specific reactions that occur between humans and the environment. One recent study concluded that contact with nature can reduce “obesity, cardiovascular disease, depression, and anxiety.” Indigenous people hold deep knowledge that teaches about humans' relationship to the earth. I'll share some of my own everyday experiences to seeking out time and space in nature. As a young adult straight out of university, I was undecided on my life's direction. The only thing I knew for certain was that I wanted to grow my connection to nature and to become more self-reliant. Rather than going on to pursue a Master's degree, securing fulltime employment, buying a new car or my first house, I chose to be in nature: travelling, farming, and learning how to live off grid. While I deliberated on my future, my hands were busy learning to work with the land. I was going back to the basics, sensing how the essential life systems work. Nature has been my guide. Choosing this path has become both a journey and a full lifestyle. The physicality of planting trees, growing gardens, harvesting wood, and building shelters keeps you fit and focused. It also gives you purpose; the ability to fulfil your basic needs, and those of others, is deeply gratifying and satisfying. Experiencing the returning cycles of the seasons, witnessing how the trees, animals, and the soil overcome adversity teaches you a great deal about patience, toughness, and the driving instinct to survive.
Nature also gives you time for stillness and quiet. If you allow yourself the time in a forest for your heartbeat to slow down, your breath to deepen, then your mind will relax. We all have places we gravitate to: a certain bend in a river, a welcoming log, a sanctuary in the trees. Going to that place often is a great habit to have; my favourite places ground me and I measure my growth against the leaves or the fluctuating water level. I find endless joy from being out on the land; even places I have visited countless time are thrilling with every fresh encounter. My mind and body come alive through hiking, canoeing, photographing, giving way to a more intimate connection. Thankfully, the Peterborough area is full of astonishingly beautiful nature areas, and you needn't to leave the city to find pockets of natural wonder. This richness of these experiences gives me a deep sense of wellbeing; I feel happiest living simply, light on my feet, and with a clear mind. Other times, when I find myself in mental distress, I go to one of my favourite places to find my bearing again. Even if I can't physically go to that place in the moment, I envision being there and I meditate. Through this I've begun to learn new approaches to making decisions and seeking success. Similarly, doctors in Shetland, Scotland have begun prescribing time in nature to patients to increase their mental and physical health. It's also wonderful that forest schools and nature education programs are spreading across Canada, so that young people will learn early on that they can always go to nature to feel empowered, safe and balanced. The benefits to being in nature extend beyond our own wellbeing. By spending time on the land and in our own backyards, we come to have knowledge, awareness and the ability to take the pulse of nature's health. We gain tools to prepare for and adapt to the impacts of climate change. References: 1. “Nature Contact and Human Health: A Research Agenda,” Environmental Health Perspectives, 2017. 2. “Doctors in Scotland can now prescribe nature,” World Economic Forum, 2018.
Aiden McRae is a farmer-gardener and creator of Earthcall environmental blog: https://www.earthcall.ca. PAGE 14
LIVING LOCALLY
WELLNESS
Your Comfort Zones Dandelion Day Festival Committee invites you to join us at our 6th Annual Dandelion Day Festival May 26th, 2019 at Millennium Park, downtown Peterborough! Every year we are able to set up 2 stations for your comfort through the generous contributions of Taylors Recycled Plastics and Rocky Ridge Water.
“A true country store experience!”
y r S t t n ore u o C Unique All Canadian New, Repurposed, Recycled & Hand-Crafted Home And Garden Gift Items
Both of these local businesses have been valued supporters of this lively spring festival since the beginning. Taylors supplies all the colorful benches, tables and chairs that our visitors get to enjoy throughout the park during the festival. Rocky Ridge Water supplies all the water and water coolers at 3 locations throughout the park for your convenience. Please bring your own re-fillable containers to stay cool and hydrated!
ALWAYS CHANGING, ALWAYS WELCOMING
Recycled Plastic Products Inc.
