Your Stories for Wheels for Change

Ian Weniger 's Story

2007-07-16T12:08:00.001-07:00

Hello there--I heard about you on CBC Radio One. I was once a road racer, and dreamt of competing in Europe. Your ride beats the Tour de France. I'd like to accompany you from Vancouver to Delta on Saturday 21 July. This ride is just my speed, both physically and politically. Out of Afghanistan, into Kyoto!

I don't have a photo to upload until I load my camera with fresh batteries, but I'd rather spend the money on antlers for my commuter bike. My road bike is in the shop, so I can't rely on its readiness. I'll try to bring my family along (wife and two boys) from Trout Lake to Moody Park.

I must congratulate you for picking the Central Valley ride, since the start and end points are accessible by Skytrain. Since bikes are permitted on the train all weekend, riders need not travel more than a couple of kilometres from Moody Park to one of two stations in downtown New Westminster to get home. This works for me very well because my family will be able to take the train back home instead of relying on a car ride to shlep the bikes home... I think of the silliness of driving our family car from Vancouver to New West at 5 am, then coming home, preparing the bikes and then riding out to New West.

Thanks for being here!

--
Ian Weniger
Vancouver, BC Canada

Marguerite Laliberte's Story

2007-06-27T22:29:00.000-07:00

My story is a short one: my name is Marguerite - Cree/Metis culture and I have always had concerns about the welfare of "Mother Earth". I bike as much as possible, eat organic, recycle and try to live as minimal as possible. I am in good physical shape, look forward to the tour and meeting like minded people.

Thank you,
Marguerite

Nonie Jackson's Story

2007-06-19T09:12:00.000-07:00

Hello, my name is Nonie Jackson, and I am a very enthusiastic supporter for Wheels For Change.

From a very young age, I was very passionate about nature. My earliest and happiest recollections were playing outside, in a garden, wood or field, investigating anything that had life--bugs, birds, flowers and trees. I would walk or cycle off for miles into the countryside searching for birds nests etc. and would challenge myself to climb up to the highest branch of a tree and hang upside down!!

After training as an elementary teacher in England, my (then) husband and I bought a 130 acre farm in Hereford England, and built up to 90 pedigree Guernsey cows which we milked---and I built up my flock of sheep, from a few baby pet lambs, to a flock of 200 ewes, over 15 years. I must say, that I was a dab hand at being a sheep midwife!! Our three children were fortunate to have the opportunity to grow up in such a beautiful environment, and to be shown the values and lifestyle of a family run farm. We were virtually self-sufficient, and produced most of our own food, grown organically on the farm. During my farming days i was often torn and dismayed by the impact that the chemical corporations were having, and changing many of the old traditional organic ways of farming. Chemical sprays, pesticides and herbicides, polluting the countryside and poisoning the rivers ,and drugs and hormones administered to cows, etc.

We sold our farm in 1988 and emmigrated to Vernon. B.C. where we bought an old established orchard, which we decided to run as certified organic. After five years of helping to run the orchard and building a new house, my husband and I separated. Since then I have become very involved in the local community, volunteering at my local school, the St John Ambulance Therapy Dog programme, Komasket Music Festival, Children's summer camps and now the Wheels for Change campaign.

I feel that it is imperative for us all to wake up and become accountable for our actions and effects upon global warming. We all need to think about the choices we make--to grow our own food organically or support the local farmers markets and buy locally!!!

AND TO REFUSE, REDUCE AND REUSE !!!

As my mentor David Suzuki says---

'WE SHOULD LIVE SIMPLY, SO OTHERS CAN SIMPLY LIVE'

Steve Loo's Story

2007-06-18T10:47:00.001-07:00

Steve, who are you and what do you do? I am an activist and college student in Calgary, Alberta. Since the fall of 2004, I have been studying non-profit management at Mount Royal College. For paid work, I do night shifts with autistic children and youth in a group home (more specifically, I deal with insomnia, urine messes, seizures, and attempts at sneaking out). I am a board member of the Arusha Centre through which I have organized and promoted multiple events since 2004. In 2005, I joined the Otesha Project Prairie Tour as we rode on our bikes from Calgary to Yorkton (approximately 1200 km) to do environmental and social justice presentations and workshops in schools, community halls, churches and people's living rooms. In this past May, I was co-organizer for a bike trip from Calgary to Kananaskis (approximately 120 km) for the Trails to Sustainability Conference focusing on environmental education. In a few months, I will begin a new job with Katimavik as project leader.

