From Climate Anxiety to Political Action

From Climate Anxiety to Political Action - theHumm February 2022

By Kris Riendeau

JJ Davis is an Arnprior resident who recently started a petition to demonstrate community support for a presentation she gave to Arnprior Town Council regarding the lack of a municipal climate action plan. She presented on January 24 after drumming up significant support for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, which she feels should be top of mind for any municipality. Here’s how JJ started turning her climate anxiety into political action.

theHumm: I understand you’re relatively new to the area but have connections to it. What brought you and your family to the Ottawa Valley?

JJ Davis: When the pandemic hit, my husband and I ran a small farm in Hamilton, Ontario. I also worked at an incredible restaurant at the time. Sean and I traded off childcare. Sean would work the farm in the day and watch Simon, our then three-year-old, in the evenings when I went to work. When the severity of the coronavirus became more real, Sean and I noticed that working harder was not yielding the typical results we were used to. Putting in more hours and pivoting to virtual farmers’ markets and rallying all the farmers in our network and trying new and different methods just was not creating anything sustainable. We felt very stuck and very alone.

Sean and I had talked, well really argued, about moving to the Ottawa Valley to be closer to his parents, but we thought maybe in three to five years’ time. The pandemic was a lot of things, but I am grateful that it afforded me the time and pressure to figure out what mattered most. And the idea of my children growing up with a big, tightly knit family around the corner won out. So we sold our house, left our business and set up shop here.

Tell me a bit about your background and the factors that have inspired you to take political action on behalf of the environment.

I didn’t ever think I would be thankful for my “climate anxiety”, but that is really what pushed me to finally do something. I would say there is my existence before the most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report that stated a “code red for humanity”, and there is after. Before the IPCC report, I would say I was informed about climate change but had to turn a blind eye. It felt too big for me to take on and I was too small and too busy. Before the IPCC report I existed with an underpinning of daily anxiety about decisions I made, like packaging I brought home and my consumption habits. But after the IPCC report, when I came home in tears and sat on my kitchen counter crying to Sean about how children are going to grow up in a world where mass migrations are a common experience because we are not on target to keep the global temperature rise to the acceptable 1.5 degrees, something clicked. That anxiety was pressurized into action. I can’t affect national greenhouse gas emissions, I can’t stop federal oil subsidies, but I can look at what I am doing and work as a community to reduce emission here. And that starts with the local municipality.

Many individuals, businesses and organizations are already working hard to mitigate climate change. How does a municipal plan fit into this mix, and what kind of message does it send to higher levels of government?

Having a municipal plan to identify and reduce greenhouse gas emissions demonstrates to those individuals, businesses and organizations that their town supports them. That they are not alone in trying to create a livable future. Arnprior’s lack of a climate action plan is an act of leaving those individuals, businesses and organizations out to dry. Having a municipal plan in place shows that the town is doing its part to fight against climate change by taking control of what a municipality can change. Fifty percent of greenhouse gas emissions come from municipalities. Creating a climate action plan and a committee for climate change considerations is how Arnprior can say “we understand the risks and are doing our part”. Municipalities can protect and encourage green spaces, secure energy-efficient practices within arenas and community centres, and incentivise green development that wouldn’t depend on fossil fuels for heating and cooling. We all have a part to play, and municipalities need to step up.

The message it sends to higher levels of government is that Arnprior wants a plan that is right for Arnprior, one that supports its residents now. It shows higher levels of government that we care about our future and we can’t wait for a decision to trickle down to us at a municipal level. It shows everyone that Arnprior takes its role in climate change seriously and can provide support for residents who are just as anxious as I.

Why was it important to have support in the form of petition signatures before presenting to municipal council? Are there other ways in which concerned residents can assist you?

The petition is an extension of your voice. By signing it, I am symbolically bringing you to the council meeting. With the petition in hand at the council meeting it is not just me asking for a climate action plan, but hundreds of community members as well. I know a lot of people don’t know what to do about climate change and I know how overwhelming and paralyzing the behemoth can feel (think back to me crying on my kitchen countertop). But by signing this petition and telling the town of Arnprior to create a plan to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, you can take action against climate change.

If you are that concerned resident, please email me at jjh.davis@gmail.com or join the nascent Facebook group Ottawa Valley Climate Action, where I hope to create community support for local action. The group will act as a think tank for ways to fight climate change at a local level and provide support for those looking to do more.

Chris Cavan —Rooted to the Sky - theHumm February 2022

By Sally Hansen

Art… and Soul

Almonte artist Chris Cavan’s exuberant watercolour paintings are a testament to the essential role that trees play in her creativity and overall wellbeing. Trees have sustained and inspired her since she was a young girl, and dominate her art, her poetry and her writings. On the advice of Almonte “Energizer Bunny” and fellow artist Neil Carleton, Chris compiled an extensive binder of her art, photographs and original writings to accompany her recent art exhibit at the Corrid......

From Climate Anxiety to Political Action - theHumm February 2022