A Saturday afternoon Earth Day celebration in Stratford’s Market Square will be an opportunity to learn about practical and tangible ways local residents can address climate change at a grassroots level, organizers say.
A Saturday afternoon Earth Day celebration in Stratford’s Market Square will be an opportunity to learn about practical and tangible ways local residents can address climate change at a grassroots level, organizers say.
“(Our) greatest asset for dealing with the climate emergency is community,” said Bill James-Abra, co-founder of the local environmental advocacy group, Climate Momentum.
“The whole reason for Climate Momentum is to gather together community folk that share a concern for the climate and want to be doing something practical and tangible in their own lives, in their own neighborhood, in their own city. We want to provide one another with support and resources to make that happen.”
Surrounded by music, food and art during one of the volunteer-based group’s most robust events since 2019 will be eight community organizations willing to share information about local climate-saving activities. Members of Cycle Stratford will be available to talk about active transportation, the Rotary Club of Stratford will have information about plant-based diets, and the Stratford Perth Tree Trust will be engaging visitors about urban forests, to name a few.
Two guest speakers are also lined up. Jessika Guy, owner of the eco-conscious Green Hair Spa, and Lucas Tingle, a regenerative farmer and garden educator with the Local Community Food Centre, will share their thoughts on the importance of sustainability in business and agriculture.
Although he’s not a natural public speaker, Tingle said Friday he appreciates the opportunity to share more details about his work overseeing the Local’s community gardens near Dufferin and Oak streets. For the past several years, he’s been teaching about and experimenting with natural food-growing techniques beginning to pick up traction as the environmental and financial impact of modern, large-scale agriculture begins to become more apparent.
“We’re teaching people in our community how to grow food in a sustainable way so that we don’t have to ship it in from many kilometers (outside our city),” Tingle said. “As food prices rise, we can see that’s going to become more and more relevant moving forward.
“The time has come now where we’re sort of in a position where we need to make changes,” he added. “Primarily, (regenerative farming) is about conserving the top soil, conserving the Earth in the production of food. I think the more human beings get out of the way and allow natural processes to happen, the better and richer our environment is going to be for it.”
The very first Earth Day, a demonstration supporting the protection of the environment, took place on April 22, 1970. Organized globally by EarthDay.org, the annual event has since expanded, taking place over multiple days each April in cities across the globe.
According to Environmental Defence, Stratford’s event Saturday will be one of more than 50 events taking place in Ontario this weekend. Community groups across the province will be hosting rallies, parades, hikes, cleanups and educational events focused on issues such as car-dependent urban sprawl, protection of lakes and rivers, and strengthening climate change policies.
“I think it’s big,” James-Abra said. “A lot of organizations like ourselves … are coming out of the pandemic and jumping at the chance to be able to do real life, face-to-face in-person events that can get the energy going again. It feels good to see folks – with the coming of spring, with the easing of pandemic restrictions – being able to pick up the chase and say, ‘OK let’s get to work on making the changes we need to make.’”
IF YOU GO
What: Earth Day Street Party, organized by local environment advocates Climate Momentum
When: April 23, noon – 3 pm
Where: Stratford’s Market Square
more info: facebook.com/climatemomentum/