Green Party of Nova Scotia

Building a Sustainable Future Together

Renewable Energy Activists Talk Tidal Power with Experts at Dalhousie Agricultural Campus

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(TRURO) – On Friday night, May 18, experts in tidal power spoke to an audience of renewable energy activists about the future of tidal power in Nova Scotia. The two-hour presentation featured Dr. Richard Karsten, Dr. Shelley MacDougall and Dr. Graham Daborn, non-partisan tidal power experts from the Acadia Tidal Energy Institute. Topics included the state of tidal power technology, cutting-edge site characterization techniques, socio-economic impact of tidal projects, and environmental risk assessment. The panel of tidal power experts also entertained numerous  questions from the audience.

The topic of tidal power in Nova Scotia has entered into election discussion recently with a Fundy area fishing group raising concerns about Cape Sharp Tidal Venture’s plans to temporarily move its tidal power turbine.

Anthony Edmonds, Green Party candidate in Waverley-Fall River-Beaver Bank, organized and promoted the tidal power conference session, and remains optimistic about the future of tidal power in Nova Scotia: “ I was impressed with the scale and depth of the scientific evaluations that have been carried out. As it matures, this technology could become a key part of our transition away from fossil fuel and toward locally sourced renewable energy.”

Added Dr. Thomas Trappenberg, Green Party of Nova Scotia leader, “The Green Party was pleased to support this conference and its objectives. We look forward to a greater public understanding of renewable energy alternatives, as we move toward a post-fossil-fuel future.”

Green Movement Spreads Across Canada

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With Tuesday’s election results from BC confirmed, Canada has now elected six Green Party representatives at the federal and provincial levels. In addition to federal leader Elizabeth May and the three seats in BC, New Brunswick and PEI each have elected a Green MLA. At the municipal level, many, many more have been elected.

“Today’s challenges are beyond the scope of old politics to deal with,” says Green Party of Nova Scotia Leader Thomas Trappenberg. “The Green movement is beyond right-wing / left-wing definitions. It’s about sensible politics, it’s holistic, and it is happening worldwide.”

“With the BC election, we see Greens holding the balance of power. That is a position we are very comfortable with.”

The Green Party of Nova Scotia is running 32 candidates in this election, all across Nova Scotia. Of those, 14 are women. The leader, Dr. Thomas Trappenberg, is running in Clayton Park West, and the deputy leader, Jessica Alexander, is running in Hammonds Plains-Lucasville.

“Nova Scotia has so much coastline, and with forestry, fishing and tourism being so important to our economy, our citizens really understand the challenge of climate change and the need for serious action now to mitigate the effects,” added Trappenberg. “But of course, we aren’t solely about environment. We have a vision for an approach to healthcare that focuses on building health-promoting communities, and provides comprehensive centres across the province that integrate services like primary, mental health care, nurse practitioners, nutritionists and dieticians. We want to support, promote and build local businesses to create a vibrant economy.  We want to implement a guaranteed livable income and a living wage to alleviate poverty.”

“Nova Scotia is a beautiful province. Coal mines are not our future. We want to be leaders in leveraging our natural capital, bringing green jobs, alternative energy, culture and tourism to the forefront.”

About the Green Party of Nova Scotia

The Green Party of Nova Scotia is one of Nova Scotia’s youngest political parties, building on a worldwide movement of Green politics. Originally founded in 2006, the party ran candidates in all provincial elections since then. The Six Principles of Green highlight the core values which inform how GPNS conducts itself in its policies and practices: Ecological Wisdom, Social Justice, Participatory Democracy, Nonviolence, Sustainability, Respect for Diversity.

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For additional information, please contact:
Thomas Trappenberg
Leader, Green Party of Nova Scotia

leader@greenpartyns.ca

Or

Charlene Boyce,
Communications, Green Party of Nova Scotia
media@greenpartyns.ca

Nova Scotians Should Expect Better Democracy

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(Halifax) Dr. Thomas Trappenberg has a message for Nova Scotians: “Strategic voting isn’t true democracy.”

The Green Party of Nova Scotia leader spoke at the group’s AGM on Saturday, April 29, calling on the citizens of the province to vote their principles.

One of the key points in the Green Party’s vision for a better Nova Scotia is to change the electoral system from first-past-the-post to a form of proportional representation.

“What the current system says, essentially, is that your beliefs have to line up all in one of two or three buckets. Plus, the system is designed to be combative. Imagine a collaborative Legislative Assembly. Imagine parties working together for the good of the province, not just in a forced way when there is a minority government. We need better elections, so that we can build better democracy.”