County Rd. 28, Bailieboro (just South of Peterborough)
www.taylorsplastic.ca CALL (705) 939-6072 LIVING LOCALLY
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FOOD
Dandelions Are Just Plain Goodness! The star of the kitchen this month is the Dandelion! Their sunny little faces are popping up all over our lawns, gardens and fields and while they are still considered nuisances by many, Dandelions are quickly becoming a welcomed sight, sure signs that everything will be right again after a wet and muddy early spring. Their long deep tap roots will help channel excessive moisture deep into the soil away from the surface. Dandelions are among the very first foods available to bees when they emerge from their hives starving after winter but also provide mega nutritious greens to add to our diet to jumpstart our own sluggish metabolisms and immune systems. Compared to Spinach, one of our present day “superfoods,” dandelion Leaves have 8 times more antioxidants, two times more calcium, three times more vitamin A, and five times more vitamin K and vitamin E. (Eating on the Wild Side by Jo Robinson, pg.23)
RECIPE
Linda's Dandelion Pasta This simple pasta dish pairs this distinctive dandelions with delicious products from Sweet Beast Butcher Shop, at 95 Hunter St. in East City. Just ask owner Grant, about his delightful selection of locally sourced products. I have chosen the hot pork sausages for this recipe – but there is a mild version and other options if you'd rather not have pork on your fork, or go meatless altogether! Ingredients ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil 1 large onion, thinly sliced 1 cup chopped red pepper 5 cloves garlic, minced 1 tsp crushed chilies (*decrease this amount if you are using spicy sausages) 1 bunch of dandelion greens (18 to 20 large stalks)
¼ tsp each salt and pepper 12 oz of your favourite short pasta (e.g. bow tie, fusilli, farfalle)
The entire Dandelion is useful and nutritious, from flower to root, and while the plant is considered a bitter, a necessary component to a healthy diet, the bitterness level changes dramatically between fresh young leaves and large older plants. Young leaves are definitely sweeter than older ones, so when you pick them mix it up to suit your palate but give these recipes a try before you lament again over the prolific dandelion taking over the world! Be sure to use either dandelions harvested from unsprayed areas or those purchased at the grocery store or your farmers market. Come visit us at the Blender Bike booth at Dandelion Day Festival, where you'll get the chance to whip up your own delicious and nutritious dandelion and fruit smoothies!
1 cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese 1/2 cup of toasted pine nuts (optional) Instructions Cut dandelion leaves away from the bottom core – some leaves can be up to 18 inches long and the stems are as delicious as the leafy green part. Chop leaves into desired lengths. Drop into a pot of boiling water, with 1 tsp of salt. Cook for 1 minute. Drain and put aside. Place sausages on a parchment lined baking sheet. Roast in a preheated 400 degree oven, turning once, for 20 minutes or until they are no longer pink inside. Slice into diagonal rounds and set aside. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat; cook the onion and red pepper for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until softened. Stir in garlic and chilies; cook for one minute until the flavours are combined. Add the drained dandelion greens, salt and pepper. Cook all together until the central stem of the greens are tender/crisp. Cook the pasta according to the package directions; drain, reserving ½ cup of the cooking water. Add the greens and the sausage to the pasta. Cover and let simmer for 1 minute. Stir in remaining reserved cooking water, if needed, to moisten. Remove from the heat, mix in cheese. Place onto a serving dish, sprinkle with extra grated cheese and toasted pine nuts. Enjoy!
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LIVING LOCALLY
FOOD RECIPE
Dandelion Greens with a Kick
“
There are innovative, carbon-sequestering grazing practices, which are the happy exception to the rule. However, 15% of annual GHG production can be attributed to raising livestock in the usual manner. Overconsumption of animal protein is unhealthy for humans. If meat were regarded as a treat and a luxury, instead of as a staple of our diets, there would be less economic incentive for industrialized meat production and less pressure on water resources.
