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“Fill the hill” points to bigger issue

October 27, 2009
By Allie Fonarev

Western students were among the crowds who filled Parliament Hill last Saturday to rally the government on climate change.

Between 2000 and 3000 people attended the event, which hosted speakers, performances and information on environmental issues pertaining to Canada.

“It was to rally support against Canada’s inaction on the world stage,” said Andrew Healey, organizer of the London Fill the Hill constituency. “Our specific goals were for Canada to clean up its act,” he added.

The event was affiliated with the International Day of Climate Action, which held rallies across the world to bring attention to the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. The Conference will highlight climate issues and strive towards forming an international agreement on carbon emission reduction.

According to Healey, who is a fourth-year Western student in media, information and technoculture, the purpose of the rally was to rebuke the government for not ratifying Kyoto, for continuing to support the tar sands in Alberta and for general Canadian inaction.

However, Ed Holder, Member of Parliament for London West, warns the blame does not lie solely with the government.

“Whenever there’s a government in power […] they’re the target […] What tends to happen is people point more to where your deficiencies are as opposed to where your positives are,” Holder said.

He also emphasized the amount of garbage left on the Hill after the protest.

“I wonder where the personal responsibility is,” Holder quipped.

He acknowledged there are issues to address in regards to climate change, but maintained the federal government has to determine practical solutions to balance the economy as well as address environmental issues.

“I think this current government is doing some very significant things to accomplish this,” Holder argued.

However, Glen Pearson, MP for London North Center, said the government will not achieve the targets other nations are hoping to meet in Copenhagen. He suggested a more co-operative and non-partisan mechanism to meet emissions targets, since allowing businesses to voluntarily reduce their own emissions will not work.

“My hope is that [the rally] will sponsor more events and the overall amalgamation of these events will change the Harper government,” Healey said.

According to David Blair, associate professor of political science at Western, this type of activism may not instill the exact change the protesters seek. However, he explained advocacy is still significant in increasing the potential for change.

“People are not going to be immediately directly involved in this problem in the world, but are showing concern for a problem that is going to affect lots of other people in the world, and that’s significant,” Blair said.

Gordon McBean, professor of geography at Western and member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, also noted the importance of students to keep the issue fresh.

“If they’re not out there shouting and screaming then the industrial lobby voices will be the only ones heard,” he said.

Healey noted while he believed the government may not listen, the protest will act as a catalyst and inspire more events to happen.

“While [environmentalism] has a deep respect for nature, at this point it is about looking out for future generations of Canadians,” he added.

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