On Thursday, Nov. 7th 2019, organizations Surf the Greats and Water First came together with a panel of leading environmentalists to assert the importance of community as a key tool for environmental stewardship.
Every leader spoke about community being an important asset to the work that they do. “At Water First, we know that we’re really good at water science and education, but it’s actually useless unless we have First Nations engagement that is substantive, meaningful and ongoing throughout the project,” said Executive director and founder of Water First John Millar.
Director for Climate Strike Canada Cecilia La Rose made a similar statement. “We see diversity in the climate movement not only as effective but as absolutely necessary. As we move forward, we must pass the mic to Indigenous people. In that same spirit, we have to work with communities everywhere. Everyone is vital to this movement,” La Rose said.
Co founder and vice president of Swim Drink Fish Krystyn Tully also spoke on the importance of community. “Social change is not a linear process. We’re only as strong as our network. Our community allows us to be,” Tully said.
Millar, La Rose and Tully all work to build and foster relationships with young people. Some different ways that this is done are; youth environmental projects, climate strikes and water education.
With a mandate to support First Nations communities, Water First has done many projects, training and collaborations with Indigenous youth. “At the end of the day, our goal is to support future generations to enter the field of water science,” Millar said.
Fridays for the Future is a global network of young people who work together to organize strikes across the country. “Young people around the world are joining forces on such a scale that simply can’t be ignored any longer. At our core, we are a group of small communities doing big things,” La Rose said.
As a movement of people who are connected to water and promote water literacy, Swim Drink Fish has the goal of making water swimmable, drinkable and fishable for everyone. “When people don’t understand nature, they don’t want to protect it, which is harmful. Our goal is to make nature something everyone can connect to,” Tully said.
During the event, attendees had the opportunity to raise any questions that they might have through a panel discussion. The discussion was moderated by the water programs manager, Kelsey Scarfone. Many audience members wanted to know some things that they could do to help with the climate crisis as well as where and how they could get involved.
The speakers all gave the same point. The best way to help the climate crisis is to begin by helping your community.