Ingredients: · 1 teaspoon salt · 1 pound dandelion greens, torn into 4-inch pieces · 1 teaspoon salt · 2 tablespoons olive oil · 1 tablespoon butter · 1/2 onion, thinly sliced · 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes · 2 cloves garlic, minced · salt and ground black pepper to taste · 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese (optional) Directions: 1.Soak dandelion greens in a large bowl of cold water with 1 teaspoon salt for 10 minutes. Drain. 2.Bring a large pot of water to a boil with 1 teaspoon salt. Cook greens until tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water until chilled. 3.Heat olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat; cook and stir onion and red pepper flakes until onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic until garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds more. Increase heat to medium-high and add dandelion greens. Continue to cook and stir until liquid is evaporated, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper. 4.Sprinkle greens with Parmesan cheese to serve
Current emissions could be reduced by 70% if the population changed to a vegan diet, by 63% if all went vegetarian. Standing up to climate change might be as simple as changing what is on your plate. If 50% of the world's population limited their calorie intake to 2500 calories per day and reduced their meat consumption, at least 26.7 gigatons of carbon dioxide GHG equivalent could be avoided. If less land were given over to grazing, e.g. through deforestation, and additional 39.3 gigatons could be saved. Drawdown, p.39 -40
”
Author: Allrecipes.com Photo by TTV78, originally submitted 5/25/2012 Allrecipes
LIVING LOCALLY
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ENERGY DESCENT
Just Doing Stuff!
Rob Hopkins, the founder of the Transition Movement, wrote a book called “The Power of Just Doing Stuff” it promotes the idea that doing anything, whatever can be done, is a good start. The Transition Neighbourhoods Project is an energy descent program that offers participants information, resources and a plan to learn ways to work on their current consumption of energy helping them lower their carbon emission per household and save money at the same time. We decided to go to the streets, to our neighbours, our friends and our community advisors to see what kind of things they are already doing to cut down on Greenhouse Gas Emissions. We were flooded with feedback. Here are some of their inspiring ideas.
USING ALTERNATIVES! PLASTIC Plastic bags Plastic broom and dustpan Plastic laundry baskets Plastic shovels Plastic containers Plastic cutlery and straws Plastic dishes and cups Plastic cooking utensils Plastic toothbrushes Polyester clothing Plastic wastebaskets Plastic hangers Plastic fans Plastic chairs and tables Plastic building materials
ALTERNATIVE Cloth or paper bags or cardboard boxes Wooden broom and metal dustpan Wicker laundry baskets Metal shovels Glass or stainless-steel containers Stainless steel cutlery and straws Cardboard dishes and cups Wooden or bamboo utensils Wooden or bamboo toothbrushes Cotton, hemp, or bamboo clothing Wicker baskets with cloth or paper lining Wire hangers Metal fans Wicker or wood chairs and tables Wooden or metal building materials List compiled by Tricia Clarkson
om across nnects people fr co t ec oj pr ra ration Ult e monarch mig The Monarch th t ou ab e or m a to learn lm-makers North Americ am of runners, te A s! oe sh r thei ronmental by running in to mobilize envi ng pi ho e ar s vocate chs and other & pollinator ad lp save monar he to on ti ac journey next & political of the 4,200km rt pa g in nn . ll be ru inspire action pollinators. I’ awareness & e is ra to 19 fall 20 Carlotta James
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Just Doing Stuff! If you’ve been inspired and have some of your own to add please send your actions to info@thegreenzineonline.com LIVING LOCALLY
ENERGY DESCENT
IS OUR GOVERNMENT DOING ENOUGH TO HELP STOP GLOBAL WARMING? TRICIA CLARKSON - A Global Climate Emergency was declared by The International Panel on Climate Change (6,000 scientists worldwide) on October 8, 2018, and to date, no one seems to be doing anything about it. The report made national news because of its shocking announcement that global warming is actually worse than previously predicted. However, if you ask the general public if they know about the IPCC Report, very few do. In a nutshell, the IPCC report clearly states that unless cities, provinces and countries worldwide start immediately reducing their carbon fuel emissions by at least 45% by 2030, global warming will increase to more than 1.5 degrees. This will cause increasing worldwide devastation--catastrophic floods, droughts, hurricanes, tornadoes and forest fires-destroying homes, crops, water supplies, our quality of life, cost billions of dollars, and millions of people will die. Prevention, on the other hand, will cost considerably less, if we act now. On February 5th, 2019, in response to the IPCC report, representatives from the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, Medical Association, Nurses Association, Public Health Association and Urban Public Health Network called on the federal government to formally declare global climate change a public health emergency. To date, our federal government has not complied. Global warming has already increased by 1 degree which is irreversible. All we can do now is stop it from getting worse. Kingston, Ontario, Victoria, Vancouver, Saanich, B.C., and Edmunston, N.B. have declared a “Climate Emergency” and are calling on all cities across Canada to do the same.
