Contemplating the Climate Welcome

If I can pull it off in the midst of gathering grading, I am tempted to go to Ottawa for three days to participate in most of the Climate Welcome which is being organized for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau:

The Climate Welcome protest, organized by 350.org Canada, is modeled on the 2011 Tar Sands Action sit-ins at the White House that led to the arrests of over 1,200 people and helped elevate the Keystone XL pipeline as the largest environmental fight in a generation.

See also: Trudeau’s big test in Paris: oil industry profits or real action on climate change?

It’s a bit odd to see it billed as “organized by 350.org Canada”, since I don’t think that is really an organization so much as one 350.org employee with a Twitter account and Facebook page. If it’s going to be another “grassroots movement to solve the climate crisis”, they are going to need some members and an organizational structure. If that’s starting to happen in Ottawa tomorrow, it could be reason enough to be present.

Author: Milan

In the spring of 2005, I graduated from the University of British Columbia with a degree in International Relations and a general focus in the area of environmental politics. In the fall of 2005, I began reading for an M.Phil in IR at Wadham College, Oxford. Outside school, I am very interested in photography, writing, and the outdoors. I am writing this blog to keep in touch with friends and family around the world, provide a more personal view of graduate student life in Oxford, and pass on some lessons I've learned here.

6 thoughts on “Contemplating the Climate Welcome”

  1. P.S. Most local 350 affiliates have their names in the form 350 Maine or MIT 350.

    I think the approach used by Toronto350.org makes a lot more sense.

    First, people have pride in where they come from, so it’s smart to have the place name first.

    Second, it makes a lot more sense for website addresses. Toronto350.org is a URL which you can buy and which contains 350.org. Something like 350Canada.org seems less intuitive to me.

  2. The selection of Climate Welome as a name is inspired – the positive reference. Trudeau’s election illustrated how Canadians wanted to vote for the positive

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