This is the first blog in a series on the changes a Green New Deal can spark.
On May 6, the Council of Canadians helped launch the Pact for a Green New Deal, along side dozens of other organizations. Over 50,000 people have since signed the pledge, over 100 organizations have now joined, and 150 town halls have taken place (with many more still planned). This is just the beginning of shaping a Green New Deal.
It’s clear from this upsurge in support, as well as recent polling, that people recognize the urgency of the climate crisis and that a Green New Deal is the kind of solution we need. But what should be in a Green New Deal and how can it help us change course?
We’re working with the Pact to shift the consensus on what’s post politically possible so that science and Indigenous knowledge become the basis for urgent action on our climate emergency. This requires emissions reductions of at least 50% by 2030 and 100% by 2050, in a just transition that leaves no workers, communities, or Indigenous peoples behind.
So far, we’re succeeding in reframing the debate about the climate crisis from incremental to transformational policies that address the interrelated crises of the climate emergency, the rising tide of racism, growing inequality, and the need for system change with the urgency and scale required.
A just transition to change everything
The Pact for a Green New Deal town halls have been bringing people, organizations, movements, and communities together from coast to coast to coast to discuss and define what should and shouldn’t be in a Green New Deal. Thousands of people have started discussing what it could mean for our society and economy.
I’ll be updating this section with an ongoing series of blogs looking at key considerations for a Green New Deal:
A Green New Deal for public health care.
Stay tuned for more to come!
To win a Green New Deal for all requires us to build solidarity across movements. Together, we can build a Green New Deal from the ground up. Will you join us?
Further Reading:
The Green Economy Network’s One Million Climate Jobs campaign
Pull together: a guide to staying under 1.5ºC
Canada needs its own Green New Deal. Here’s what it could look like
Building the movement for good jobs, social justice, and a livable climate
Briarpatch Magazine recently published an important issue on just transition, which addresses a range of issues related to a Green New Deal