LIVING LOCALLY
To avoid a humanitarian crisis, the following measures are needed immediately by our government: 1.An Urgent Public Service Advisory that will help Canadians change how we live, work and commute, advising us of what we can all do to help meet the IPCC targets. 2. An increase to 45% reduction in carbon fuel emissions by 2030 instead of 30%. 3. Funding for an electrification and retrofit program that will help consumers transition from gas-fueled vehicles to electric ones; and help cities change their public transportation system to electric or hybridelectric vehicles. 4. Regulations that ensure that 30% of the sales of all new cars and trucks to be zero emissions by 2020, 50% by 2025 and 100 by 2030. 5. Regulations for all new buildings to be built to be net zero energy by 2030. 6. 95% of organic waste be diverted from landfills and turned into other products. 7. A Canadian recycling plant that converts plastic into reuseable products instead of sending plastic to China.
8. An increase in carbon pricing to $30/tonne in 2019 up to $200/tonne by 2030 to meet the federal government's commitment under the Paris Climate Agreement. 9. Phase out subsidies for the fossil fuel industry by 2025. 10. Subsidies for infrastructure that can move us away from burning fossil fuels towards alternative energy and other modes of transportation (Via Rail). 11. Funding for a retraining program for oil and gas workers to transition to green technology jobs. If implemented strategically, the federal government could help foster a booming economy created from new green technology that will equal or surpass the production and sales of oil and gas. Contact your mayor, MP and MPP to request more action. Tricia Clarkson is a Freelance Writer and Journalist who has written columns, features and articles for the Ottawa Journal, Okanagan Sun, Vernon Daily News, Peterborough Examiner, Peterborough This Week, Greenzine Magazine and Running Room Magazine as well as The Feasibility Study for the Peterborough Sport and Wellness Centre.
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CLIMATE CHANGE
HEALTHY DEBATE: REFRAMING THE WAY WE SEE CLIMATE CHANGE BILL EEKHOF - The human body is a finely tuned instrument. When it sends signs of problems – a pulled muscle, toothache, or chest pains – we know to take corrective steps either through our own actions or by seeking medical help. We need to show the same deference to Mother Nature, who is telling us that climate change is – and will have – devastating effects. We need to be resilient and ready to transition for what's ahead, but how many are actually prepared to do this? Rather than viewing climate change as an environmental problem, we should reframe it as the real and present danger it is to human health. Perhaps people would be more willing to embrace change for the better. British researcher and writer Adam Corner – whose work focuses on the psychology of communicating climate change – makes this point in an April 2013 essay in The (U.K.) Guardian (www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/climatechange/environment-health-problem). In it, Corner references a Canadian study that found few participants made a link between climate change and health without prompting. He also refers to American research that found framing climate change as a public health issue was more likely to engage people's response. “Health impacts – whether through flooding, increased droughts, or chaotic winter weather – are perhaps the primary way in which most people will experience climate change...” Corner writes. “As a society, we are used to the idea of taking preventive action to ward off health risks, and there is an important lesson here for communicating climate change: the more climate change can be presented as bad for our health, the more likely it is that folks beyond the keen-green crowd will take notice.” There is plenty of data to show the impact of climate change on our health. In November 2018, The Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change documented how climate change is leading to more death and disease among Canadians – including increases in heat-related deaths/illness, air pollution exposure, longer and more severe allergy seasons, and the arrival of new diseases like Lyme disease. And not only are Canadians dealing with the immediate effects of severe weather, natural disasters, wildfires and flooding brought on by climate change, they are also suffering longer-term fallout from depression, mental health problems and even post-traumatic stress disorder. PAGE 22
“The nature and scale of the response to climate change will be the determining factor in shaping the health of nations for centuries to come,” The Lancet notes. This past February, in advance of the Fall 2019 federal election, a group of Canadian doctors, nurses and public health groups urged all political parties to commit to immediate, evidence-based actions that would help Canada “do its fair share” to achieve the emission reductions needed to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. According to the Canadian health officials, “catastrophic” climate change is the greatest health threat of the 21st century. “Climate change is no longer some abstract idea that may harm future generations or people on the other side of the globe; it's a reality that's already harming the physical and mental health of Canadians,” says Dr. Gigi Osler, President of the Canadian Medical Association. “We cannot afford to treat climate change as a wedge issue. We must treat it as the public health crisis that it is.” Climate change and health are inextricably linked. The situation is critical – a “code blue” according to a Canadian physician championing environmental action. We have a prescription for transition, so let's embrace it. Our health – and that of our planet – depends on it!
