All posts by stephanie

Great news from a couple of days ago. There is a long ways to go on reducing pollution (plastic and other) – this is a bit step in the right direction. Hopefully this is the start of many other, big changes in the right direction. 🙂
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/oct/24/european-parliament-approves-ban-on-single-use-plastics-uk-eu-brexit?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_WordPress

Glad to see that the federal government is starting to move on climate action. I admit that I am shocked at how many provinces are resisting, including some that I thought were more progressive than what they have shown in this process.   This is not enough, and much more will need to be done, but it’s a start. 🙂
Trudeau promises rebates as Ottawa moves to levy carbon tax on provinces outside the climate plan
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/tasker-carbon-tax-plan-trudeau-1.4874258
Shared via the CBC News Android App

Great news! I hope this passes, and I would love to see it spread further. I believe that there are countless more sustainable options to single use plastic – straws, for example, when needed could be made from something other than plastic.  Hopefully North America will follow soon after. 🙂
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/oct/22/ban-on-plastic-straws-stirrers-and-cotton-buds-pollution-could-come-into-force-by-2019?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_WordPress

Great ideas! I especially like the idea of restaurants offering reusable containers which can be returned at any time. Doesn’t count on customers always having reusable dishes with them when they want to pick something up, so it should have a much higher success rate than other options.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/zero-waste-takeout-1.4867042
Shared via the CBC News Android App

The pledge founder wants to encourage more medical professionals to learn about the power of a plant-based diet.
I love this idea! I would love to see it spread further! 🙂
https://www.plantbasednews.org/post/500-doctors-plant-based-one-week

Follow up from earlier post. Key quotes…

The new research, published in the journal Nature, is the most thorough to date and combined data from every country to assess the impact of food production on the global environment. It then looked at what could be done to stop the looming food crisis.

The researchers found a global shift to a “flexitarian” diet was needed to keep climate change even under 2C, let alone 1.5C. This flexitarian diet means the average world citizen needs to eat 75% less beef, 90% less pork and half the number of eggs, while tripling consumption of beans and pulses and quadrupling nuts and seeds. This would halve emissions from livestock and better management of manure would enable further cuts.
In rich nations, the dietary changes required are ever more stark. UK and US citizens need to cut beef by 90% and milk by 60% while increasing beans and pulses between four and six times.

NOTE: These numbers are only measure to limit increases to 2C, while an increase of 1.5C  is seen as the realistic cap. Therefore, based on my understanding, the percentage decreases listed above are a very conservative estimate, and the 1.5C calculations would require even greater cuts in all areas. Essentially, that amounts to a whole foods, plant-based diet, either completely or nearly completely, for many/most/all people, with the greatest cuts coming from the wealthiest countries.

Prof Peter Smith at the University of Aberdeen, who was also not part of the research team, said: “We know food choices are very personal, and that behaviour change can be difficult to encourage, but the evidence is now unequivocal – we need to change our diets if we are to have a sustainable future. The fact that it will also make us healthier makes it a no-brainer.” (Bold mine.)

………..
Huge reduction in meat-eating ‘essential’ to avoid climate breakdown
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/oct/10/huge-reduction-in-meat-eating-essential-to-avoid-climate-breakdown?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_WordPress

With the latest reports, it is clear, again that climate action can not be delayed. Major changes are needed, and there is very little time left to prevent catastrophic climate change that will seriously limit the quality of life that we pass on to our children and future generations.
Combined from recommendations of others, and a few of my own thoughts, here are my top recommendations (not an exhaustive list) for things that we can all do right now:

• Switch to a whole foods, plant-based diet. Whether you go 100% or just part way, this will help. Cut red meat and processed etc first, then keep going to reduce/eliminate other meat, dairy and eggs. Use local/organic as much as possible, for sourcing food. (Naturally, the further you go, the better, but every step is better than nothing. So, don’t be intimidated by the end goal. Take it one step at a time, and you may surprise yourself with how easy it is to switch!)
  • Let’s imagine switching to plant-based for school cafeterias, church potlucks or any of a variety of other places, in addition to what we do at home.
• Reduce/eliminate single-use plastic etc as much as possible.
• Live simply/downsize in whatever ways work for your household. 🙂
• Transition to more public transit/electric cars and away from gas cars: the sooner the better.
• Seriously support green energy projects (solar panels on your roof, wind farms etc) and help to end support for pipelines/fossil fuels/nuclear etc. Add BullFrog Power (or other similar) to your house etc if you haven’t already.
• Elect goverments that will seriously act on climate change: now, not just at some distant election far off into the future. No other gains that a goverment might offer are worth stalling on climate action. In Canada, supporting proportional representation is likely our best bet to get more Greens elected. (Check LeadNow for more info on PR.)
• Think back to where you were a decade ago, and imagine 10 years in the future: It’s not a long time. Waiting until a different life stage (eg when the kids are grown/when I get a promotion/when…) will likely be too late, and changes will be more expensive than they are now. So, let’s get excited about what we can do together! 🙂