Peter Bevan-Baker, Green Party of PEI leader and MLA, also spoke at the AGM, saying, “If you keep voting for someone you don’t want, to get rid of someone you don’t want, you will keep getting a government you don’t want.”  Bevan-Baker was elected to PEI’s Legislature in May, 2015.

The Green Party of Nova Scotia selected its first thirteen candidates on the weekend, and is currently at 16 with more to be announced. The Green Party platform is set to be released Friday, May 5.  Thomas Trappenberg, who was voted in as party leader last November following several federal campaign runs, will seek office in Clayton Park West, where he has campaigned in the past.

“The Green Party stands for six principles: social justice, participatory democracy, nonviolence, sustainability, ecological wisdom and respect for diversity. All of those reflect the Nova Scotian character – think about the Coady Institute, about the Pugwash Peace Centre, Membertou’s business development work to ensure their sustainability.”

“Don’t vote against something, vote for what you believe in. Nova Scotians deserve to expect better,” said Trappenberg.

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Contact:
Charlene Boyce, Communications
Green Party of Nova Scotia
media@greenpartyns.ca

Green Party Meets to Encourage Nova Scotians to Expect Better

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On April 29, 2017, Green Party members and interested members of the public from across Nova Scotia will gather at Dalhousie University in Halifax for the Annual General Meeting. The revitalized party will be electing provincial executive, identifying candidates to run in the next provincial election and discussing policy. Special guests will include PEI and NB Green Party leaders Peter Bevan-Baker and David Coon, each of whom are currently serving MLAs in their respective provinces. Recent mayoral candidate Lil MacPherson will also speak.

Who: Green Party of Nova Scotia members and interested members of the public. Speakers: David Coon, Peter Bevan-Baker and Lil MacPherson, plus GPNS leader Dr. Thomas Trappenberg. See bios which follow.

What: Green Party of Nova Scotia Annual General Meeting

Where: Dalhousie University Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building #1009

When: 10:00 am – 3:00 pm

Why: Gather to elect executive, identify candidates, discuss policy and begin preparation for the upcoming provincial election

About the Green Party of Nova Scotia

The Green Party of Nova Scotia is one of Nova Scotia’s youngest political parties, building on a worldwide movement of Green politics. Originally founded in 2006, the party ran candidates in all provincial elections since then. The Six Principles of Green highlight the core values which inform how GPNS conducts itself in its policies and practices.

With intense interest building in British Columbia, and Green MLAs elected in both New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, the Green Party of Nova Scotia looks forward to actively participating in Nova Scotia’s governance.

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For additional information, please contact:
Thomas Trappenberg
Leader, Green Party of Nova Scotia

leader@greenpartyns.ca

Nova Scotia Greens call on McNeil government to continue talks on carbon pricing

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October 04, 2016
(OTTAWA) – The McNeil government is rejecting climate change science by refusing to participate in talks with Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna. On Monday, Nova Scotia Environment Minister Margaret Miller ditched a meeting about the Trudeau government’s new carbon pricing scheme.

“Margaret Miller walking out of the climate talks shows that Nova Scotia Liberals are really climate change deniers,” said Thomas Trappenberg, Leader of the Green Party of Nova Scotia. “More than that, they even deny Nova Scotians a modern economy. Polluting our air for free and stating that clean energy is economically not viable is an affront and makes me wonder who is paying their bills.”

“By opting out of the dialogue meeting Minister Miller and her government have betrayed the young of Nova Scotia who will bare the brunt of climate change inaction,” said Richard Zurawski, the Green Party of Canada’s Climate Change Critic. “The science is clear. We must act now. Time has run out.”

“Ever since Premier McNeil stated that burning Cape Breton coal would be good for the environment because it is ‘local’, I have wondered ‎about the provincial Liberals grasp of the fundamentals of climate science,” said Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada (MP, Saanich-Gulf Islands). “The federal proposal will return any pollution fees back to Nova Scotia. The provincial government could direct those funds to assist low income Nova Scotians to save fuel costs by better insulating homes, or any number of a range of programmes. Walking out is not constructive.”

Nova Scotia is so far refusing to participate in a carbon pricing plan. On Monday, the Trudeau government announced the national plan, setting the carbon price at $10 per tonne in 2018 and increasing to $50 per tonne by 2022.

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For additional information, please contact:

Thomas Trappenberg
Leader | Chef
Green Party of Nova Scotia | Parti vert de la Nouvelle-Écosse
leader@greendpartyns.ca

Dan Palmer
Press Secretary | Attaché de presse
Green Party of Canada | Parti vert du Canada
dan.palmer@greenparty.ca
m: (613) 614-4916