“
Girls' education has a dramatic effect on global warming. Women who spend more years at school have fewer and healthier children. South Korea is a country whose educational policy has proven it. A woman with no years of schooling will have four to five more children than a girl who completes a standard 12-13 year education. By 2050 this could mean 843 million fewer persons on an already overcrowded planet. Fewer educated women are married off against their will, a social justice effect. They have a lower incidence of HIV/AIDS and malaria. Their gardens are more productive. They engage in their own economic activity. They are more equipped to cope with changing circumstances related to climate change and can adapt traditional knowledge to new conditions. One economic study from 2010 states that investment in girls' education is a highly cost-effective option for carbon emissions abatement. All-in-all, providing girls with adequate schooling could result by 2050 in a GHG reduction of 59.6 gigatons. Drawdown, p. 80-82
”
LIVING LOCALLY
ENERGY
EVs and a Healthy Life BILL BRUESCH There's an old saying that really resonates today: “If you want to get out of a hole, stop digging!” Society has been digging a hole for itself for decades. That hole has gotten deeper and broader and has swallowed up more and more of of our lives. The hole has a name: Global Warming. The result is called Climate Change. So, what can we do about it? STOP DIGGING! Let's stop doing the things that have gotten us into this mess and start doing things that can help us get out. Since the transportation sector is responsible for a large percentage of the greenhouse gasses that have created global warming, changing our transportation habits is a good place to begin. That's where electric vehicles (EVs) come in. When it comes to automobiles, trucks, buses and other forms of personal and commercial vehicles, EVs are always cleaner and greener with a vastly better (and constantly improving) carbon footprint, cradle to grave, than comparable fossil-fuelled vehicles. But what about all that electricity that needs to be generated? I'm glad you asked. Generating electricity continues to get cleaner as more and more sustainable sources come online. Wind and solar are reliable
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sources of power that have become cheaper than the fossil fuel burning power plants they are replacing. And that doesn't take into account the not-so-hidden and staggeringly exorbitant health and welfare costs of burning coal and oil. All of the myriad devices that use electricity are getting more and more efficient all the time. Think about those old light bulbs that wasted 95% of the energy they consumed. Today's LEDs turn out the same amount of light using about one-sixth the energy, won't burn your fingers and last more than twenty years. Back to Evs. EVs are clean, quiet, responsive and fun to drive. Driving one will reduce your personal carbon footprint and put a smile on your face. But “EV” doesn't just refer to cars and trucks. It also refers to electric bikes, electric scooters, electric skateboards... Basically, anything that moves people by using electrons. All of these personal transport options, whether they are used for recreation, business (delivery bikes and scooters), commuting to work or anything else help to reduce our carbon footprint. Mass transit is another area where electric vehicles are changing not only the way we move but also the way we experience the urban centres where they operate. Electric buses are clean and smooth running and passengers love them. They are also quieter than the fossil-fuelled units they are quickly replacing. Not only do quieter buses provide a better experience for the folks inside them, they also make life a little better and less hectic for the people in the areas where they operate. AND...they're cheaper to operate and easier to maintain. Talk about “win-win”! There are many more examples of how EVs are improving our lives, but you get the point: EVs will help us STOP DIGGING!
