Water for people, not for profit! Council gears up for World Water Day on March 22
Here at the Council of Canadians, we’re rolling up our sleeves to celebrate World Water Day 2008 and hope you can join us. This year, we are working with our many friends and allies under the theme ‘Water for People, Not for Profit.’ Our goal is to continue to build public support and political momentum to secure a national water policy and water as a human right.
March 22 was designated World Water Day in 1992 at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, to raise awareness about the importance of preserving global water resources. Since then, communities, organizations and activists around the world have come together every year on that day to highlight water struggles and the need for clean, accessible, public water for everyone.
We are in the midst of a crucial political moment in the fight to protect Canada’s water. All four major parties opposing the government are calling for a ban on bulk water exports and stronger environmental protections for the water in Canada’s lakes, oceans and rivers. Even prominent Conservative politicians are admitting that Canada’s water is under threat, due to trade agreements like NAFTA and the SPP. The question is – how much pressure will it take before the Harper government finally takes action?
This year, Council activists will be visiting their Members of Parliament between March 15 and March 25 to encourage them to take action on a national water policy. We will be posting a briefing note for MPs, fact sheets, and lobbying tips on our website in the coming weeks. So keep visiting www.canadians.org/water for more information. And be sure to contact the regional office closest to you, if you are interested in organizing a World Water Day event in your community.
Meanwhile, here’s what’s new at the Council of Canadians:
VICTORY! Campbell River and Comox Valley non-profit hospitals saved
Council of Canadians activists in Campbell River and Comox Valley, B.C. are celebrating a major victory, after convincing the unelected Vancouver Island Health Authority (VIHA) board to quash a plan for a P3 hospital.
In 2006, the Campbell River and Comox Valley chapters of the Council of Canadians joined with other concerned citizens to oppose a $300 million plan by the VIHA to replace two local hospitals with one operated by a public-private-partnership.
Chapter member Richard Hagensen and his fellow activists argued that the “unacceptable” plan would have cost millions of dollars more than upgrading the two hospitals, decreased response time to medical emergencies and created only a small increase in acute care beds inadequate to meet current and future hospital overcrowding, increased chronic health care needs and population growth.
This month, the Comox Strathcona Regional Hospital District board withdrew its support for the proposed P3 hospital, and instead demanded that the VIHA “scrap the new hospital and invest in upgrades and expansions of the existing hospitals,” according to the Victoria Times-Colonist.
Congratulations to the Campbell River and Comox Valley chapters for their tenacity, commitment and hard work in achieving this tremendous win!
For more information on the Council of Canadians’ health care campaign, please visit www.profitisnotthecure.ca.
VICTORY! Canadians demand a National Energy Strategy
 Council of Canadians activists in more than 35 communities across Canada braved the cold on February 2nd, to take part in our National Day of Action to Demand a National Energy Strategy. Donning coats, boots – and only one mitten – people pointed out that Canada’s lack of an energy policy is like sending someone out into the cold without a second glove – one hand stays warm while the other freezes.
Without west-to-east pipelines, we do not have a way to get energy to all parts of the country. All Canadians deal with the impacts of an energy market focused on sending the majority of our oil and gas south to the energy-hungry United States, no matter what the environmental or societal cost to Canadians. Canada’s “free market” approach to energy policy and its increasing integration with the United States under the Security and Prosperity Partnership have put multi-billion-dollar oil and gas companies in control of our energy future.
On February 2nd, people all across Canada sent one mitten to Prime Minister Stephen Harper or their local Member of Parliament, showing their support for a Canadian Energy Strategy that would give Canadians secure energy supplies, guaranteed access to energy reserves in times of need, and strong policies that protect our environment and focus on finding alternative, less harmful energy solutions.
It’s not too late to send your own mitten to Prime Minister Harper! Visit our website to see a gallery of mitten photos from across Canada, and to read more about what you can do to demand a Canadian Energy Strategy.
EVENTS: The Council of Canadians on tour
The Council of Canadians is hitting the road this month, touring communities all over Canada and the United States, to speak out on crucial issues, including the dangers associated with the SPP, the need for a solution to the world water crisis, and the pitfalls of right-wing economics.
 Last week, Maude Barlow began a 13-city tour of the United States, to promote her book, Blue Covenant: The Global Water Crisis and the Coming Battle for the Right to Water. This caps off the 21-city Canadian book tour that Maude embarked on in the fall. Click here to see a full listing of Blue Covenant events.
