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Mike Schreiner, leader of the Green Party of Ontario, made the following statement for Earth Day 2018.
“This Earth Day weekend, over 800 supporters joined me in welcoming Elizabeth May, David Suzuki, and a talented group of artists to Guelph’s largest ever political rally. Dr. Suzuki said something that struck me: “In an ideal world, we wouldn’t need a Green Party because Green values should form the basis of everything that we do.”
His words remind me of how we need to all work together to tackle the environmental challenges that lie ahead of us.
What unites Greens globally, in fact unites us all, is a recognition of our responsibility to protect air, water and land. These are the building blocks of healthy communities and prosperous economies, not things that can be sacrificed in pursuit of those ends.
Greens are being elected around the world, and across Canada there are now Green MLAs in New Brunswick, PEI and British Columbia. The momentum is building. As people in Ontario reject the cynical status quo, they are being inspired by our vision for a more inclusive and sustainable society that puts people and planet first.
It is unfortunate that in 2018, the health of our environment is not part of everyday political conversation. You can rest assured that in this upcoming provincial election, I will defend our air, water and land. I will not compromise our environmental principles to satisfy a narrow-minded and outdated view of the economy, because you and I know that without a clean environment we have no economy.
Thanks to all of you who are working to make our province a better place, today and every day.” Happy Earth Day. On June 7th, Let’s Make History.”