LIVING LOCALLY
ENERGY
“
Refrigerants, such as CFC's and HCFC's have been being phased out since the Montreal Protocol of 1987. Thirty years later, the ozone layer is beginning to heal. However, huge volumes of these substances remain in circulation. The primary replacement chemicals, HFC's, do not do ozone damage; however, their capacity to warm the atmosphere is one- to nine-thousand times greater than that of carbon dioxide. The Kigali Agreement of 2016 requires the phasing out of HFC's, 2019-2024. In the meantime, they will persist in refrigerators and condensing units. It's predicted that 700 more air conditioners will be installed by 2030. For these, other chemicals, such as propane and ammonia, could be used. The destruction and reuse of the constituent chemicals derived from HFC's is a costly technical process, but mandatory. Food transport and storage and the cooling of large, mainframe computers and servers will continue to rely on refrigeration. Managing it effectively could lead to a worldwide reduction of the equivalent of 89.73 gigatons of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Drawdown, p. 164-165
LIVING LOCALLY
” PAGE 25
“ Even if you care mostly about the security of your own future community is probably the best investment you can make “ Charles Eisenstein author of Sacred Economics.
Mark Woolley spending some loons!
ECONOMY
“ In fact, if we choose to concentrate more on life and less on stuff, we could substantially reduce our material consumption and, at the same time increase our well-being.” Mike Nickerson, Life, Money & Illusion
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LIVING LOCALLY
ECONOMY
BOLD & LOCAL ECONOMIC INFRASTRUCTURE
The Antidote to Global Capitalism and the Climate Crisis FRED IRWIN - It is now well documented and broadly understood that global corporate capitalism is driving rampant consumerism and the Global Climate Crisis. This entrenched capitalism continues to suck much of the capital out of local communities literally putting it into the pockets of the already rich. You can hear the sound of this monetary sucking noise through large plastic straws that we no longer need. If you live in Peterborough, I invite you to stand outside Costco or Walmart or any of the other Big Box retailers and try to visualize how much of the money spent inside these stores ever comes back in support of our local economy. I won't bore you with the facts but these stores don't create jobs. Rather, they eliminate places of employment in our community. If you want to continue to live in the community, you also ought to think of where you spend your money. Spending it locally means that you, your neighbours, and their children get to keep their jobs. Rare is the local community that has escaped the plight of job loss and avoided the transfer of vitality to global capitalism. Just as rare is the community that thinks it has enough remaining capital to revitalize its own local economy. However, pull ourselves up by our own economic boot straps we must. The antidote to the economic mess we are now in, is bold community level economic localization infrastructure. Examples of such infrastructure abound such as: special economic zones, local currencies, local foundations, local investment funds, local public trusts, and local utilities investing in energy descent LIVING LOCALLY
and local power generation. Local energy and food coops, as well as public banks which leverage municipal reserves into new capital formation for local investment, are also necessary. We don't know exactly when globalization will begin its long descent. There are signs that it is plateauing, as many more global citizens face the stark reality that climate change is a real and present danger. This goes together with the insight that we humans are responsible for dramatically overshooting the carrying capacity of our planet on every front imaginable. The antidote is clearly for a large portion of the global population to live more locally. Facing this reality as individuals and families is the first step. The second step is to re- build the economic infrastructure that supports living more locally, which will dramatically cut our carbon footprint. This second step may be even more difficult than the first. It involves our local governments joining with their own citizens in support of locally owned businesses to create jobs. These will support a more vital and prosperous community. It's especially difficult, because in 2019 most of us residing in Peterborough don't actually live here very much anymore. We mostly live in the global universe. We're on the internet. Our TV's stream our major source of entertainment. At the front door we receive packages from a faceless company called Amazon. Because we don't live here very much, it becomes very difficult to get us all together. With one another we might think about how we could change the way we live, in order to mitigate and adapt to the worst effects of the climate change crisis. All that is the mission of Transition Town Peterborough and its various initiatives. These include the Kawartha Loon Local Currency, the Transition Neighbourhoods Project, the Purple Onion Festival, the Dandelion Day Festival, the Local Food Month, ResilientPtbo 2030 and the Greenzine Magazine. Building Our Local Living Economy its enduring tag line now into its 11th year. Fred Irwin, ttpeterborough@gmail.com Founding Director of Transition Town Peterborough Founder of the Kawartha Loon Local Currency PAGE 27
ECONOMY
Tropical forest loss alone, often due to intentional deforestation for agriculture, is responsible for 1619% of yearly greenhouse gas emissions cause by human activity. Conscious forest restoration can reverse this trend. An area which in sum makes up more than the area of South America, 2 billion hectares or 4.9 billion acres, is ripe for such action. In 2011 the Bonn Challenge set the goal of restoring 150 million hectares (370 million acres) by 2030. The New York Declaration of 2014 added to this and reset the target to 350 million hectares (865 million acres). Should these projects prove successful, 33 gigatons of CO2 would be removed from the atmosphere. The median time for the 90% restoration of tropical forests is 66 years. Drawdown, p. 114-116
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LIVING LOCALLY
KAWARTHA LOONS WELCOME HERE!!
