It is time for #adulting. Parents, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, it is time to stand with the youth who are planning massive climate demonstrations this week. Right now, decisions are being made that will set the course for Canada's recovery from COVID-19. Parents voices are needed to tell elected officials we want that course to lead to a cleaner, more equitable and sustainable future for kids.
We know life may be overwhelming right now, and so we have put together a list of actions so that you can choose which works best for you and your family. Don't feel you have to choose only one!. And if you are so inspired (and we hope you are), we would love for you to take a photo of your action and share it with us on twitter or Facebook .
1) Join the downtown Ottawa youth climate march on Friday September 25th. It will be a small loop between Parliament and City Hall. There will be marshals to help keep people in smaller groups. If this is your first activism during COVID, remember to bring your mask (it is outside, but it is preferred). And if you are a bit nervous to participate by yourself, send us an email and we can coordinate marching together (albeit physically distanced).
2) Post a sign on your lawn. Take a photo of it and share it with us, we will be making a collage and sending to all of Ottawa / Gatineau's MPs, the prime minister and key ministers. #FridaysforFuture #ClimateStrike
Have your children draw what they would like to protect or their vision of Green Future.
You can also simply write: I stand with Youth. Global Climate Strike. Fridays for Future
(Consider adding: I am a member of For Our Kids (to encourage more families to join us!)
3) Organize your own community march in solitary for all the marches happening across the globe. Find another family or two or three, make some signs and hit the streets (physically distanced of course). Wave at cars and pedestrians. Or draw some circles on the grass (6 m apart) and invite friends to join you at a park with your signs.
4) Write. Write to your MP, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Deputy Prime Minister/Finance Minister Chyrstia Freeland, and the leaders of all the political parties. Tell them we need bold climate action. That climate change can no longer be a partisan issue. Our MPs need to work together and not be divided along party lines. You can use this letter as a template
5) Donate. For our kids we'll send 100% of donations made here to September youth climate actions.
6) Sign this petition if you only have a few minutes and to really drive the message home, use it as a template to send an email directly to your MP, with a copy to Deputy Prime Minister/Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland and Prime Minster Justin Trudeau.
7) Amplify their voice. If you see youth speaking out about the climate, social and environmental injustices, like the posts, share the posts, retweet them, do anything you can to help them get the message out. You can search for hashtags like #FridaysforFutures or #GlobalClimateStrike