Den Enews

With gratitude to Margaret Sagar who sent us her recent presentation to the Public Bills Committee: Thank you for the gift of faith you bring to the environment movement. The following is just a small sample of her faith in action:

I believe that the gospel of Christ upholds three principles for human beings to live by- Love, Justice, and the Sacred Responsibility to Care for Creation. Other spiritualities, including that of Mi’kmaw, also recognize these principles as the foundation for human life within the web of life.

Using an ethical lens, I draw your attention to the values which enable Love, Justice and Care of Creation: values such as compassion, treating all life, human and non-human, with dignity and respect, taking care of each other, especially the most vulnerable, in a just manner, demonstrating honesty, integrity and respect in all aspects of life. These values apply to governments………

Omnibus bills such as this are disrespectful: they obfuscate and deny the Legislative Assembly and the public time to thoroughly study them. A government employing that tactic is not acting with honesty, integrity and transparency……..

Omnibus bills such as this are disrespectful: they obfuscate and deny the Legislative Assembly and the public time to thoroughly study them………

Little attention is paid to the existential crisis of climate change, caused by emissions of both carbon dioxide and methane.The latest report indicates that this year and next with the El Nino effect are likely to be the hottest ever; Nova Scotia will be subjected to fires, droughts, floods, high winds and coastal erosion with ever increasing frequency and mounting costs…….

Greed for wealth, power or prestige does not promote Love, Justice and Care for Creation.  Such motives undermine compassion, care of the most vulnerable, honesty, integrity and transparency in government. Jesus overturned the tables in the temple when he saw that an institution intended to serve Love had lost its legitimacy through the greed of the powerful. He held them to account at the risk of his own life……..

I will close with this relevant quotation by Chief Luther Standing Bear, Lakota Sioux:

 “The elders were wise. They knew that man’s heart, away from nature, becomes hard; they knew that lack of respect for growing, living things soon led to a lack of respect for humans, too.”

Earth Week 2023 – Together for the Love of Creation

During the week of April 16 – 23, engage in a climate justice activity…praying, learning, acting. To find out more or put your event on the map, click on the link above.

What are you doing for Earth day? Here is one event to enjoy:

There is much that needs Advocacy in our own province and so many have been doing that in response to the provincial budget and it’s many cuts and ramifications. Our Advocacy Editors remind us we also live as part of a global community that needs support.

Trees provide endless benefits to urban environments. They bring shade, clean air, flood protection, climate benefits, health benefits, and more. As summers get hotter, we will rely on them even more. Protect 40-70 affordable homes in a unique historic neighbourhood of First Nations, youth shelters, co-ops, heritage, affordable housing, business. Save the 80 historic trees that slow traffic, reduce noise, calm drivers, clean air,  give shade & beauty. Remind HRM: it is not a done deal.

The urban forest in Toronto is irreplaceable. There are hundreds of thousands of trees here, and more than half located on private land. Protections are needed, and the Toronto City Council will soon be updating their tree protection bylaw. Hearing from supporters of urban forests can help shift decisions in the right direction.

Grassy Narrows has been fighting for justice for over 50 years. From 1962 to 1970, uncontrolled mercury was discharged into the headwaters of the Wabigoon River in Northern Ontario. Community members were poisoned and it’s considered one of the worst cases of environmental poisoning in Canadian history. Grassy Narrows is after restoring their community and way of life, but threats are still present from mining encroaching and ideas of nuclear waste disposal in the headwaters. Add your name to tell federal and provincial governments to compensate the community, shut down the mill that continues to worsen the mercury crisis, respect the protected area, end threats from mining and industry, and to respect that nuclear waste disposal is not wanted.

Tell Mexican lawmakers to move ahead with banning cephalopod farming across the country. Octopus are amazing creatures capable of problem-solving and tool use. They are solitary and suffer immensely in captivity. More than half die before they are sold, and a third of this is from cannibalism, which shows the deeply unnatural living conditions. Octopus farming comes with environmental issues like wastewater pollution, low oxygen dead zones due to algal bloom, diseases spreading to wild populations, and marine food source depletion. Let’s lend octopus one of our arms by signing the petition encouraging Mexico to become the second Latin American country to propose banning octopus farming nationally.  

Recycling

Hello everyone. Although it is Holy week, the e-news writers need to get their articles in before we go off to what we call the “Easter Marathon” here in the Parish of Blandford.

We have been extremely lucky to start a shared ministry with the Parish of Hubbards. Our priest in charge, Rev. Esther, has been keeping both parishes on the straight and narrow. Here is a note to clergy looking for a new ministry. The job listing is out and we need someone to lead two busy but small parishes. You might even talk me into being enviro rep for two parishes.

First today, I have an article on how the two provinces have a shared ministry” of shared environment concerns. Then a bit of humour follows.