Remember that there are sometimes contradictions that we will face (eg sometimes it’s hard to buy nuts and seeds that aren’t packaged in plastic.)  Also, to be clear, I am not asking anybody to do things that are bad for them. So, if you are allergic to chickpeas, I am not asking you to start eating hummus every day. If you already live in a small space, them I am, naturally, not asking you to downsize.  I do believe, however, that most of us have some space in our lives to make changes – some will be easier and some will be less convenient, but there is lots that we can  and must do. This is about what we can each do – individually and collectively. Let’s focus on what steps we are able to take, and not on what we can’t do. This is achievable, if we all do our best together. 🙂
There’s lots of coverage out there, and I’m not going to list them all here. Here are a couple to start with:
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-45775309

“Keeping to the preferred target of 1.5C above pre-industrial levels will mean “rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society.”

http://gu.com/p/9tfpn
 

Hi all,
Since my last update (around 10 days ago), we have been averaging 15-20 signatures/day, with approx 30/day in the last few days. We started this stretch around 625 signatures, and are now at 788 and counting!
Thank you all for your support. Let’s keep it up! 🙂
SJM
https://www.change.org/p/doug-ford-end-discriminatory-funding-for-catholic-public-private-schools-in-ontario

Excellent article on the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/sep/13/the-business-of-voluntourism-do-western-do-gooders-actually-do-harm . Well worth reading.
Here are a few quotes:

Voluntourism may be fuelled by noble feelings, but it is built on perverse economics. Many organisations offer volunteers the chance to dig wells, build schools and do other construction projects in poor villages. It’s easy to understand why it’s done this way: if a charity hired locals for its unskilled work, it would be spending money. If it uses volunteers who pay to be there, it’s raising money.
But the last thing a… village needs is imported unskilled labour. People are desperate for jobs. Public works serve the community better and last longer when locals do them. Besides, long-term change happens when people can solve their own problems, rather than having things done for them.

What puts children in crisis isn’t something hugs can solve. Andrea Freidus, an assistant professor of anthropology at the University of North Carolina, wrote that voluntourism gets in the way of recognising the structural issues that create humanitarian crises. “My research suggests that students who engage in these programmes actually contribute towards the mystification of larger systems that produce inequality, poverty, particular patterns of disease distribution and various forms of violence.”
In a 2012 essay on what he dubbed “the White Saviour Industrial Complex,” the novelist Teju Cole pleaded for humility. It is “not about justice,” Cole wrote. “It is about having a big emotional experience that validates privilege.” Voluntourism, he argued, perpetuates the myth that change happens as a result of expressions of caring from rich white people.  [Bold mine.]

I have always had concerns about this kind of trip that still seems to be happening. I certainly agree that anybody who wants to get educated on global issues/development etc should do so (using reputable sources, naturally.) However, we need to separate out our own desire for education from tourism and doing actual development work through formal systems with qualified, professional staff.
So, let’s commit to separating out our goals: adventure, holidays, tourism, work, education etc all have value, but generally not in the same trip, which will likely do more harm than good if we combine them when they should be distinct goals.  Systems changes are needed, but are far bigger (and often less glamorous), than anything that can be done in short trips done by well-intentioned by often misdirected outsiders.  Let’s make sure that what we are contributing is actually making the world a better place, and truly putting others first, even when that’s the seemingly more mundane choice. That’s worth so much more than the chance to post some pictures to Facebook. 🙂
 

I have been thinking of writing this post for a while, and struggled with how to articulate my thoughts on this. So, I’m going to do my best, and trust that you will give me the benefit of the doubt in anything that is unclear or poorly worded. I’m aiming to look at systems and patterns here, so please stick with me and we’ll see what we can figure out together. 🙂