SAVING YOU 10% ON YOUR PURCHASE SPEND YOUR LOONS AT THE FOLLOWING BUSINESSES & SAVE!! Food: Bee Hamlin Honey Belly of the Beast By the Bushel Cedar Grove Organic Farm Chasing the Cheese * Chef Marshall Chick-a biddy Acres Circle Organic Community Farm Cross Wind Farm Dan Ledandan Foods Earthworks Eco Gardening Empire Cheese Direct Sales Entomo Farms Epicure: Ind.Consultant T Scott Finest Gourmet Fudge G.Fenton Farms Greenshire Eco Farm Garlic At It's Best Gary Beamish Wildcrafting and Guided Fishing Green Side Up Farm Herbivore Hills Hunky Dory Smoked Fish Kawartha Kettle Corn Living Landscapes Eco- Designs. Locavorest Lunar Rhythm Gardens OtonaBee Apiary Pow Wow Bus Curve Lake Puddleduck Farm Purity Hemp Products RJ Fresh Produce Small Spade Farm Stickling's (Farmers' Mkt) Traynor Farms Twin Pine Farm Well Grounded Garden Woolerdale Farm Wyl-Win Farm Restaurants/Caterers: Black Honey By the Bridge Curry Village Dreams of Beans Cafe EC Catering Elmhirst's Resort Restaurant Fresh Dreams Guenther Schubert Catering Island Cream
La Hacienda Lantern Rest & Grill Pastry Peddler Millbrook Reggie's Hot Grill Sapphire Room Seasoned Spoon at Trent U Silver Bean Cafe The Pizza Factory The Red Garnet Healthy Lifestyles: Active Chiropractic Wellness Centre Dr Jeff Lustig Argania Natural Health Clinic Adaptive Health Care Solutions Alex Jones Meditation Angel Hands Art & Soul Therapy Atlas Moves Watching Barefoot Acupuncture Bissonnette & Marrott Black Rock Acupuncture & Holistic Medicine Body Stream Medical Marijuana Services Certified Medical Healing Circle Kung Fu & Tai Chi * Dr Doug's Maximized Living & Chiropractic Centre Dennis Laver Reiki Master Dianna Graves Discover Trager Michele Godfrey Ecomum Elderberry Herbals Emotion Code Energy Works Erin Parker Message Therapist free to be Gayle Orr Reiki Master Greg Ross Massage Practitioner Heal Your Life Heart Felta Hermione Rivision Coaching holhealth Wellness Centre Holos Wellness Solutions Hook Up Muay Thai Boxing Horse Discovery Humanna Gold Humming Bird Wellness Inner Balance Health Solutions Integrated Energy Therapies
Kawartha Natural Health Clinic Kawartha Shambhala Meditation Centre Live Well with Lilly Metamorphosis Neurotherapy New Leaf Permaculture Peterborough Acupuncture Peterborough Centre of Naturopathic Medicine Dr Brenda Tapp ND New Leaf Mentoring Perfect Qi Healing Arts Peterborough Living Yoga Peterborough Spiritualist Centre Pure Joy Herbal Creations P VN Self Compassion Coaching Spilchen Wellness Therapies Sweet Flowering Yoga &Wellness Sweet Song The Bright Path of Ishayas Therapeutic Touch Works Theta Healing Canada Thirteen Moons Vibrant Living Tonya Willis Vicki Reeve Emotion Code Practitioner Wellness with May Anne Youngevity Distributor Retail: Adventure Outfitters* Ba Bar Too Co. Bear Essentials Millbrook Celtic Connection Lakefield Countryside Art Group Crawford Copy Millbrook Dan's Appliance Repair Derry O'Byrne Construction * Earth Food Store East City Flower Shop Fires Alive ** Garden of Eden Reusables Green Street E Bikes Greenhouse on the River Junkiri Crafts Kawartha Local Marketplace Peterborough Certified Home Inspection Peterborough Mitsubishi ** Poell Bike Shop P'tula -la Handmade Hats &
www.kawarthaloon.ca
Transition Town Peterborough www.transitiontownpeterborough.ca *Denominations: 1, 2.50, 5, 10, 20 The Kawartha Loon Currency is a Transition Town Peterborough Economic Localization Initiative
