Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - July 20, 2015, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A9 IDEAS �o ISSUES �o INSIGHTS THINK- TANK A 9 Winnipeg Free Press Monday, July 20, 2015 I T'S too soon to pronounce the 2015 growing season a failure. But I'm certain of one thing: Prime Minister Stephen Harper's inaction on greenhouse gas emissions is a failure of public policy. My partner, Grant, and I operate a seasonal organic vegetable operation, PayDirt Farm near Wakaw, Sask. This is our fourth year of farming. Our community supported agriculture ( CSA) project has been a labour of love with a modest profit. When I survey my garden plots, I see a connection between the spring drought, rising temperatures and diminishing yields. Even if the weather does stabilize and the drought relents this season, I'm worried about future crops. May arrived acting more like a hot, dry July. In mid- June, the sight of cracked earth and bolting lettuce had me frowning at the prospect of a protracted drought. As the ground hardened and the seedlings struggled to emerge - especially the carrots - Grant hauled the hoses out daily to water. He sourced low- flow sprinklers, but the ground just soaked up the moisture, looking for more. This spring, the seeds wouldn't all germinate, those that did were patchy and the opportunistic weeds had overtaken the plots before the straw mulch was in place. We had to delay our first CSA pick- up and the next one will be late. There aren't yet enough vegetables to share with members. To add to the misery, our province faced unprecedented northern forest fires; the clouds of smoke covered Saskatchewan and lingered in our small town for two weeks. 13,000 northern residents were evacuated, the largest evacuation in Saskatchewan's history, while firefighters, with the help of Canadian Forces personnel, tried valiantly to contain 122 forest fires in the past few weeks. There have been 604 year- to- date wildfires in Saskatchewan in 2015; this time last year there were 202. A recent news report forecasts these forest fires may continue to burn until the snow flies. This is the new normal: summer- long forest fires. Alberta and B. C. have faced similar fires, with Alberta recruiting firefighters from Mexico and B. C. now hiring help from Australia. And it's not just the forests that are in crisis. When crops are under stress, they go to seed prematurely. It's an act of selfpreservation. When our bitter lettuce bolted in the heat before I could harvest our first crop, I felt like I'd failed our CSA members. Can I keep telling my disappointed CSA members the reason your share is small and the quality is compromised is because of global warming? Some of them assume, falsely, it's because I'm either short- changing them or I don't know how to grow. Thanks to Frank Lutz, right- wing spin- doctor to George W. Bush, I'm on the defensive when I talk about how the changing weather patterns directly affect our vegetables. Lutz reframed the environmental debate by saying " no consensus had been reached on global warming." In a 2003 memo, Lutz introduced the diluted term " climate change" into the popular lexicon. Call it what you like, the weather is erratic. For the last three years, we experienced wet and cold conditions, so cool crops like spinach, lettuce, chard and kale thrived. Not so for 2015. Mid- July has introduced high humidity followed by hard rain; the kind of rain that pounds two inches onto sidewalks and gardens in 15 short minutes before coming to an abrupt halt. Now the patchy crops are drowning in water- logged mud. We've had so many thunderstorms my nervous border collie, Laddie, sleeps locked away in the main floor bathroom so he doesn't wake us with his anxious panting. If you have to face erratic growing conditions, it's best to do it on a good night's sleep. These conditions aren't confined to Saskatchewan. According to a National Observer story, the current drought stretches from the edge of northwest Ontario to the Pacific. And from the Mexican border almost to the Arctic Ocean. Scientists assert rising temperatures play a large role in the drought. But it's not just the hot, dry weather that's a disappointment. When the Conservative Party came to power with a minority government in January 2006, Mr. Harper's profossil fuel government immediately dropped the Liberals' Kyoto compliance plan. It's been over nine long years of Harper governance and Canada still has no comprehensive policy on green house emissions. I call the inaction a leadership drought. The next time the Conservatives dodge and delay this hot topic, ask farmers, firefighters and evacuated northern residents if they think global warming is " real." Patricia Dawn Robertson is a Saskatchewan freelance journalist and organic farmer. PATRICIA DAWN ROBERTSON Erratic weather, erratic harvest S ASKATCHEWAN Premier Brad Wall stoked the fires of western alienation when he suggested last week that equalization dollars should be sent to Ontario and Quebec in a pipeline. Make no mistake, these comments struck a deep chord in the West. After all, the western Canadian identity was forged in the concept of western alienation - the idea Canada's four western provinces have been excluded from the affairs of mainstream Canadian politics to the benefit of Ontario and Quebec. Wall's argument hits the mark on so many points. First, he was right to remind us that western Canadian provinces should not rush to take economic advice from jurisdictions like Ontario and Quebec, which have not found a way themselves to maintain global competitiveness while occupying the moral high ground. More appreciation of the West's contribution and less moralizing would be a welcome change. Second, Ontario and Quebec ( and, for that matter, British Columbia) should not be hijacking the federation by placing conditions on the development of oilsands and pipelines. Natural resources are squarely within provincial jurisdiction and the production and transportation of such goods should not be derailed by those seeking economic concessions ( or more wealth transfer). Accepting this highway robbery could literally destroy Canada as a trading nation. Third, provinces do not have the constitutional authority to stop pipelines. The decision is fully within the federal government's purview. However, as Wall knows, politics matter ( especially with a federal election approaching). It was politics that allowed Wall to prevent the BHP Billiton takeover of the Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan in 2010. In fairness, Wall acknowledged this was a federal decision and at no point suggested Saskatchewan would not comply with the decision if it had gone against him. It is easy for Wall - a true statesman with a deft populist touch - to stoke the fires of western alienation at a time when western Canadian economic interests seem to be under siege by Central Canada. However, it would be wrong to suggest that Western Canada's interests will not be well- served by thoughtful action to address climate change. The story is now well understood. Oil producers in Western Canada