On Friday, Council of Canadians board member Robert Chernomas began a 7-community tour of the Atlantic region to promote his new book, Social Murder and Other Shortcomings Of Conservative Economics. The tour began in South Shore and will continue through Halifax, Annapolis Valley, Saint John, Moncton, Sackville, and St. John's. You can find out more about the book Social Murder, by Robert Chernomas and Ian Hudson, by visiting the to the Arbeiter Ring website.
Starting on Saturday, BC-Yukon organizer Carleen Pickard joined the 'Better Neighbors: A New Way Forward for North America’ speaking tour across the United States. She’s joining with allies from Mexico and the U.S. to speak about why NAFTA has failed, how the SPP could make things even worse, and what people in all three countries can do to help develop a better framework for North American cooperation. To find out more about this speaking tour, visit the Global Exchange website.
NEWS: Maude Barlow urges flower corporations to stop destroying Lake Naivasha
 Maude Barlow was in Hollywood last week, urging flower corporations to stop destroying Lake Naivasha in order to bolster Valentine's Day sales.
Maude joined with environmental experts and activists from the U.S., Europe and Kenya to launch a report highlighting the destructive practices of flower farms on Lake Naivasha in Kenya.
The report, Lake Naivasha: Withering Under the Assault of International Flower Vendors points to the devastating environmental and social impacts of the international flower industry in Kenya.
“The farms surround Lake Naivasha. They deplete its waters and poison them with pesticides,” said Maude Barlow. “They are sowing the seeds of economic and environmental devastation that, unless stopped, inevitably will yield a harvest of poverty, water deprivation, and violence.
According to Wenonah Hauter, Executive Director of U.S.-based Food & Water Watch, flower corporations and the international media now regard the violence in Kenya as an investment loss. “Our solidarity and support should go to the people in the region, not the international corporate owners of these flower farms,” says Hauter.
“These flower farms are harming people and animals alike,” explained Josphat Ngonyo, director of the Africa Network for Animal Welfare. “Numerous bird and fish species are disappearing from the area and that’s a problem for the environment and the people who depend on the lake.”
Visit the Council’s Blue Planet Project website today, to learn more about how you can get involved in the global fight for the right to water.
ACTION ALERT: No SPP summit in New Orleans, consult Canadians now
Prime Minister Harper will be meeting with the leaders of U.S. and Mexico for the fourth Security and Prosperity Summit in New Orleans, Louisiana, from April 21-22.
 On August 20, 2007, at the last 'Leaders Summit', Prime Minister Stephen Harper refused to accept 10,000 letters collected by the Council of Canadians from concerned citizens across the country who called on him to "cease all talks leading to deeper integration between Canada and the United States" and who expressed their concern that "our government is forging ahead with the deep integration agenda enshrined in the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP), without any public input or parliamentary debate."
On August 22, the Canwest News Service reported that, "...Council of Canadians chairwoman Maude Barlow claimed vindication after a corporate advisory panel to the three leaders recommended that legislatures be more involved with the Security and Prosperity Partnership...Barlow said the ‘jaw-dropping’ report is an admission that the SPP won't succeed without more public input. ‘We've been saying that for three years, and for three years they've been having their private meetings with leaders and scoffing at us for criticizing them,’ Barlow said outside a Montebello ice cream stand. ‘For me, what happened was they got caught. All of a sudden they're admitting that this executive level of decision-making isn't going to fly because they forgot about democracy. I see this as a true vindication of our position.’” And yet, to our great disappointment, after the glare of media attention ended, so did their promise of legislative review of the SPP.
Keep visiting www.canadians.org for more information as plans progress to protest against the New Orleans summit. And click here to send a letter to Prime Minister Harper, demanding that the government halt all SPP talks, and instead consult with Canadians in a meaningful way about North American relations.
For extensive information about the SPP, please visit our Integrate This! website, and don’t forget to sign up for weekly email updates.
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Founded in 1985 by a handful of citizens including Farley Mowat, Pierre Berton and Margaret Atwood, the Council of Canadians is Canada’s pre-eminent public watchdog organization. The Council receives no money from government, corporations or any political party. To preserve our complete independence, we ensure that almost all our revenue comes from generous individuals like you. Join the Council today, and help us prove that a better Canada is possible.
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