Bonnie North

My father’s numerous military postings took me and my family all over Europe and North America, and moving so frequently taught me to adapt quickly, as each new posting was culturally distinct from the previous ones.

As a young adult I won awards and leadership skills from my service in the Navy Reserves, while at the same time I attended school and owned and operated a catering business, and later on, I operated a bakery.

In my current marriage, my husband and I shared the privilege of raising our son into his thriving adulthood.

I’m a RNCP, and my emphasis on continuous learning has helped me earn certificates and credits from various institutions, including the University of Guelph, Cornell and MIT.

Now, as I train to be a Vegan Chef, I’m also working on becoming a WFPB, educational, content creator.

I’m an Al Gore Climate Reality Leader, and after my son went off to university, I volunteered with multiple community organizations.

I’ve been a Green candidate four times since 2014, and also ran once as a municipal candidate.

As a GPO member, I was twice elected Deputy Leader, I’m the Central Representative and I’ve served on numerous GPO governance and volunteer committees.

Why do I want to run as a GPO candidate?

Looking back, I realize I’ve almost always been a politically engaged advocate for fairness and justice. Barely a teenager in the ‘70s, I lived in Washington DC and joined my classmates as we opposed the Vietnam War, and at lunchtimes we watched the Watergate Hearings on the cafeteria TV.

As an adult:

• I advocated on behalf of Canadian victims of GlaxoSmithKline’s lies of omission regarding Paxil’s adverse effects,
• I stood up to an unscrupulous landlord who tried to illegally raise our rent,
• I educated and organized my neighbours to push for repairs when a developer cut corners which damaged dozens of houses, and
• I empowered people in our subdivision to stop the school board from needlessly clearcutting a mature forest.

For the past several years, I’ve been working on behalf of municipal, peri-urban food policies, and currently, I’m a founding board member of Barrie’s Urban Pantry, and I also serve on multiple working groups for the Simcoe County Food Council. Both organizations act in support of increasing food security, food literacy, and enabling local food systems.

I know how it feels to be powerless, but I also know how it feels to accomplish positive change. As a potential, future Green MPP, it would be my job to use my experiences to stand up and represent the integrity, equity, and the Clean and Caring Recovery characterized by the Green Party of Ontario.

It would be my honour to run as a GPO candidate again, and I’d be proud to work alongside my fellow Greens as we take action towards building back smarter.

Finally, I want to ensure my son, Gary, inherits a livable planet, and I’m eager to help create that future, one made with genuine compassion for the people and places we love.