CitizenShift
Updates from the basement, courtesy of the CITIZENShift team.
Archive of July, 2008
With all the recent news in the media about youth gang membership, specifically in the Calgary, Alberta area, I find myself surrounded by a topic I know nothing about. Growing up in St. Lambert, a small town on the South Shore of Montreal, gangs and anything related were never a part of my existence. I live in a community made up of mostly seniors and young families. By 9 pm the city is quiet and deserted.
However, with the ongoing discussion of Canadian gangs, I realize this subject does not fall so far from home. The rising statistics of youth gangs in Canadian cities and the negative outcomes as a result, have made me curious to research the subject a little further. Typing “Canadian youth gangs” into Goggle’s search engine, it came up with a list of gangs from around Canada. I was shocked by what I saw. The prairie region of is made up of 108 gangs, the greater Toronto (Ontario) area has 137 and I found 20 here in Montreal (Quebec).
Read the rest of this entry »
Leave a comment
Category : Uncategorized
Written by
Lisa
July 23, 2008
Yes, I believe them when Echo Park Film Center says “cinematic revolution” – sitting outside last night watching super cool multi format movies against their biodiesel/veggie oil converted bus on a East Vancouver side street… freight trucks were driving by, blankets tucked around our legs, the wind was rippling the screen ever so slightly distorting an animation about flying rats… all this real life makes the screening even more delicious!
An animation workshop of drawing on film with talk of love and cinema, meeting old friends and making new ones…makes me realize that sometimes I can spend way too much time inside or alone…creativity is key, yes!…But community is also such a big part of it too!
Read the rest of this entry »
Comments(2)
Category : Uncategorized
Ah, composting…it is smelly, but great for the environment.
We all have our set days of the week for garbage and recycling, but roadside compost pick-up, that’s where it gets a bit hazy. Living near one of the most metropolitan cities in Canada, I cannot come to understand why we still, after all these years, do not have roadside compost pick-up in Montreal, Quebec. I keep hearing excuses, my personal favourite involving the procrastinating response that “it’s coming, it’s coming…” Well, when? This has been going on for years.
I remain puzzled as to why my grandparents living in the small, rural town of Compton, Quebec in the Eastern Townships or my aunt and uncle in St. Margaret’s Bay, Nova Scotia, have all had this service for years, and I am still waiting. True, we could always compost ourselves, yet many Montrealers do not have backyards or gardens to spread the compost once it becomes soil anyways.
It is sad to see just how much garbage my household produces on a regular basis that I know could be composted. Heck, even Post-it notes, unpaid bills, hair, lint, napkins, paper towel, Kleenex tissues, Q-tips, wool socks, fingernail and toenail clippings can be composed, and that’s just naming a few. Interesting… Clearly, I am missing out.
Read the rest of this entry »
Comment (1)
Category : Uncategorized
The community of Joggins, Nova Scotia is rejoicing.
On Monday, July 7th, 2008, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) announced that Joggins fossil cliffs were to become Canada’s fifteenth World Heritage Site. The cliffs hold fossils that date back over a hundred thousand years. Located on the Bay of Fundy and spanning the length of 10 kilometres, this location will likely soon find itself with a rise in tourists.
From July 2nd to the 10th, the 32nd Session of the World Heritage Committee took place in Quebec City, Canada where thirty young people had the opportunity to discover the country’s national heritage. Those who participated in the event traveled across Canada to see and learn about its World Heritage Sites.
Read the rest of this entry »
Leave a comment
Category : Uncategorized
Sure, we can find organic fruits and vegetables in our local supermarkets, putting aside the minute selection, but where can we easily find organic fish? For those attempting to eat ethically, it sure is difficult to do so. Without having to locate a specialty market or drive miles out to an organic farm, I cannot help but wish that sustainable produce in the seafood department were more accessible, especially now that fuel costs are through the roof and driving the extra distance is being highly avoided.
I keep hearing about the rise of endangered fish such as Chilean sea bass, how we should avoid eating farmed salmon, the concerns of mercury levels found in for instance, tuna, and realize that when it comes to eating ethically, we are pretty much on our own. With little support from our local big-branded supermarkets, it comes as no surprise that very few of us are taking the necessary steps to eat organic fish when we can instead buy it cheaper and close to home. We often focus on the short term effect when it comes to what we eat. Few of us look beyond the accessibility of supermarkets and disregard the clear positives that come from eating ethically and organically, this including health benefits and living greener.
Read the rest of this entry »
Leave a comment
Category : Uncategorized
Written by
Lisa
July 10, 2008
I don’t wear deodorant…
Yes, it started as a feminist statement… turned into frugality and then… I learned it was poison.
The feminist in me still believes toiletries in general are a tool of the patriarchy…hair dyes and perfume seem like an obvious chemical bath…(I was told once that the lingering nature of perfume was developed using napalm technology!)
But, upon further investigation: common shampoos, creams and toothpastes are also laced with cancer causing ingredients! YAY!
So, it isn’t just the ladies that are the targets…
Read the rest of this entry »
Comments(3)
Category : Uncategorized
After having traveled for three weeks in France and Italy this summer, I came back home to Quebec, Canada with a new perspective regarding transportation. The manner in which many Europeans opt to get around puts us North Americans to shame. Drive down any bridge, highway, or street in Montreal, and gas guzzlers have a regular presence on the road.
In Europe, not only will you be surrounded by scooters, but Europeans also drive smaller, more fuel-efficient cars than North Americans. SUVs and trucks are nowhere to be found, at least not in the places I frequented.
Another useful mode of transportation there, particularly in France, is the self-serve bike rental system. In both Lyon and Paris I found countless identical bikes lined up next to one another along the streets to be rented, a sight never seen back in Canada. I left wondering why we were so behind on this growing trend and if major Canadian cities would ever implement such a system.
Read the rest of this entry »
Leave a comment
Category : Uncategorized
Don’t get me wrong, Halifax is a great place to live. And work. And play.
But lately the decisions being made by HRM council are enough to make a lady dream of Montreal and its focus on pedestrianism. Two weeks ago the CitizenShift team met in Montreal for one of our tri-annual retreats. Our meeting coincided perfectly with the St-Laurent Street Fair; four days of pedestrian heaven - mango-eating, meat-smoking, bike-riding, terrace-spilling, walk-able, sociable beauty! Montreal acknowledges the importance of events that bring us together in the summertime – right out on the streets!
Halifax has always been considered to be a city that is slightly behind the times. And I’m absolutely delighted with that aspect of HFX city-life most of the time. But when it comes to transportation policy, Halifax needs to clue in to the goings-on in the rest of the world. Halifax needs to look to the examples of more progressive cities and adapt accordingly.
Read the rest of this entry »
Comment (1)
Category : Uncategorized
