BC Green Party leader and MLA for Cowichan Valley Sonia Furstenau met with a dozen or so qathet region residents at Cranberry Community Hall on Wednesday, October 13, to discuss building resilient communities amid the global climate emergency.
While some attendees identified themselves as Green Party supporters, the nonpartisan event was held to allow all members of the community to share examples of how the region has developed ideas and strategies to build resilience at the local level.
Furstenau told the Peak she was inspired to hold Wednesday’s event after visiting the community in 2019.
“I think there is leadership that [City of Powell River] council is showing on building resiliency, recognizing that emergency preparedness can actually translate into something deeper, and more connected,” said Furstenau.
The BC Green leader said she stayed in touch with city councillor Rob Southcott following this year’s Union of British Columbia Municipalities conference, and Southcott reached out to arrange Wednesday’s event.
Furstenau said she believes the Green Party is well-positioned to help with building community resilience at a local level.
“I think about the role that riding associations can play going beyond just the kind of political outcome and really leaning into community outcomes,” she explained. “The orientation of a lot of our riding associations’ work is about participating in a positive way in the community.”
Furstenau cited the example of her own Cowichan Valley riding association, which she said held an event earlier this year to raise funds for a local organization that provides free meals to schoolchildren.
As well, Furstenau said her party has pushed the provincial government for better mental health support, which she said is key for sustaining community resilience in the face of the pandemic and the daunting effects of climate change witnessed in BC last summer amid record-breaking temperatures and wildfires.
“We’ve been advocating for incorporating mental health care into MSP so that people have access to psychologists and professional mental health care just like you do to a doctor,” explained Furstenau. “As we become more connected to our neighbours, that kind of activity actually helps with mental health, and just knowing the people around us and participating in our communities and our neighbourhoods.”
Also in attendance at the event were Brooks Secondary School Environmental Club members Tay Healey, Aurora Dick and Liam Godfrey.
“We’re trying to find a sense of where our community is at the moment in the aspect of changing the framework, the framework of the built system,” said Healey. “We are going from the ground up to rewire it; we want change.”
Dick wants all youth to be more involved.
“We just really want to be able to engage all the youth, and not just the few climate heroes or whatever; we want everybody to be involved and everybody to feel like they have the chance and the power to make change,” added Dick.
Healey explained that the environmental club is currently working on a waste diversion system and educating its peers about that program.
Godfrey said he was excited by the opportunity to be exposed to opposing political views at Wednesday’s event.
“I wanted to come to this to see Sonia [Furstenau], and I’m a little bit disappointed there weren’t more people, but I’m glad we were able to come in and show support,” said Godfrey. “I really hope there’s more things like this in the future that we can go to.”
