Celebrate Earth Day 2009

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Editor Charlie Smith discusses the Straight's upcoming Earth Day issue. Look for it on April 16.

Ever since its inception, the Georgia Straight has tried to raise awareness about environmental issues. Georgia Straight writers travelled on the first Greenpeace voyage to Amchitka Island off the coast of Alaska. We published pieces by B.C.'s environmental pioneers, including Paul Watson and Ben Metcalfe in the 1960s and 1970s. In recent years, Ben Parfitt, Bob Hunter, Roberta Staley, Mitchell Anderson, Andrew Findlay, Terry Glavin, and Matthew Burrows, among others, have written cover stories on some the hottest environmental issues of our times.

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With the planet in peril, we want to encourage people in Metro Vancouver to take action in advance of this year's Earth Day (April 22). On the right side, you'll see what other people are doing—some famous, some unknown—to protect our environment. Tell us about one thing you're doing to preserve the environment. It can be as outlandish as you like. Keep the contribution to 50 words or less, and we'll publish it on our site.

It just might inspire one of your neighbours to do the same thing. Together, we can make a difference.

Earth Day Events

Earth Day at Jericho Beach Park

Projecting Change Film Festival

Earth Run 5K


The Straight has a long history of covering environmental issues. Here are some recent highlights:

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Five Earth Day events for your enjoyment in Metro Vancouver (April 21, 2009)
Caring for caribou is a matter of urgency (April 21, 2009)
Deciphering the truth about the B.C. Energy Plan (April 20, 2009)
Tzeporah Berman responds to critics in B.C. environmental movement (April 17, 2009)
Doctored crops stir Latin American debate (April 16, 2009)
B.C. deserves better environmental policies (April 16, 2009)
Confronting a climate crisis (April 16, 2009)
Software has a hard impact on the planet (April 16, 2009)
Courier firm sets example with hybrids (April 16, 2009)
Take politics out of the Agricultural Land Reserve: agrologist (April 16, 2009)
Critics say Premier Gordon Campbell is wrong on Gateway Program (April 16, 2009)
Public meetings to begin on growth plan (April 16, 2009)
Environmentalist Betty Krawczyk says she’s leaving Vancouver (April 15, 2009)
Why the rush to private hydropower in B.C? (April 15, 2009)
B.C. NDP, Green platforms promise help for technology sector (April 14, 2009)
If the bees disappear, we’ll all be stung (April 14, 2009)
Family tensions boil in Recipes For Disaster's environmental experiment (April 14, 2009)
Why has NDP abandoned young and green voters? (April 14, 2009)
John Ince: Good sex is the solution to our environmental crisis (April 14, 2009)
B.C. rivers face an uncertain future (April 13, 2009)
Beware the Gordon Campbell government's non sequitor on run-of-river power (April 11, 2009)
Why is private waste a public responsibility? (April 9, 2009)
Premier Gordon Campbell defends Gateway Program (April 9, 2009)
Metro Vancouver half done decommissioning watershed logging roads (April 8, 2009)
Ocean management requires group cooperation (April 7, 2009)
What is your government doing for wild salmon? (April 7, 2009)
Barack Obama's emission cuts are pragmatic suicide (April 7, 2009)
B.C.'s Interior grasslands are worth caring for (April 3, 2009)
Christianne Wilhelmson: The Strait of Georgia needs our protection, not our pollution (April 1, 2009)
Run-of-river power projects may offer green energy solutions (March 31, 2009)
Grizzly bear hunt has no place in modern society (March 31, 2009)
Can commercial fisheries ever be sustainable? (March 30, 2009)
PNCIMA Forum on Pacific Ocean to address uncertain future (March 24, 2009)
Will our grandchildren watch wild birds in B.C. (March 24, 2009)
Sea lice from fish farms threaten Fraser River sockeye: biologist (March 23, 2009)
Critic of Canadian seal hunt urges opponents to back Sen. Mac Harb's legislation (March 23, 2009)
Animal-welfare group unable to observe start of Canadian seal hunt (March 23, 2009)
Rising sea levels to exceed expectations, climate change congress hears (March 12, 2009)
B.C. Conservative leader Wilf Hanni cool on climate crisis (March 12, 2009)
Environment needs fewer feel-good measures, more direct action (March 19, 2009) Forests are another piece of the global warming puzzle (March 10, 2009)
Stephen Harper government chases the wrong climate-change solutions (March 9, 2009)
Great Bear Rainforest is a top carbon storehouse that should be conserved (March 5, 2009)
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. praises Obama’s stimulus but not Harper’s plan (March 5, 2009)

Here are some picks from our archives:

Climate change
A federal election for the planet (September 25, 2008)
Climate scientist claims Stephen Harper's government has muzzled experts (September 25, 2008)
Two faces of Gordo (October 4, 2007)
The sin of air travel (August 9, 2007)
Profs visualize hotter region (April 19, 2007)
Trust us, we're the media (January 25, 2007)
It came from the pond (June 29, 2006)
Invading plants take root (June 29, 2006)

Oil
Crude oil: How Wall Street is screwing America (September 25, 2008)
The rise of the new energy world order (April 21, 2008)
Preparing for peak oil (April 17, 2008)
Prof says politicians blinkered on peak oil (November 1, 2007)
Running on empty (October 6, 2005)
Killing fields (July 8, 2004)

Alberta tar sands
A green Barack Obama could thwart Canadian exports from Alberta tar sands (November 8, 2008)
Author Andrew Nikiforuk fears tar sands undermine democracy (October 23, 2008)
George Monbiot stirs debate over fate of tar sands (October 9, 2008)
Oil-sands fever alarms environmentalists (August 28, 2008)

Food
Monocrops bring food crisis (April 17, 2008)
Faraway food production (January 24, 2008)
Fish farming for the future (August 30, 2006)
Spawning Controversy (December 16, 2004)
Fish and the forests (August 8, 2002)

Water
Economy won't halt B.C.'s run-of-river hydroelectric projects (January 22, 2009)
Eagles’ fate at centre of Squamish run-of-river debate (April 17, 2008)
Electric companies (September 27, 2007)
Flogging our water (March 16, 2006)
A storm is brewing over watershed logging (December 20, 2007)
The perils of planting (June 16, 2005)

Pollution
Pipeline would bring tankers into B.C. inlets (February 5, 2009)
Haiti's road to ruin (December 11, 2008)
Waves of disaster (August 14, 2008)
Deadly brew (March 24, 2005)

Alternative energy
Solar energy loses out to cheap power rates (November 13, 2008)
Why B.C.is failing to exploit its full potential of generating clean electricity (April 14, 2008)
The drive for clean energy sparks a B.C. gold rush (November 29, 2007)
B.C.'s wind energy touted (June 2, 2005)

Comments

2 Comments

Becci

Apr 16, 2009 at 12:31pm

I'm vegan, and I don't own a car. Animal agriculture has been proven to be even more damaging to the environment than automobiles (says the UN).

freewilly

Jul 3, 2009 at 8:03pm

I commend the Straight for years of supporting the green movement. In fact, I think you were spreading the good word long before it caught on. It's great! I do think your paper and outlooks go a long way to influence society for the better. Keep up the great work folks.
-- I'm not the most intelligent, but I always have an opinion. My latest project: Netbook Case

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