How did you become involved in environmentalism and climate change? I spent much of my childhood not really understanding my role within community and environment. I had my share of experiences involving 20 minute showers, driving and idling a gas-guzzling car, etc. My first great leap into environmentalism (beyond collecting cans and bottles for recycling) happened while in Australia. As my first major traveling experience, I spent 8 and a half months hitch-hiking around the country. Loved every second of it.

At one point, I hiked through part of the desert near Alice Springs. When your life depends on all the water you're carrying on your back, you gain a whole new perspective on this liquid that most people take for granted every day. I also learned a great deal about the importance of planning and preparation. I finished my long dry hike with roughly 200 mL of water and one extremely dry throat. I quickly rethought my attitudes and behaviors towards water. This meant shorter showers, turning off the water tap when brushing my teeth, etc. With some research, I learnt that the entire region surrounding Alice Springs was drawing its water from underground lakes and streams. But this water source was quickly running dry (because of long showers, watering lawns, etc). Yet many people continued consuming water needlessly as if this wasn't a desert. I wanted to say something but that would have been hypocritical considering the water practices in Alberta (oil drilling, tar sands, long showers and watering lawns, etc). I am part of the problem and therefore must be part of the change. After returning to Calgary, during a process over 3 or 4 years, I had to rethink much of my life – not just water consumption, but also transportation, food, clothes, media, government and our education system. As a result, it gradually changed to one involving better health and environment, greater creative and organizational skills, and more critical thinking.

For example, now I am:
1. Using my bike as my main form of transportation including winter time (I still drive once a week through carsharing)
2. Using less paper (in fact, I haven't bought any new paper in 3 years);
3. Having not just shorter showers but also having staggered and fewer showers; recently we bought a dual flush toilet. Woohoo!
4. Creating my own artistic notebooks reusing old materials
5. Becoming more integrated with my local economy – not just local foods but also locally made products and services (yay Calgary Dollars)
6. Organizing and promoting documentary screenings focusing on social justice and environmental issues, and showcasing local activists working on local causes
7. Gardening (with mixed success but still trying)
8. Questioning and challenging our politicians, journalists, teachers and other “professionals” (along with fellow students) regarding government policy and media portrayal of all the issues
9. Encouraging my friends to take up more sustainable lifestyles while emphasizing that this is progression rather than perfection.

Why do I want to be a part of the Wheels of Change bike tour? I was planning to take a vacation and wanted to experiment with biking as the key means of transportation. Obviously this is cheaper and less emissions than flying or driving. I'm hoping that this experience will allow me to better absorb my surroundings and the communities that we will pass through on the way to the coast. Also, I will meet some really cool bikers along the way. Oryx the Black Stallion (my trusty bike) and I are proud to be part of this bike trip.

Ann, Sjeng and Oscar's Story

2007-06-10T16:52:00.000-07:00

Hi, Sjeng, Oscar and I live in Nelson, BC in a small, (well insulated) house. Sjeng is originally from Holland, I’m from Vancouver and when we met each other over there, bicycling was a big part of our lives. While

Canada

is quite a bit more vertically challenging, we still spend some of our best times sitting on a bicycle. Oscar is now 17 years old, and we’ve been dragging him along with us for years. This past January we spent a month biking in

Cuba

. Three years ago, we biked in Thailand for two months. We’ve also ridden the Galloping Goose out of Victoria (very nice), plus lots of local rides and many awesome trips in Holland. I am attracted to this trip cause it’s something we’ve wanted to do for a while, but never seem to get it together by ourselves. It would also be great to meet like-minded people that we would otherwise be unlikely to meet. We like camping, biking, and eating, so this trip felt like a good match.

