Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
Daniel T'seleie, who is with the Keepers of Water, and Indigenous Climate Action, both Indigenous-led organisation focusing on climate change action, said climate change solutions on the agenda for COP27, like carbon trading, don't address what really needs to be done. "The only way to stop climate change," he said, "is to stop the extraction and use of fossil fuels. If that's not the flagship then we're not going to stop the climate crisis."
Autumn was only 12 years old in 2016 when she met with PM Justin Trudeau to address his unfulfilled promise to "protect the water". Since then, she remains vocal on the global stage and at home to advocate for clean drinking water. As the Chief Water Commissioner for Anishinabek Nation in Ontario, Autumn is an outstanding example of what youth are capable of as today's leaders, and the immense impact can achieve.
Despite an early start to summer weather, the City of Toronto revealed it has some 245 water fountains that aren't turned on, something an urban planning advocate says spells a bigger problem for those who rely on public amenities. Mayor John Tory revealed Tuesday only 60 per cent of the city's 700 public water fountains were up and running during recent record-breaking heat spells.
Beautiful spring weather greeted the students at St. Benedict Catholic school May 5 as they performed an Anishinaabe-led ceremonial water walk to raise awareness of the importance and need for protection of water. St. Benedict’s Indigenous support worker and staff member of the school’s Diversity Club, Shannon Agowissa, led students from the school to a water fill station near the Gerry McCroy Countryside Sports Complex. There, they filled a ceremonial copper vessel with water and sang a traditional water song.
After its acclaimed debut at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2020, The Water Walker, which followers the Anishinaabe Indigenous rights advocate Autumn Peltier on a journey to speak in front of the United Nations, has been picked up by HBO Canada and will be available to stream on Crave in April. At only 17, Peltier has over 100,000 Instagram followers and has spoken to prominent world leaders while advocating for safe and easy access to water as a fundamental human right.
While reaffirming Theodore TOO's unwavering commitment to promoting Canada's Maritimes, the tugboat's owner, Blair McKeil, announced today a collaboration with one of the nation's leading water education and conservation advocates, Swim Drink Fish, which will see Theodore TOO play a larger role in promoting several of the organization's initiatives including its Great Lakes Guide. Plans are also in the works to have Theodore TOO actively advocate for employment in Canada's marine and shipbuilding industry in the face of a critical labour shortage through federal and industry-driven revitalization initiatives.
