by Thomas Trappenberg In Korea, last week, the IPCC released a Special Report for Policy Makers which has set the world abuzz. They identified that a lack of urgency is hampering efforts to keep climate change in check: the effects of climate change are outrunning us. Here in Nova Scotia, our government has expressed the attitude, “we’re already doing our share” as a way of sidestepping the federal government’s proposed carbon tax. In this race, meeting an already soft target is not an excuse to rest and let others catch up. This is not competition among provinces or countries —...
On Whipping Votes and Making Deals
by Charlene Boyce, Green Party of Nova Scotia Co-President The recent New Brunswick election results engendered a lot of interest in the more obscure aspects of parliamentary procedure. What happens when the winner is really not evident? This election has gone a long way toward showing the serious drawbacks of first-past-the-post in a splintered electorate. We may not be accustomed to minority governments, but once we have three or more active parties, they become not just a possibility, but an expectation. The “Big Two” (for now!!), the Liberals and Conservatives found themselves in a practically-tied face-off due to the precedent of...
Green Party Replies: Cannabis
We are happy to respond to inquiries from Nova Scotians. Send your question to gpns@greenpartyns.ca. The Green Party recently received this inquiry: What is your stance on marijuana dispenseries? I feel they should be allowed to operate in Nova Scotia. So many people rely on these locations. This is our reply: Thanks for reaching out to us. The topic of cannabis legalisation has engendered a lot of discussion among our members. We don’t yet have a comprehensive party policy on the topic, and all of the offshoot related issues. However, these are three basic statements we have agreed on: We...
Rise for Climate – September 8, 2018
Green Party volunteer Leanne Chisholm organized the rally that took place last weekend. We are so grateful for all her hard work! She shares this report. If you would like to organize an event, please contact gpns@greenpartyns.ca! By Leanne Chisholm On Saturday, September 8 th , 2018 approximately 75 people came out to the Halifax Seaport Market to demand a fossil free future. The rally was in conjunction with over 900 other rallies on all 7 continents organized by a group called 350.org based in the United States. The rallies were timed to coincide with the Global Climate Action Summit being held in...
President’s Submission to the Electoral Boundaries Commission
Statement to the NS Electoral Boundaries Commission From Charlene Boyce, co-President of the Nova Scotia Green Party Good evening, My name is Charlene Boyce. I am resident of Clayton Park, Halifax, Nova Scotia and I am the co-president of the Green Party of Nova Scotia. The most effective way to ensure the democratically expressed wishes of a diverse electorate are reflected in government is to reform the electoral system to a system of proportional representation. Respectfully, although I acknowledge this is beyond the terms of reference of this group, I strongly believe this message should go into the formal...