Empowerment

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Empowerment

Empowerment is individually accepting responsibility for the way we live and taking steps to make positive change. Local educational organizations, community groups and government resources listed here are among many available to help improve your knowledge and share it with others for positive action.

Make the world a better place starting from your own backyard.

Educational Opportunities

Understand the issues, learn what effect our lives have on the environment, then lessen the impact. Whether through part-time interest courses or career choices, demonstrate with action how to assume responsibility.

Government

Provincial Representatives Directory (2022-2026)

Federal Representatives (2021-2025)

Municipal Representatives (2022)

If you have questions or want to promote new ideas – contact our local politicians at:
City Hall
300 Dufferin Avenue,
London Ont
N6B 1Z2
Website: www.london.ca
Email: webmaster@london.ca

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The following organizations, service groups and government offices are located in London and area. They offer a wealth of information and various resources related to history, environment, health and energy conservation. Please contact them for further information and become actively involved.

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“Solutions will depend on the public’s will as much as technology; few industries or governments will spend their funds on pollution controls unless they are urged to do so by an aroused populace.” — Ron Reid

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Taking Action In Your Community

Everything we do makes a difference toward greening our planet or working against it. The change has to start somewhere, and it can start with you.

Knowing what the global, regional and local problems are allows you to become part of the solution. There are many issues we should be concerned about that affect our daily lives and quality of life – garbage, agricultural land, toxic chemicals, reliance on the automobile, energy waste and so on.

You can translate that knowledge into something as simple as a friendly tip for a neighbour, a vote at the ballot box, or a larger action, such as participation in a public debate, enrolment with an environmental group or involvement in a group effort to make changes. With some creative and simple ideas, you can turn problems into challenges and concerns into actions. For instance:

In your neighbourhood

Organize a community yard sale, household hazardous waste day deliveries

At school

Propose an environment committee, organize carpooling, organic gardens, paper recycling, air quality testing, installation of energy saving devices, pack garbageless lunches, promote anti-litter campaigns, request non-toxic paints and cleaners, invite speakers to give presentations to classes

At work

Help set up an energy reduction system, suggest positive technological changes, reduce paper usage, use a coffee mug, use alternative cleaners, organize lunch hour speakers, tree plantings on company property

At home

Using more energy efficient light bulbs and other ways to save electricity, composting and recycling, using reusable shopping bags, use cloth napkins instead of paper for cleaning, use active modes of transportation like walking or biking, buying local, buying second hand or recycled furniture and goods, opt out of unsolicited mail and pay bills online, and encourage those in your household to come up with fun ideas to become more eco-friendly. 

As a member of a service group

Organize an environmental awareness event or display, participate in tree plantings or garbage cleanups, give donations to worthwhile causes

As a member of a place of worship

Gather reusable clothes, appliances and furniture, collect donations for environmental causes and form an environmental action committee

As a voting community member

Write letters to your MP, MPP or City Councillor outlining environmental issues that concern you, support parties with strong environmental platforms, participate in public meetings regarding environmental issues, write manufacturers, lobby for more public transit and additional bike paths

As a member of an environmental organization

Research groups that interest you, compare different opinions, volunteer to help the groups of your choice in ways that best use your skills

Glossary

Adaptation: adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climatic stimuli or their effects that moderation harm or exploit beneficial opportunities. Various types of adaptation can be distinguished, including anticipatory and reactive adaptation and autonomous and planned adaptation

Aerate: to charge or mix with carbon dioxide or other gas

Air quality index (AQI): is used to report current and forecasted air quality. It is used to tell you how clean or polluted your air is and what associated health effects may be a concern as AQI rises

Biodegradable: capable of being absorbed by the organic environment when thrown out or disposed of

Carbon dioxide: a gas which comes from the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation making the highest contribution to the greenhouse effect

Carbon pricing: a cost, usually in the form of a tax, applied to carbon pollution/production to encourage producers to reduce the amount of greenhouse gas they emit into the atmosphere

Environment: external conditions which determine modifications in the development of organic life

Fluorescent: a glass tube coated on the inside with a fluorescent substance that emits light when acted upon by an electric current

Fossil Fuels: are derived from fossilized remains of animals and plants in the earth over millions of years ago – they can be found as coal, oil or gas which we use much faster than they replenish themselves – these fuels are then used as energy sources giving off carbon dioxide as they are burned

Greenhouse Effect: process which causes the Earth’s surface to be warmer than it otherwise would be in the absence of an atmosphere

Hazardous Waste: term used to describe waste which, due to its physical or chemical characteristics, can present hazards upon contact with the environment when thrown away including toxicity to organisms by ingestion, inhalation or skin absorption, carcinogens, risk of explosion, emission of radiation and the potential to pollute underground or surface waters

Incandescent: glowing with white heat and providing light

Mitigation: the process or result of making something less severe, dangerous, painful, harsh, or damaging

Organic: having either vegetable or animal life, derived from living organisms

Precautionary Principle: It absorbs notions of risk prevention, cost-effectiveness, ethical responsibilities toward maintaining the integrity of humans and natural systems and the fallibility of human understanding. The application of the precautionary principle or approach recognizes that the absence of full scientific certainty should not be used to postpone decisions where there is a risk of serious or irreversible harm

Resilience: the capacity of a system, community or society potentially exposed to hazards to adapt, by resisting or changing in order to reach and maintain an acceptable level of functioning and structure. This is determined by the degree to which the social system is capable of organizing itself to increase its capacity for learning from past disasters for better future protection and to improve risk reduction measures

Risk Management: decisions to accept exposure or to reduce vulnerabilities by either mitigating the risks or applying cost-effective controls 

Surface ozone: which is not the ozone layer but the ozone molecules that form in the lower atmosphere from reactions between nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons in the presence of strong sunlight causing photochemical smog

Urban Agriculture: (also known as urban farming or urban gardening) is the practice of cultivating, processing and distributing food in or around urban areas and can also involve animal husbandry, aquaculture, agroforestry, urban beekeeping, and horticulture

Vulnerability: the degree to which a system is susceptible to, or unable to cope with, adverse effects of climate change including climate vulnerability and extremes. Vulnerability is a function of the character, magnitude and rate of climate variation to which a system is exposed, its sensitivity and its adaptive capacity

Sources ~ The Merriam-Webster Dictionary, IPCC and local agencies
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