Headwear Razberry the Clown Renegade Apparel Robbies Adventures Rocky Ridge Drinking Water Shinning Waters Soap Co. Stone Circle Press Stuff Store Lakefield Shaun Milne Signs Taylors Recycled Plastic Products Taylors Country Store This Old Flame Beeswax Candles To Bead or Not to Bead Non Profit Organizations: Camp Kawartha Emmanuel United Church East Endeavour Centre Tool Library Fleming College Sustainable Agriculture Program For Our Grandchildren Kawartha Safe Technologies OPIRG Our Space Peterborough Pollinators Seeds of Change Transition Town Peterborough Professional Services: Cambium Environmental ** m-design.ca ** Scholars Education Centre Marketing Network: Dandelion Day Festival Greenzine Magazine Kawartha Loon Exchange Local Food Guide Peterborough Chamber of Commerce Purple Onion Festival Smarketing * The Millbrook Times* The Wire Megazine *Silver 50% in KL's ** Cap Interested in your business accepting the Kawartha Loon? Contact Fred Irwin ttpeterborough@gmail.com Visit kawarthaloon.ca for more information.
AVAILABLE AT
Volunteers Welcome! Throughout this issue of the Greenzine, reference is made to the report of the IPCC (International Panel on Climate Change) a number of times. The document was released to the public on Thanksgiving Day last autumn. As a concerned citizen (and as a reader of the Greenzine) you have probably been examining your lifestyle and energy use even more intensively since then. Wondering what more you could do. What else you could change. It's hard to remain optimistic.
905 515 3179
Let me suggest some “occupational therapy”. Volunteer with Transition Town! Transition Town needs persons with all kinds of skills. At Dandelion Day and the Purple Onion Festival we need “roadies” who help set up and break down the tents and stands. Maybe you would like to submit an article reporting on your Transition activity to the Greenzine. Do you like to keep books and track financial transactions? Are you interested in transitioning your lawn to a food forest by means of permaculture. (Our Andrea Connell can help!) Perhaps you have a couple of neighbours who would join you in the Transition Neighbourhoods Project. None of this alone is enough to meet the goals required by 2030. But together we have a chance. Come and join us at the monthly meetup, on the last Thursday of each month, 5-7 p.m. Bring your ideas and take some others with you. Check with Dave for the locale. Contact: Dave Sumner, bodgerdave.sumner@gmail.com
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LIVING LOCALLY
WHAT IS TRANSITION? BY CHERYL LYON The Transition process and practice can be summed up in three questions that Transitioners ask: · What do we see if we look fearlessly at the issues facing us? · What is the best my town/village/city can be? · What concrete, practical things can we do right now to get to that “best”? Transition is what we are going through with the climate crisis. It's an ongoing social experiment, a movement of communities re-imagining and rebuilding our world by creating healthy human culture. Transition communities step up to address the big challenges they face by starting local. They nurture a caring culture, connection with self, others and nature. They are reclaiming the economy, re-imagining work, reskilling themselves and weaving webs of connection and support. They hold courageous conversations in times of extraordinary change. People get involved with Transition for all sorts of reasons: To feel they are making a difference, both now, and for future generations. To reconnect, at the local scale, with self, others and the land. To catalyse a local economy with new projects, enterprises and investment opportunities. To learn new skills To feel like they are creating a more life-enhancing story for their place. Because they feel it is "the right thing to do." Because they feel disenfranchised by “business-as-usual.” What about you?