Shared Recycling Priorities: Two Provinces, One Good Habit

Grandma likes to remind folks that good stewardship doesn’t stop at the end of your driveway. It stretches across fences, across counties, and in our case, across two provinces: Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.

While each province has its own recycling rules and blue-bag quirks (and yes, Grandma still double-checks the fridge door chart), the priorities behind them are remarkably similar.

First and foremost: keep waste out of landfills.
Both provinces understand that landfills are not bottomless pits. Reducing what goes in them extends their life, lowers costs, and protects soil and water. Recycling, composting, and reuse are the goal in each province.

Extended Producer Responsibility matters.
Nova Scotia and PEI both believe that companies should help manage the packaging they create. Beverage containers, paint, electronics, tires, and household hazardous waste are all handled through stewardship programs. Grandma appreciates this. It is simple; if you make the mess, you help clean it up.

Organics belong in the ground, not the garbage.
Both provinces strongly encourage composting. Food scraps, yard waste, and paper products return nutrients to the soil instead of producing methane in landfills. It is a way to feed the earth instead of taking from her.

Plastics are a shared headache.
Reducing single-use plastics is a priority on both sides of the Northumberland Strait. Nova Scotia and PEI have taken steps to limit plastic bags and encourage reusable alternatives. Recycling what plastic can be processed and reducing what we don’t need in the first place, that’s a work in progress, but a shared one.

Reuse is just as important as recycling.
Thrift stores, repair cafés, refill stations, and creative re-use projects are growing in both provinces. Grandma knows that the greenest item is the one you already own. Passing things along keeps resources circulating and communities connected.

Education makes it work.
Clear signage, school programs, community workshops, and plain-language guides help everyone do better. Both provinces invest in helping people understand the why, not just the where, of recycling.

In the end, Nova Scotia and PEI are rowing (pun intended) in the same direction. The systems may look a little different, but the heart of the work is shared: reduce waste, respect resources, and leave the place better than we found it.

Grandma says if two provinces can agree on that, the rest is just sorting.

Grandma Has a Funny Story (wait for it…)

You know Grandma loves to learn new things.

There’s another group I’ve grown quite fond of. They keep calling me a “Grandma image,” and I was just about ready to give them a piece of my mind, because I am not an image, this is me, like it or not, when one of them said:

“Well… a lot of us don’t have that Grandma stuff.”

Now that stopped me.

“What on earth is ‘Grandma stuff’?” I asked.

“Oh, you know… the way you use newspaper to make planting pots or cut up a plastic bottle to make something useful. The way you make us feel like we could cook something, even when we have no idea how.”

“But that’s just simple stuff!” I said.

“Nope,” he told me. “Especially for kids our age. You just talk to us. That’s why we want you to do a podcast.”

“A podcast?” I said. “You want Grandma to do one of those fancy podcasts?”

“Yep. Training’s Thursday night. You can join on Teams, no need to leave Nana. All you need is your computer… and a mic.”

So, Grandma went to the training. They use a program called, “Audacity” which is free for anyone and there are a lot of online training programs. That much I understand even if it will take a bit of practise. I ordered myself a $25 microphone, nothing too fancy, and started working on a script. They want me to talk 30 minutes

And of course, this idea shows up right in the middle of Seed Share season!

But what really convinced me was this: it’s been proven that even knowing one person is on your side can make a real difference in a young person’s life.

Alright… now for the funny part.

I worked away on my script while waiting for the microphone to arrive. When it finally did, I waited for a quiet moment, set everything up, saw the green light come on, opened Audacity, and started recording.

Nothing.

No sound. Not a whisper came up on the recording.

So I did what any determined Grandma would do.

I reread the manual.
I disabled other microphones.
I restarted the computer.
I enabled everything again.

Everything looked perfect.

Still no sound.

By this point, I was just a tiny bit frustrated. So, I decided to pack it in for the day and maybe ask the producer what I was doing wrong.

As I gently took the microphone apart…

I saw it.

The volume control.

On the microphone itself.

Dear Lord… could it really be that simple?

Yes. Yes, it could.

Lesson learned:
You can learn something new—like podcasting—even at 76.

Also… it helps if you turn the microphone on.

Now then, grandbabies and other adults of any age

What are you going to learn today?

…………………………..

No craft or recipe this week, my dears. It’s a different kind of holy busy over here.

There have been a few last-minute requests for seeds for Easter services, and I find myself sitting in the middle of it all, tubs of seed packets to my right, a box of luggage tags and string for planting kits to my left, and the printer happily spitting out labels for lettuce seeds. Somewhere behind me, a seed bin is perched just a little too confidently on top of a cupboard.

And truth be told, Grandma is in her glory.

May the days ahead bring you soft sunshine, signs of new life, and a gentle nudge toward spring.

Happy Spring, my dears.
Grandma is sending hugs