As far as global warming, we try to live a smaller footprint by doing the following.

We’ve planted lots of trees in our lot and grow some of our own food.
We run a High Efficiency washing machine and hang our clothes to dry.
We live in a small community, so drive very few commuter kms. to work, school or shop.
We buy local and organic as much as possible.
We live in a small, very well insulated house with double glaze windows.
We burn a renewable heat source in the winter (wood from fallen trees).
We compost and recycle like crazy.
We buy second hand goods and clothes.
We don’t (or at least very rarely) use any chemical cleaners.
We always (well, almost always) reuse shopping bags or baskets.
We don’t flush every time.
We use rechargeable batteries.
We use an electric bike as a second vehicle.

I look forward to meeting everyone. See you soon, Ann

Femke Woud's Story

2007-05-30T12:22:00.000-07:00

My name is Femke Woud and I moved to Victoria with my family from Toronto, 2.5 years ago. The contrast in air quality, access to nature, and natural beauty that surrounds us here, is something that I appreciate everyday, and makes me respect my friends in Toronto even more for their commitment to bike through that city everyday!

I grew up in the Netherlands and remember biking to school was the most normal thing to do....I don't even remember anybody ever being brought to school by car. In a country the size of Vancouver Island with about 14 million people, bikers and bike lanes are everywhere. However, after an accident in Toronto (where I broke my wrist in two places getting stuck in tram track) I lost confidence in biking through Toronto's busy streets and only biked 'for pleasure' on the bike paths along the lake. Here in Victoria I have regained some of my confidence, and enjoy biking with my daughter, on the back of my dutch bike, through Victoria.

Still, I have to admit that I do drive my daughter to her Waldorf preschool, but carpool with another mom. My partner takes the bus to work everyday which takes him about an hour. He enjoys it.

I feel good about only using natural cleaning products for my house (water and vinegar works wonders and some essential oils for the smell), using organic fertilizer for my new hobby gardening, community composting, using plastic crates for my shopping supplies (or cotton bags, which by the way is 'normal' in Holland...you actually pay $0.25 cents for every plastic bag you purchase and has been like this since I was little in the sixties), eating locally organic foods whenever possible, wearing an extra sweater indoors in the winter, and recycling clothes and toys. My next project is to get our house assessed for energy conservation/loss. Kari, you inspired me!

My own personal passion is in studying and using the power of 'energy medicine' (acupuncture, shiatsu, homeopathy and quantum healing) as the medicine of the 21st century, and exposing the truths about pharmaceutical companies and their questionable goals in true health. I feel honored to be part of this great initiative here in Victoria.

Femke Woud (Shiatsu Therapist)

Kari Jones' Story

2007-05-28T14:27:00.000-07:00

My name is Kari Jones. I live with my family in Victoria. My climate change story is about renovating my house. Two years ago my husband and I started renovating the basement of our house in Fairfield. We tore everything out of the basement, leaving only the structural stuff like the beams and struts. Then we called City Green Victoria to come and do an energy audit of the house. Their representative, Wendy, came and checked the whole house—the windows, the doorways, the attic, everything. Then she put a huge fan contraption in our front doorway and measured how many air exchanges we had each hour.

A normal house that is moderately well insulated is supposed to have 3-4 air exchanges in a hour. We had 12. Yyppes…..

Wendy gave us a number of suggestions such as putting a thicker insulator in the basement walls before we rebuilt and adding a vapour barrier to wick out moisture. Over the next six months we slowly built our basement back up, replacing single paned windows with double paned ones, putting in warm and beautiful (though kinda’ expensive) cork flooring, and insulating for all we were worth. When we were done Wendy came back for a follow up visit, and phew… we are down to 6 air exchanges an hour.

Still more work to go, obviously. We have to insulate the upstairs and get better insulation in the attic. But we’re on the right track. Our house is so much warmer! And… our heating costs are half what they once were.

