It is hard to turn on the radio today and not hear a story about environmental issues.  The question I am struck by is – how we do steer the course of this unprecedented wave of public support, passion and interest in re-examining our relationship with the planet, to ensure lasting change?  This is a question that we will be investigating at our upcoming Social Change Institute, and is the question driving us to launch our new Canadian Environmental Leadership Program this fall.

Nationally, Canadians ranked the environment as the top priority and concern, eclipsing health for the first time in history, with 74% of Canadians saying the Stephen Harper government is doing poorly on the file.  While in British Columbia, Gordon Campbell delivered a throne speech that promised the equivalent of an environmental U-turn on climate change.   So while it seems that environmental advocates no longer have to struggle to get attention for these issues, there are now a series of more challenging questions before us.  How do we direct all this attention to making sound policy change and real changes in our behavior that don’t just end up as band-aid solutions?  How do we ensure that our governments don’t merely “greenwash” to appease the public concern?  And how do we engage Canadians in a deeper evaluation of our individual and collective lifestyle choices, so that our debate isn’t limited to whether or not to change to compact-fluorescent light bulbs? 

For many of us who have worked to raise awareness about policies that are threatening our planet, this attention and interest is a welcome surprise. But it is critical that we harness it now, in order to catalyze the necessary cultural shift towards truly sustainable, less consumptive social and economic systems.
   
In light of this, we are offering our Canadian Environmental Leadership Program, October 24-31 at Hollyhock Centre on Cortes Island.  The agenda will be packed with relevant course work in media and communication skills, strategy development, government relations, building effective partnerships, and much more.   This course is designed for current and emerging leaders in the environmental movement and our call for applicants starts now.

We now have two new additions to HLI.  In the office we have been joined by Rhian Walker as our new Director of Programming.   Rhian (think of “Ian” and put an R in front of it) brings 7 years of strategy and communications experience and is a blues singer on the weekends.

On the home front, Natalie gave birth to a healthy baby girl and is enjoying discovering the joys of motherhood along with her little Kaia.

Hope this springs find you healthy and happy and that you get sometime to enjoy the beautiful blossoms.