(Published in Island Tides, 2011) Markets and barns, farms and tables. Welcoming African guests to Salt Spring seems to have much to do with: “what shall we eat?” Herein we find common ground: while our drive in the islands is to return to our land-based roots and away from an industrial food system, for Mamello…

Published in Watershed Sentinel, June 20, 2013 Hupacasath Stand Up for Canada – FIPA Court Case by Andrea Palframan A remarkable resistance movement is gaining momentum in this country. A  few weeks ago, the federal court in Vancouver heard the case of Hupacasath vs. Canada. At issue was the China-Canada Federal Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement…

Durban, South Africa by Andrea Palframan, Watershed Sentinel   In the wake of the opening session of COP 17 climate change summit in Durban, violent storms ripped through the city, foreshadowing the dire warnings that will be sounded at the international conference. Flash floods and electrical outages resulted in six deaths and the accumulation of…

Watershed Sentinel A death-knell for a new Kyoto is being sounded just as the gates open at Durban’s COP 17. Politically, the victories here are being predicted to be insubstantial. Thus the focus is shifting to economic approaches, such as increasingly gimmicky emissions markets and a push for yet more privatization of resources. Beneath those…

(Published in Aqua Magazine, December 1, 2014) Moksha Yoga founder Ted Grand is not the kind of guy who does things by halves. With 70 studios from Sydney to Paris, one of Salt Spring’s great ‘activist entrepreneurs’ believes that yoga has the power to change the world.   As a young man, he joined legions…

(Published by Local Environment: The International Journal of Climate & Justice, T&F, May 13 2014) Abstract: In Lesotho, climate change adaptation funding is being managed and distributed by the same mechanisms which have traditionally operationalised humanitarian aid and international development assistance in the country. Lessons from the HIV/AIDS disaster, along with insights into the value…

(Published in the Vancouver Observer, Oct 9th 2013) Power Shift is a global movement that offers training and resource sharing among youth climate justice activists. The latest conference, Power Shift BC, took place in Victoria over the October 4-7 weekend. To get a sense of just how different the Power Shift approach is, picture the scene that…

(Originally published in Rabble.ca; licensed by Common Dreams November 24, 2014) Can a First Nations-led, people-driven movement really have the power to stop Big Oil? The folks behind the Pull Together campaign think so. The Pull Together initiative supports First Nations in B.C. who are taking to the courts to stop Enbridge’s Northern Gateway project. Led by the…