GPC Leadership Contestants introduce themselves (September 4, 2022)

The Saanich Gulf Islands Electoral District Association (SGI EDA) has been publishing a newsletter called Good Sunday Morning (GSM) every Sunday morning for some years which goes out to about four thousand readers all across Canada. It has been written by Elizabeth May for the past few years.

Continuing to do so during the Green Party of Canada (GPC) leadership contest would clearly be unfair to the other contestants. In the spirit of fairness and with the objective of helping to make the contest equitable, open and informative, we are offering the opportunity to all candidates to provide a 500 word submission weekly or as desired. The SGI EDA contacted the GPC Leadership Contest Arbiter to ascertain that publishing GSM with invitations to all contestants to participate adheres to the rules of the Leadership Contest.  The volunteers who usually put out GSM will accept the submissions for weekly publication.

Anyone who is interested can sign up here to receive Good Sunday Morning. This will help you get to know the policies, priorities and personalities of our six Leadership candidates.

You must be a member of the Green Party of Canada to be eligible to vote, and membership in the GPC can be obtained here. The deadlines for membership are outlined in the GPC Leadership Contest document.  If you are uncertain of your membership status you can log in here to check, or contact the GPC for clarification at 1-866-868-3447. Please note that donating to the party does not automatically confer membership as it’s a process that requires your authorization.  The deadline for membership for the first round of voting is September 14, 2022.

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Anna Keenan

Good Sunday Morning, Saanich-Gulf Islands Greens!

I want to thank the SGI Greens for the opportunity to write in your weekly newsletter, and for all the work you’ve done over many years to build such a strong local Green base, supporting Elizabeth as your fantastic MP.

For those who have not met me before, I am also a resident of a beautiful island, way on the other side of the country: Epekwitk, one of the 7 districts of Mi’kma’ki, also known as Prince Edward Island.

I first joined the Canadian greens under Elizabeth’s leadership, running for the first time in 2019, shortly after gaining Canadian citizenship. In that election, I earned 26% of the vote and surprised many by placing second in my rural home riding of Malpeque.

That year, Elizabeth appointed me as Shadow Critic for Democratic Institutions, in recognition of the work I had done to advance the cause of electoral reform, both locally on PEI, and nationally with FairVote Canada. I continued to serve in that role under our next two party leaders, up until the start of this leadership race.

At this moment in history, both in Canada and in the US, trust in democratic institutions is rapidly declining. Hate, disinformation and anger on the far right are rising, and political polarization is increasing.

Now is the moment for focused intervention to strengthen our democracy, and Greens are champions of the solutions required: Proportional Representation, per-vote subsidies, and Citizens Assemblies chief among them.

If Canada can implement such reforms, we can break with the US-style model of two-party polarization, and instead move Canada towards a more stable, pluralist model, common in Western Europe and New Zealand. This transformation will only happen with a renewed Green party, capable of winning seats all across the country, taking the lead.

One simple action you can take right now, to advance the cause of Democratic Renewal, is to sign this Parliamentary Petition that Green MP Mike Morrice has sponsored: https://petitions.ourcommons.ca/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-4058

More on Democratic Institutions later!

To complete introducing myself: I am delighted to have partnered in this leadership race with Chad Walcott of Montreal. We began working together back in February, wanting to advance a transformation within the Green Party focusing on member empowerment and the growth of EDAs across the country, youth engagement in politics, and transitioning to a model of coleadership for the Canadian Greens.

You can find our shared campaign website, including videos and and explanation of our principles, as well as our internal and external priorities for the party, here: www.KeenanWalcott.ca

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out – you can email me directly at anna.keenan@greenparty.ca, or connect by social media on TwitterFacebook or Instagram.

Chad and I will be writing blogs on key policy areas weekly, and I look forward to contributing these to your EDA newsletter, throughout the race!

 

Chad Walcott

Good Sunday Morning Saanich-Gulf Island readers,

My name is Chad Walcott, I am a candidate for the leadership of the Green Party of Canada, and it is a pleasure to have the opportunity to be able to introduce myself to you all on this wonderful Sunday morning.

As most of you surely do not know me, I would like to take this first opportunity to tell you a bit about myself. I am a Montreal-born activist with a background in community engagement, politics, and social development.

My experience in grassroots organizing and government relations began while I earned my bachelors degree at Concordia University. At the time I was called upon by my peers to lead student mobilization around the issues of accessible education. During this time, I learned about the power of an informed and engaged citizenry in creating lasting and meaningful change.

I have carried those lessons with me since, and have applied them to successfully spearhead numerous social impact initiatives designed to revitalize neighborhoods and communities in the greater Montreal area.

I first joined the Greens in 2018, when I ran for the Green Party of Quebec. My campaign focused on community organizations and their importance as the pillars of healthy communities. My efforts earned me the second highest result for the party province wide.

I joined the Green Party of Canada in 2019, and have up until recently been the CEO of my local EDA, which has been consistently recognized as the top EDA in Quebec. In this role, I have worked hard to instill in our members a sense of the importance of going beyond partisanship and encouraged them to lead positive impact initiatives in our community.

I believe that it is through honest community engagement and skill-sharing, that we will be able to achieve sustained growth for the Green Party throughout the country. I believe that in addition to our policies, this is the way the Green Party will be able to distinguish itself from our competition.

I have the pleasure of entering this leadership race with my running mate Anna Keenan from PEI. Together we want to invest in EDA’s across the country. We want to use our years of experience in community organizing to focus on member empowerment and youth engagement in politics, and help raise the the GPC’s mobilizing capacity from coast to coast. Through these efforts we hope to build a solid foundation on which we can elect at least 12 Members of Parliament and force the government to take meaningful action on the climate crisis.