I’m looking forward to meeting everyone somewhere between Nelson and Victoria!

Kari Jones, Co-author of Hiking Adventures for Children

Julia Lissau's Story

2007-05-23T09:57:00.000-07:00

I am greatly concerned about the global warming crisis and try to do what I can to minimize my footprint on the planet in hopes that there will be some quality to the future of those generations who will follow. We owe our earth for the gift of being able to live here and should act accordingly to protect it – and that means being assertive about climate change. A few personal examples…

I cycle as much as possible for shopping, visiting and meetings – even in winter (as long as roads are not icy and the temperatures are not less than -1 Celsius). I never idle if I do have to drive, and ask vehicle idlers to turn engines off and tell them why. At home, water use is around 4.5 cubic meters every 3 months for 2 of us, except for 3 - 4 summer food garden months. It is not hard to do. All shower and dish water is saved and used to flush the toilet. Except in the heat of summer we follow the “if it’s yellow let it mellow; if it’s brown flush it down” rule as it seems so gluttonous to waste high quality drinking water to flush a toilet. Vernon’s grey water is only re-used once but in Europe they can re-use treated water at least 8 times before returning clean water to the river it came from. We, here, have a lot of rethinking to do on resource waste. An ice cream pail under each tap saves hand washing and veggie washing water for re-use as well. We do only one full laundry load a week using a water efficient machine and use a laundry line for drying all year round. We conserve much of our roof rain water for garden use and when the dry months hit, have a trickle system and heavy mulching to minimize water use for our large, organic, high yield food garden. I scrounge all over town for 60+ bags of clean leaves each year for the mulch. We live minimally, purchasing second hand as much as possible, or not buying if it is a ‘want’ and not a ‘need’. We recycle so much that I could put out garbage once a month and still not fill a shopping bag! Home is small so there’s no need to furnish extra rooms (what a money saver!) and there’s not a lot of time needed for cleaning! (I’d rather read a book!) Having lived and worked in a third world country, I know how little a person can live with and still be happy and healthy.

Lizanne Chicanot's Story

2007-05-20T12:05:00.000-07:00

My first great experience on a bike was when I was in grade 6. My mom signed me up for a bike camp and I got hooked. Instead of singing camp tunes and staying in log cabins, we got to go on a week long bike trip through the Ottawa Valley. After that I just thought of myself as a biker.

When I was in high school in Ottawa I used to commute all year long across town to school. The snow just made it more exciting! My first teaching job was in the Northwest Territories where I would occasionally ride across a little arm of Great Slave Lake on my mountain bike. Now I live in Beautiful BC and as much as possible (OK I've turned into a bit of a fair weather cyclist!) I cycle to work along the Galloping Goose/Lochside trail (probably the best commute to work in the world!).

I'm excited to join up with Mary and crew for a portion of the Wheels for Change trip. I'll start in Hope which kind of has a poetic ring to it.... especially given the climate change situation.... and it's also pretty flat terrain after that which I won't complain about! I'm really looking forward to the bike ride and to meeting all the other cycling folks who are also dedicated to raising awareness of climate change!

Lizanne Chicanot
Vice Principal at Royal Oak Middle School
Victoria, BC

Gordon Forsyth's Story

2007-05-12T15:27:00.000-07:00

I am taking the Kelowna to Vernon ride on Sunday, July 8. My attempt to change the climate is to only drive when necessary. When I get off work I usually get my bike out, and I always cycle to work on Saturdays. I also encourage my family and friends to do the same. I am currently on a cycling coalition to get more people on their bikes and I was also on a Bike to Work Week committee and I am also part of Car Free Day. I am a firm beleiver that if everybody did this we could eliminate our emissions by 10% by 2012.