NOTE: I am intentionally not naming specific organizations here, and will often leave specific details out. I am not trying to publicly shame here – in fact, I’m trying to do the opposite. I’m trying to have an open discussion about a system-wide problem, without specifically implicating anybody. If you know me and know organizations that I have been connected with, please do not try to guess which item might have happened where/when/with which people – you will probably be wrong and that’s missing the point of this exercise.:)

Problem: In the last few years, as I have shifted into working freelance (still trying to pick up more projects, but that’s beside the point), I have been connected with a lot of organizations – some new to me, some not. Most, if not all, are organizations that are doing amazing work, and that I have lots of respect for in many ways. The list includes NGOs, political parties, small for-profits, churches, organizations both looking for funding and dispersing funding and others. Not every organization that I’m connected with has demonstrated the problems that I will be outlining below. However, I have observed clear trends, and a very high percentage have been observed doing at least some of these things.
In my contacts with various organizations (again, many of which I highly respect), I have seen a shockingly high amount of work that just doesn’t seem to meet the bare minimum bar for how I think great organizations should operate. A sampling of what I have seen (from multiple places, in different fields and regions), includes, in rough categories:
– Serious and/or almost complete failure to recruit and/or utilize and/or hold volunteers. This includes, but is not limited to, not promoting ways for people to get involved, not giving meaningful work or failing to even try to keep them engaged with the organization after a certain task/item/event is completed. It includes treating external experts with undue suspicion and refusing to seriously consider recommendations after bringing in outside support. It seems to be that we should be opening the doors wide to new supporters, and this is a key piece in that puzzle, and one that we can’t afford to be slack on.
– Consistent gaps in basic admin when tasks are being worked on eg replies that are incomplete or don’t actually answer the question, complete failure to read or reply to emails etc etc. Total failure to even reply to basic emails has happened to me so often in the last 3 years that I have quit counting. If I’m donating my time to help your organization get a task done, I don’t think that I should have to beg for you to reply to my emails with the info I need to get the job done.  🙂
– Donor/project relationships: I have seen many organizations fund many great projects over the years. At the same time, I have also seen funders focus on only either the minute details (eg accounting for every penny and indicator) or the very broad picture (eg the project looks nice on the website, and/or somebody we know likes it, so let’s support it.) Both of those pieces can be valuable, but they are not the whole picture in terms of organizational health. What I see missing is the middle: Is the project really strong in terms of all big picture indicators including finances, admin structures, balanced relationship between expats and locals, organizational sustainability beyond this funding cycle etc etc. To me, this middle piece needs to be strengthened significantly, and will benefit both donors and projects. And yet, what I’m seeing is projects hiding this piece (either actively or simply by neglect, because they are never asked for this type of info), and donors actively looking the other way, when some hard questions about important topics would benefit everyone and help build stronger organizations which are better equipped to fulfill their mandate. 
A basic example to illustrate the point would be an organization that is struggling to meet day to day demands (ie admin staff, basic operating costs etc), but is promoting an expansion to appeal to what they believe donors want to hear – a situation which is not to anybody’s benefit, and yet still happens. (I had a program rep respond to a concern that I raised by dismissing it, saying, paraphrased slightly “our  program has a 100% success rate, so you must be imagining the concerns you have raised because they don’t/can’t exist in this program because it’s perfect.”) I could give countless other examples, but I won’t.  You get the point: no program is perfect – let’s focus on the important areas and see where that get us. 🙂
Here’s the summary: NGOs are doing great work, and are perpetually underfunded, which needs to change. Staff are underpaid and overworked and things fall through the cracks. At the same time, one piece of the solution, in my opinion, is to open the doors more widely and bring in more supporters, to share the burden, while increasing transparency and accountability. Instead, I am seeing organizations do the opposite, acting more like an elite club than a welcoming community of supporters working towards shared goals for the common good.
I hope that what I have been observing is an anomaly – although it has happened surprisingly often in fairly diverse settings. So, this is my challenge to all of us in the NGO world – if ever unity and inclusion was needed, now is the time. Let’s open the doors wide, and bring in new supporters. Let’s be honest and open about challenges we face, instead of hiding gaps in the hopes that funders won’t notice, and then work hard to change before tackling something new and expanding again. Funders, please focus on the pieces that really matter, helping to build relationships with organizations that are well-balanced, open and organizationally sustainable. This is not a comprehensive list, but hopefully it will help to start a discussion and find positive ways to move forward.