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D8 Teach-In 2007

D8 Teach-In 2007

Saturday, November 17, 2007

From Climate Crisis to Climate Justice


Opening Panel

From Global Warming to Global Justice
Dewan Afzal, Gord Perks, Chris Ramsaroop, Peter Tabuns

Workshops

Environmental Justice 101
Dale Hildebrand, Clayton Thomas-Muller

Green Jobs and the Climate Crisis
Nick de Carlo, Mike Seaward, Peter Tabuns

What Do Energy Solutions Look Like?
Greg Allen, Chris Rock

Nuclear: Is it the Answer?
Shawn-Patrick Stensil, Dorothy Goldin Rosenberg

Closing Panel

Building a New Movement for Climate Justice
Clayton Thomas-Muller, Judy Rebick

Speaker Bios

Chris Ramsaroop, Justicia for Migrant Workers (J4MW) - a volunteer driven political non-profit collective comprised of committed activists from diverse walks of life (including labour activists, educators, researchers, students and youths of colour) based in Toronto, Ontario, and now in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. J4MW strives to promote the rights of seasonal Caribbean and Mexican migrant workers that annually participate in the federal government's Caribbean & Mexican Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP). The J4MW collective is motivated by experiences shared and lessons learned form migrant farm workers over the course of more than three years of community outreach in rural Ontario. As allies, activists and friends, we believe migrant workers deserve work with dignity and respect! Chris is also Vice-President of the Asian Canadian Labour Alliance and an organizer with the Association of Part-Time Undergraduate Students at the University of Toronto.

Chris Rock is the Accountant Executive of InterfaceFLOR - a leader in the production of environmentally responsible modular floor coverings. InterfaceFLOR's mission is "to eliminate any negative impact our company may have on the environment by 2020 - Mission Zero."

Clayton Thomas-Muller of the Mathais Colomb Cree Nation (Pukatawagan) in Northern Manitoba is an activist for Indigenous rights and environmental justice (Indigenous Environment Network - IEN). Clayton has worked with grassroots Indigenous communities to defend their Inherit, Treaty and environmental rights against unsustainable energy development and transnational corporations.

Dale Hildebrand is the team leader for Human Rights & Peace building at KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives, a national coalition of Canadian churches and church organizations based in Toronto working on social justice in areas such as ecology, trade and economic justice, refugees and migrants, aboriginal rights, and international human rights. Dale is also the team leader of a four year KAIROS project focused on the justice issues associated with a fossil fuel dependent world. Previously, he worked for the Ontario Council for International Cooperation and spent 5 years living and working in the Philippines.

Dewan Afzal is the founding President of Bangladeshi-Canadian Community Services and has been an activist within Bangladeshi and other communities for the past 29 years. His is famous for the tremendous success of his One Man March from Toronto to Niagara Falls, which he initiated in October, 2004, to bring attention to the issue of racial profiling.

Dorothy Goldin Rosenberg holds a Masters in Environmental Studies from York University and a PhD in Education from the University of Toronto. A passionate education and film consultant, Dorothy has worked with the National Film Board, school boards, non-governmental organizations, health professional and policy groups. She researches, writes and speaks on environmental health, equality, social, economic and environmental justice, peace and energy issues.

Gord Perks was elected to represent Parkdale-High Park in 2006 and has built an impressive record on environmental initiatives over the years through his work with Pollution Probe, Greenpeace Canada, the Better Transportation Coalition and the Toronto Environmental Alliance (TEA), focusing on waste reduction and public transit. He has been the principal author of the Canadian Green Consumer Guide - one of Canada's best selling non-fiction books - an Adjunct Professor with the University of Toronto's Environmental Studies Department and the environmental columnist for Eye Weekly.

Greg Allen (BASc, P.Eng., LEED AP). Upon completion of his degree in engineering and studies in architecture, Greg began his career in renewable energies industry, designing and building low energy solar houses. He set up Canada's first solar collector manufacturing operation. Subsequently he was president of Allen-Drerup-White Ltd., a highly respected low-energy building design and construction firm. Greg was also co-developer of the first Heat Recovery Ventilator, which resulted in the Air Changer Corporation. He has worked on advancing sustainability for 30 years as a designer, builder, community planner, inventor, researcher, manufacturer, policy advisor, community activist and environmental consultant. As Senior Associate at Sustainable EDGE Ltd., his activities include advanced building systems, renewable energy applications, ecologically engineer treatment facilities, and sustainable community planning.

Judy Rebick is a founder and first publisher of rabble.ca, and the Sam Gindin Chair in Social Justice and Democracy at Ryerson University. Through her activism over the last thirty years, Judy has forged strong ties with many of this country's most progressive and passionate organizations and individuals and is one of Canada's best known political commentators. She conceived of rabble.ca as a way to publish the news and opinions that are not often reported by big media. Her book, Imagine Democracy, outlines her vision for a radically egalitarian society and her proposal to develop a vital interactive online magazine comes from her experience working within mainstream media and the social justice community. Her most recent book, Ten Thousand Roses: The Making of a Feminist Revolution, is a rich tapestry of stories told by over a hundred feminists from across Canada who have organized, protested and struggled to achieve social change.

Mike Seaward is a unionist and community activist, serving as Vice-President of the Toronto and York Region Labour Council, President of the Steelworkers Toronto Area Council and Vice-President of Steelworkers Local 7193. Mike was a founding member of a housing co-op and child care centre in York Region and is an executive member of the York Coalition for Social Justice. He has taken part in an international delegation to South Africa to study housing issues and to Northern Ireland to work on the peace process.

Nick de Carlo is the National Representative for the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) Health, Safety and Environment Department. Nick's involvement in the labour movement began in 1969 as coordinator for the grape boycott in Toronto. His involvement with the CAW began in 1973 when he started work with Canadian General Electric in Toronto. Nick has also served with the Canadian Labour Congress Environment Committee, the Ontario Federation of Labour and the Human Rights Committee.

Peter Tabuns is the Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Toronto-Danforth and the New Democratic Party (NDP) critic for Energy and the Environment. He was City Councillor for the Riverdale portion of the ridiing form 1990 to 1997. Prior to that, Peter was the president of Citizens for a Safe Environment and helped end garbage incineration in the Toronto Portlands. As Vice Chair of the Co-op Housing Federation of Toronto, Peter championed housing alternatives and has long been a strong and effective campaigner for the protection of our environment. As Executive Director of Greenpeace Canada from 1999 to 2004, he fought to prevent climate change, worked to protect wilderness heritage and advocated for the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol. Currently, Peter is on leave from his position as Special Advisor on Climate Change to Federal NDP Leader, Jack Layton.

Shawn-Patrick Stensil is an Energy and Climate Campaigner with Greenpeace Canada. His work focuses on building a sustainable, nuclear-free and climate friendly energy system in Ontario and he specializes in nuclear issues.




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