Monique Richoux's Story

2007-05-12T15:00:00.000-07:00

Well, here's my dirty little secret: I am not really a cyclist! I used to cycle a lot while growing up in Armstrong, but when I moved to Vancouver to go to university, I tried biking once or twice and was terrified. All that traffic! Later, when I met my future husband, I didn't even own a bike but we wanted to do a bit of biking and he had two bikes - a mountain bike and a BMX. I laughed my head off when I saw a full grown man riding a BMX. But his mountain bike felt too big and awkward for me. I tried his BMX - and was hooked. When I was pregnant with our first son he gave me my own BMX - and that's what I still ride, badly, along with my sons, who are 8 and 5 and show me up on a regular basis. I will swallow my fears and my pride and I WILL show up to ride on my little BMX with my son (no gears but oh, so maneuverable), and this is why:

I have realized that climate change is not some kind of possibility. It is not something that my children can spend their lives trying to stop. It will be too late if we haven't taken serious measures by the time they are old enough to vote. I used to think that by living as sustainably as I possibly can (consuming less, buying only organic food, growing what we can, driving as little as possible, etc.) that I can do my part and make a difference. And yet when I watched An Inconvenient Truth and saw the ice falling away, I realized that my actions alone are not enough. They are important and they are good, but they are not enough. I have been aware of and worrying about environmental devastation for 20 years now - and it is not enough. (The warning cry was first shouted in 1962 by Rachel Carson, and 45 years later we still aren't "getting it" in any large-scale way). Some people worry that attending to climate change will cause a massive loss of jobs in Canada. I say this is an illusion. Climate Change itself will cause job loss, along with massive life loss. When all the trees die from bugs that start multiplying exponentially (as the pine bark beetle already has been doing) there will certainly be a loss of jobs, not to mention all the other losses that accompany that. The oil fields won't last forever either - why not phase out that form of power now before our very lives are threatened?

There are plenty of ways in which we can all live sustainably with our needs met, through industries that perhaps we haven't even invented yet, industries that support a restorative form of commerce rather than the destructive form that we currently operate under. For those of us dependent on our cars - lets remember that we are an ingenious species - very intelligent, very creative. We CAN start re-imagining our world, while there is a livable world left to re-imagine. Consider our dependence on oxygen alone: "Oxygen has hovered around 21 per cent of the atmosphere, a propitious level, since 25 per cent oxygen could well ignite the atmosphere; if the atmosphere contained only 15 per cent oxygen, it would be lethal to life." David Suzuki, The Sacred Balance, p. 49. So what will happen to this balance as we keep releasing carbon into the atmosphere? I don't want to find out. Realizing that I actually have to do something about it has been hard for me - I have shed tears and lost sleep. Denial is so much easier. Easier but deadly (ala The Matrix).

Here is one last quote that really hit me, that has moved me to go on the actual ROAD on my little bike, with my child:
"Author Ivan Illich has pointed out that the average American is involved with his or her automobile - working in order to buy it, actually driving it, getting it repaired and so on - for sixteen hundred hours a year. This means when all car mileage in a given year is divided by the time spend supporting the car, the average car owner is traveling at an average speed of five miles per hour. To attain the speed of a bicycle, we are devastating our cities, air, lungs, and lives, while bringing on the threat of global warming." Paul Hawkin, The Ecology of Commerce (1993),

One last note - I think it's important that we not be fooled by the Conservative government's "green plan". They had in their hands a not-too-bad plan, Bill C-30 which was drafted up with the input and cooperation of all parties. When they backed out of it I protested to my MP. He replied that the opposition made it too hard to implement. That is rubbish. The current plan is a smokescreen, one that people such as David Suzuki and Al Gore have seen through (and stated so publicly). We need to see through it as well. It is not enough. So let's get on our bikes and see how big a statement we can make, together, as Canadians.

(And if you haven't seen An Inconvenient Truth yet - go watch it now!)

Helen and Patricia's Story

2007-05-12T14:54:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody, my name is Helen. My partner Patricia and I decided to celebrate our 7 year anniversary on the Wheels for Change ride! We met in Vancouver at a women's dance, and were thrown together again when someone asked me to pick up a woman named Patricia (with a car-share vehicle) for a hike. I made her a tofu and avocado sandwich, and the rest is, well, I'll tell you more when we get to know each other...