lack meaningful access to global markets. They are forced to sell into the North American market at a significant discount to global prices. This reduces investment, royalties and taxes that would provide public goods, such as education and health care to all Canadians. The desire to block access is motivated, in large part, by the belief that Canada has been inactive on climate change. Yes, Alberta and Saskatchewan have taken some steps to address climate change. Yes, they have focused on technological solutions such as carbon capture and storage ( which could be used in countries like China and India where the real global emissions battle will be waged). But, in a Canadian context, Alberta and Saskatchewan account for nearly half of GHG emissions - and each province has a responsibility to do more. But, let's not fall into the trap of this being a zerosum game. Pricing carbon in Western Canada does not need to result in a large wealth transfer to Central Canada. This is part of the benefit of provinces developing their own systems - as opposed to Ottawa imposing a one- size- fits- all system. A welldesigned system can also protect trade exposed industries and make sure we are not simply exporting emissions to jurisdictions with less- stringent ( or non- existent) environmental policies. And, yes, an agreement between provinces on climate may clear the political barriers that are halting pipelines. There is a time to stoke the fires of western alienation. This is not it. Now is the time to demonstrate that provinces are capable of working together to advance Canadian interests. If provinces want to lead, they should do so. Trevor McLeod is the director of the Centre for Natural Resources Policy at the Canada West Foundation. - Troy Media C ANADA is home to about 60 aboriginal languages, which have been spoken for thousands of years. Almost all of these languages exist nowhere else on the planet. But this extraordinary heritage is in danger. Only a handful of these languages are likely to survive into the next century if current trends continue. What can we do to halt this development? Perry Bellegarde, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, called on the government of Canada to grant official- language status to Canada's aboriginal languages and to provide the necessary funding for preservation and revitalization efforts. In doing so, he followed the recommendations of the recent report from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. One of the enduring horrors of the residential schools in Canada is the generational transmission of aboriginal languages was violently broken. All of us have heard about the cruel punishments often visited on students who spoke their ancestral language at school. This led many of them to not pass the language on to their children to protect them from similar punishments. Once the chain of transmission has been broken, it is very hard to re- establish. Granting aboriginal languages official status has the power to do just that. It gives these languages and their speakers the recognition and prestige they deserve. Canada has two official languages and as the Official Languages Act points out: " English and French are a fundamental characteristic of the Canadian identity." This is indisputable. But Inuktitut, Blackfoot and Mitchif are fundamental characteristics of Canadian identity as well. Canada styles itself as a multicultural, but bilingual country. This neglects a fundamental fact: our language lies at the core of our identity. In order to be multicultural, Canada needs to acknowledge it has always been multilingual in practice, if not in law. Speaking an official language brings privileges, as set out in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, section 23 ( minority language education rights). Under this section, a Canadian citizen whose first language is a minority language has the right to have their children receive their education in this minority language - thus, in simple terms, if you are a member of the French minority in Manitoba, your children have the right to education in French. Aboriginal languages, by contrast, are not protected under section 23, nor do the treaties unequivocally guarantee the right to aboriginallanguage education. Instead, aboriginal- language rights are set by the provinces and territories. In Saskatchewan and Alberta, for example, this means an aboriginal child has the right to instruction in their ancestral language for only two hours per week. No wonder numbers are declining. If we want aboriginal languages to flourish, we need primary and secondary education in these languages, right now. But, I have heard many times, does this not mean these students will fall behind, since they do not speak English or French? Actually, the opposite is true. Research has shown there are many benefits to multilingualism: Multilingual people have on average higher cognitive abilities and succumb less frequently to dementia. Research also shows fluency in your mother tongue improves your academic success in a different language. I recently had the good fortune to visit the Clearwater River Dene School in northern Saskatchewan that introduced a transitional immersion program. The first three years are taught exclusively in Dene Suline, and then a slow transition to English takes place. Since this program started almost 10 years ago, the students' performance has improved across the board in math and reading scores as well as discipline. Imagine if this happened across the country. The goal of closing the educational gap between aboriginal and non- aboriginal students suddenly seems in reach. The right to publicly- funded aboriginal- language education lies at the heart of Mr. Bellegarde's proposal. Worrying about the challenges of displaying 60- plus languages on a cereal box is missing the point, there are far more important matters at stake here. Canada is a signatory to the United Nations' Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples which states in article 14 that " Indigenous peoples have the right to establish and control their educational systems and institutions providing education in their own languages." Seven years ago, Prime Minister Stephen Harper apologized to Canada's aboriginal people for the residential schools system. But words are cheap when no action follows. It is high time to give aboriginal languages the respect they deserve, and the funding that will secure their continued existence. For Canada to officially recognize its aboriginal languages would leave a legacy all of us could be proud of. Olga Lovick is an associate professor of linguistics and Dene language studies at the First Nations University of Canada. TREVOR MCLEOD Western alienation card played By Olga Lovick Aboriginal languages should be official RYAN REMIORZ / HE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Assembly of First Nations national Chief Perry Bellegarde called for aboriginal languages to be made official in his speech earlier this month at the AFN's annual conference in Montreal. A_ 09_ Jul- 20- 15_ FP_ 01. indd A9 7/ 19/ 15 9: 37: 26 PM ;