On March 2nd, the city's new Climate Change Committee will meet for the first time. The public is invited to attend and express their ideas about what the city should do to cut greenhouse gas pollution and prepare the city.
The Toronto Environmental Alliance (TEA) will be speaking. Here’s a preview of what TEA will be saying to the Subcommittee.
Hold Community Roundtables in all corners of the city and get Torontonians engaged in promoting climate change solutions. Climate change is a daunting, global issue. Many people care about climate change, but are unsure of what local action on climate change looks like. The Subcommittee needs to talk to people in neighbourhoods across the City. These Community Roundtables should provide a brief overview of the climate change challenges facing Toronto and then move to a discussion of potential solutions, all with the aim of inspiring hope and engagement.
Present a "Quick Start" Action Plan to City Council by October 2015 outlining a small number of actions Council, residents and businesses can take to tackle climate change in Toronto. The Community Roundtables will generate lots of excellent ideas of actions we can take to reduce greenhouse gas (ghg) pollution and get the city ready for climate change. City Council should take the best of these and turn them into a "Quick Start" Action Plan and then ensure the actions are taken.
Present a Detailed Climate Change Plan to Council by April 2016. For Toronto to meet its greenhouse gas reduction targets and for Toronto to avoid the terrible costs climate change will bring, Council must adopt and implement an action plan that sets out what the city, residents and businesses must do. As importantly, this plan must include a realistic budget for implementing the actions. The fact is that NOT investing now in tackling climate change will only mean we pay lots more in the future.
If you are looking to speak in front of the Subcommittee on Climate Change, you can still submit your name (email: [email protected] or call 416-338-5089). If you don’t want to speak, you can still attend the meeting.
We hope to see you there.
To learn more about climate change in Toronto, please visit our climate change section.