A few years ago, we moved to Hornby Island to get off the grid, but only lasted 2 1/2 months. That's another story. We've been in Brentwood Bay for four years, about an hour's bike ride from Victoria.

Our response to Climate Change is a booklet called Recipe for a Cool Planet: How to be Happy & Healthy on a Low-carbon Diet.
http://www.recipeforacoolplanet.com
Writing it inspired us to sell the SUV we were gifted, and travel exclusively by bike and car-share. Here's one of the drawings illustrated by Patricia.

Looking forward to meeting everyone. - Helen

PS - if you know of any potential advertising sponsors for the book, please let us know:
Tel: (250) 544-2064; Email: patriciahairdesign@hotmail.com

Joyce Henderson's Story

2007-05-11T09:20:00.000-07:00

My name is Joyce Henderson and I live in Salmon Arm. I look at our history – the treatment of the Japanese in the 1940s and of the Aboriginal children in the residential schools and think, “How could intelligent, thinking people allow this to happen?”. Then I wonder what we are doing now that our grandchildren will look back and say “How could intelligent people allow this to happen?” I think it will be the way we continually use our resources and abuse our environment.

My time living in Kenya and Ghana have made me aware of the need to conserve water and electricity – so conserving those two resources, recycling and using cloth shopping bags have been a normal part of my life. Lately I have been consciously using my car as little as possible and eating local foods when possible.

I am involved in Wheels for Change because it is an opportunity for citizens to become informed and involved in climate change – and to make an impact with municipal and provincial governments re what needs to be done to influence climate change.

James Skwarok's Story

2007-05-03T18:19:00.000-07:00

Hi there! My name is James Skwarok. Some of you might know me as Mr. Floatie or more recently as CO2 Man. I’m an activist and elementary school substitute teacher in Victoria, BC. Currently, I run two non-profits: www.poopvictoria.ca and www.co2ies.ca. The CO2ies are a group of citizens of all ages who are using humour and embarrassment to help pressure our federal government into setting firm caps on greenhouse gas emissions.

Climate change is the most pressing issue of our time. We may not be fully aware of its effects right now, but why wait until it’s too late? Just look how a warmer climate has allowed the pine beetle to ravage BC’s forests. Since our federal government is moving at a snail’s pace to reduce greenhouse gases, we have to get together to show them we want action now. Our children deserve courageous decisions by our leaders, not promises of “intensity based targets” which actually allow overall greenhouse gas emissions to rise.

I joined Wheels for Change because I believe this citizen action will help show our provincial and federal government that we want them to larger steps now to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Wheels for Change is something whole families and communities can do together. By acting together, our message will be stronger. I’m really looking forward to biking the last part of the trip with everyone!

J.D. Gibbard’s Story

2007-04-17T17:07:00.000-07:00

"Hajimemashite! J.D. Gibbard desu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu."

“Hello! I’m J.D. Gibbard. Let’s treat each other in good regard.” This brief self introduction is one of the first things I learned in Japanese. Although I grew up in an eco-aware family in Victoria, I would say my time living in Japan (2000-2004) is when I really became conscious of the both the urgency to protect the environment and also the degree of apathy in government and general population. At last that apathy is being shaken off and we have entered a race made dangerous and exciting by the narrow margins between victory and disaster. I’m looking forward to cycling the full 1000 km of the Wheels for Change tour to raise awareness and encourage people in their efforts large and small to fight global warming.

Among my own daily efforts: I’m letting my car insurance run out now that the weather is warmer and won’t renew until the fall, until now I have been driving at the speed limit instead of the usual inefficient 10 km/h faster; I have reduced my consumption of animal-based foods; I reuse old photocopies in my printer; I reduce heating and lighting as much as reasonable; I’m choosing organic and local foods more often.

Larger campaigns like Wheels for Change can help make it easier to do the right thing by showing government and industry that we want more eco-friendly choices. Too many people feel they can’t afford to make good choices because marketing and/or subsidies make damaging options appear cheaper than cleaner options. Let’s get on the path to greater efficiency and sustainable alternatives!