I look forward to sharing our vision for Canada, and the Green Party of Canada, with you all over the next 10 weeks. In the meantime, I would like to thank you for your time, and wish you a lovely Sunday.

To learn more about our campaign, please visit: www.KeenanWalcott.ca

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out – you can email me directly at chad.walcott@greenparty.ca

 

Elizabeth May

Good Sunday Morning!!!

Thanks to all who wrote that you missed this weekly note. You may have figured out that my “break” from writing in August was due to the media leaks and rumours that I might run for leader. We had been trying to keep it completely quiet to comply with Green Party leadership rules. This weekly missive is a volunteer effort of the Saanich-Gulf Islands Green Electoral District Association (EDA). During the leadership race, EDAs are not allowed to show any preference. We decided not to publish Good Sunday Morning until we knew who the other candidates would be. All was revealed on August 31.

Today you are receiving the first leadership race style Good Sunday Morning! All six candidates have been invited to send 500 words. Eleven Sundays to go until we learn who the new leader – or leaders – will be on November 19!

You know I usually write more than 500 words reflecting on the latest events- or whatever is on my mind.  I hope you will stick with us through this alteration in your Sunday morning reading!

Priority information: To vote in the leadership race, you must be a member of the Green Party of Canada (GPC) by September 14! Please double check. You may be a member of the Green Party of BC, but not Canada. You may be a donor to the GPC, but not a member.  We really need your support!

Why am I doing this??  This article explains why I am doing this (the CLIMATE EMERGENCY!) And why I am running with Jonathan Pedneault to move the party to co-leadership! https://www.policymagazine.ca/running-for-co-leadership-of-the-green-party-not-a-marriage-of-convenience-but-of-purpose/

And here’s how we explained it for Power and Politics: https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2067722819936

Upcoming events!!!  This weekend Jonathan and I are at the Saanich Fair. If you are in the area, please stop by the Green booth to say hi.

Monday, September 5th, we are having a very special campaign launch and fundraising party at the Horticultural Centre for the Pacific from 6-8 pm.  RSVP: emay4leader@gmail.com

On Tuesday, Jonathan and I are going to Fairy Creek. Saturday September 10, I will be in Spence’s Bridge for the Desert Daze Music Festival where John Kidder will be performing (that’s my husband you know!) And next Sunday, September 11, you can find me at the Salt Spring Fall Fair.

To learn more, support us, and make donations, please go to our websites – jonathanpedneault.ca and elizabethmay.ca.

I begin this race buoyed up by an increased sense of optimism that we will move Canada to responsible climate action. All of us Boomers must promise our kids that we will be more radical; that we will not condemn them to an unlivable world. Ever since the IPCC report of April 4th, I have felt such deep panic. Now that I have made this decision in partnership with such a brilliant young man, I feel strong and ready.

Love,

Elizabeth

P.S.

How the UK Is Winning the Race against Climate Change | The Walrus

https://www.policymagazine.ca/the-magic-formula-for-fighting-climate-change-political-will-leadership/

 

Jonathan Pedneault

Good Sunday Morning:

When I first visited SGI some months ago, I was struck by just how many people greeted Elizabeth as a long-standing family friend.

But every time Elizabeth introduced me as her “Montréal friend”, they’d offer me the same warm smile and friendly embrace.

There’s no denying that this is a loving and welcoming community.

While the digital world doesn’t make it easy to communicate such warmth in return, I’m hoping my words in coming editions of the Good Sunday newsletter will succeed in carrying my love for this community and all Greens, near and far.

Because love is of the essence.

As our world, our country and – yes – our party face several complex crises, we need to build stronger, more resilient and loving communities.

It was love and a feeling of responsibility that brought me to the places that hurt, first as a journalist and then as a human rights investigator.

From Sudan to Afghanistan, via Nicaragua and Ukraine, I’ve worked on the frontlines of numerous political, rights and environmental crises over the past 14 years.

It was taxing, soul-crushing work.

Between witnessing massacres as I led teams of courageous local journalists in the Central African Republic, losing young friends to conflict and confronting my investigative findings to the hypocrisies of our global leaders, my daily life allowed little place for hope.

Yet, flickers of light here and there kept me going.

An elderly South Sudanese woman I met in a refugee camp in Uganda in 2019 told me how this was the third time she was fleeing her home. The third time soldiers had come and killed, raped and burned. The third time she had fled and rebuilt her life elsewhere. She never wavered.

What else was there to do, but fight and stay alive?

Our country and the world now emerge from a devastating pandemic to face obscene inequalities, deadly extreme weather events and menacing geopolitical tragedies. These will bring about more instability, anger and – very soon – displacement.

We must urgently come to terms with the need to work together – both as individuals, and as a party. This is a time to embrace hope and each other!

As an idol of mine, Marcus Aurelius, wrote in his Meditations: “We were born to work together like feet, hands and eyes, like the two rows of teeth (…) To obstruct each other is unnatural.”

Now that our party begins an exciting leadership race, it’s time we find inspiration where it is – within, around and among ourselves – and get to work with our peers, as though they were long-standing family friends, to ensure a livable, loving future for our children and grandchildren.

As I embark in this race, I know that SGI’s warm and loving embrace for Elizabeth’s “Montréal friend” will remain an inspiration for me to keep on doing more, and better.

I look forward to being of service.

Jonathan

www.jonathanpedneault.ca

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Please note: In the spirit of fairness we will be randomizing the order of appearance of submissions as follows: Starting this week, alphabetical order by first name; Sept 11th- reverse alphabetical order by first name; Sept 18 – alphabetical order by surname; Sept 25- reverse alphabetical order by surname.