Jon Corbett's Story

2007-04-13T21:37:00.000-07:00

My name is Jon Corbett, I am an assistant professor in the Community, Culture and Global Studies unit at the University of British Columbia Okanagan, my field is resource management and sustainability. Through my research and teaching I have come to realize that climate change is the single most important issue facing society today. It is an issue that will directly impact our own lives - as well as those of our children, grandchildren and all future generations. I feel that it is vitally important to take every opportunity to raise awareness of this issue.

My story is about some recent work I have done with students at UBC O to discuss issues of sustainability on the campus. My students interviewed university administrators, faculty members and other students to try to get to grips with what it means to be a sustainable campus. They then created short films outlining the steps that UBC O needs to take to be a truly sustainable institution.

Wheels for Change is an open and encompassing initiative that encourages everyone to express their feelings about climate change, share their hopes and fears with others, and ultimately to bring about positive change. I am very excited about the Wheels for Change ride in July. I am encouraging my students to take part in the journey. I look forward to meeting many others, and perhaps even you, on this journey.

Judy Stockdale's story

2007-04-13T09:55:00.000-07:00

Hi, my name is Judy Stockdale. I am 64 years old, I live in Enderby, BC, and I am one proud mother. This photo is of me on a bicycle trip to New Zealand where a friend and I cycled 1700 kms, and went from Bluff to Cape Reinga in 2003. A great way to travel and see a country. I love the pace.

I have felt strongly about environmental issues since Rachael Carr's "The Silent Spring" in the early 70's. I have had cloth shopping bags for thirty years, and I remember teaching school kids the 4 "R's" in the 1980's: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Reclaim. I remember thinking the most shocking thing about our misuse of Mother Earth was species extinction. Once they are gone, they are gone forever, whereas pollution, deforestation, ozone depletion, population explosion could all be fixed over time. Global warming is different.

Facing this issue will require a combined effort and commitment from everyone in every corner of the globe, and it all starts with each of us taking one small step. My wish is that we could have community stores that only sold local produce, or at least shops that indicated local produce. Maybe we could reduce our impact in this way and get more trucks off the road. Maybe others could express their wish for a more sustainable future, and who know where this might lead. A huge wish list for sustainability. Yeah! Meanwhile my husband and I farm and garden organically (Certified Organic), and we try to encourage wildlife and biodiversity through planting native flora. We carefully select who we donate our money to and who we support politically.

We try to maximize the effect we have politically, environmentally, and socially. There is lots more we could do, and that will be our challenge!

Robin Genthon's story

2007-04-12T13:55:00.000-07:00

My name is Robin Genthon. I live in Vernon, where I work in the School District as an Aboriginal Education Assistant.

In our daily lives, there are many ways to care for the Earth, from biking, walking or car-pooling to turning off lights, not wasting water, buying locally grown organic foods and much more. We can recycle, re-use and more importantly, reduce the amount of garbage we generate by consuming less and purchasing items with less packaging. These are some of the things that my family does to show respect for the Earth.

I have noticed that my students are extremely conscientious about taking care of the Earth, and I would like to share a story about them. The other day we were making drums as part of the Aboriginal Education program, and we finished earlier than we expected. The traditional ways of the Aboriginal people promote living in harmony with the Earth and to have a great deal of gratitude and respect for all that she gives to us. So when I asked the children what they wanted to do with our extra time, they decided, with great enthusiasm, to go out into the neighborhood to clean up litter. I was so proud of their commitment to caring about the Earth and their awareness that tending to the Earth was tending to their future and their children's future and so on. The teachings are that you consider the next seven generations in all that you do and I was very honored to witness their generation doing just that! What a different world it would be if we all lived by these teachings!

Thank-you, Robin Genthon

Celia Auclair's Story

2007-04-12T13:48:00.000-07:00

My name is Celia Auclair, I am 35 years old and I live in Vernon where I work as a caterer.

I grew up aware of global warming as I have a father that was preaching gloom and doom already in the early 80's. When I moved away from my dad I forgot about my dad's "apocalyptic" views. I became a tree planter and soon after focused on raising my family, growing a garden, feeding my children healthy food, etc. I don't own a TV and so I lost touch with current affairs on global warming, and with my family having a relatively light footprint on the planet, I didn't have the worries about the future that I used to have when growing up.

In May 2006, a friend invited me to go see Al Gore’s movie "An Inconvenient Truth" which played for 12 weeks straight at the Towne theatre in Vernon. It was like waking up from a state of dormancy. All of a sudden, what I knew as a child but didn't fully understand was explained to me in common language. The mountain of scientific evidence and the clear depiction of the process of warming, already going faster than first predicted... the chain reaction of events that are likely to follow... the fact that our population growth has exploded exponentially in the past 50 years... and the fact that I have 3 children under the age of 12 years...

Immediately it was clear to me that nothing was more important than to take action now, to start changing myself and to find ways to engage in positive action in order to offer hope to future generations. In the following months I started reading the literature and searching on the internet for more information. I also felt the call to connect with people abut this issue, so last December I did a cross-Canada road trip to visit and discuss my thoughts with friends and acquaintances.

The response I got from everyone was universal; people are very concerned. Whether they think that we can get out of this mess is another story, but they are concerned. Many are too busy with their kids, jobs, and routines to do much about it. They do their little part, and for most of them, it's not possible to live a fully sustainable way of life. However, their good intentions are there and many people would jump on board if the government took stronger leadership to address the problem straight on.

Upon my return, I met again with Mary whom I had first met last November. We agreed to start planning this BC-wide cycle tour for action on climate change.

If we remain passive, a runaway warming trend is unavoidable. I choose to take action; it's only by our collective action that we are going to create a good future for future generations. I also choose to promote sustainable living, as it is the ensemble of solutions that are needed to address climate change. I am full of enthusiasm about getting on the road on my bike this summer, and about the people, ideas and projects that we are going to encounter along the way.

Mary Stockdale's Story

2007-04-11T14:03:00.000-07:00

My name is Mary Stockdale. I am 40 yrs old, and I live in Vernon, BC. I am married to Jon Corbett, and we have two children: Emma, 10 yrs old, and Tom, 7 yrs old. My career is in community-based forestry, and I have worked overseas in many tropical countries as well as in BC.

In recent years, I have come to the belief that climate change is the most important issue of our time - what a responsibility it is to know that we only have a few years to act before irreversible and 'run-away' warming trends are set in motion. I have decided to stop pursuing my career full-time in order to do whatever I can on this issue.

We try as a family to reduce our impact on the environment by living close to downtown, cycling everywhere we can, buying local food, maximizing energy efficiency in the house, hanging our laundry up to dry, and so on, but I am convinced that the solution lies in collective as well as individual action. A major shift in our society will be needed to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions to the recommended level, and this will require us to get together and let our politicians know that we want them to take whatever action is necessary, now. This is why I am co-organizing this Wheels for Change campaign, as one means of keeping the momentum growing locally, provincially and nationally.

I also keep myself busy trying to effect change locally by co-editing a biweekly column on sustainability issues in our local newspaper; involving myself in local organizations such as Vernon's Sustainable Environmental Network Society and the Vernon Cycling Advisory Committee, and teaching a course at the University of British Columbia - Okanagan branch on applying traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) to developing a more sustainable way of living in the Okanagan region.

My final, inspirational, comment is that I believe that moving towards sustainability can be a positive change for all of us, for so many different reasons - better health, more meaningful work, improved diet, increased creativity, stronger connections to others, and more. Let's take this immense challenge on with everything we've got - this beautiful world and our children deserve it!

Please Send Us Your Stories for Wheels for Change !

2007-03-28T09:05:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our blog! We look forward to hearing from you!

Please send your stories to wheelsforchange@gmail.com, with a photo, if possible. Please include your name, age, town, any other details, and one or two paragraphs on what you are doing, or planning to do, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.