Category: Direct Action

One Day, One Country, Six Million Trees

Macedonia is a country of only two million and they managed to plant six million trees in just one day!

Thousands of Macedonians took to the hills and forests on Wednesday to plant six million trees in a single day as part of a mass reforestation drive in the Balkan country.
The main aim of the campaign was to replant Macedonia’s forests after extensive wild fires over the past two summers, and organisers trumpeted the scheme’s environmental benefits at a time of global warming.
“Our goal is to make Macedonia “greener” and make people more aware of the needs of this planet”, said Macedonian opera singer Boris Trajanov, who initiated the project.

What’s Missing in the Media?

If you live in Toronto or area then you should come out to the event Missing in the Media on media democracy day. Come learn about and share what is missing in the mainstream media. The complete schedule is now online. And yes, I’m involved with this 🙂

What is missing in the media? Who is left out from mainstream news coverage in Canada today? A large coalition of independent media organizations, advocacy groups and media activists will ask these questions and more at “Missing in the Media: Media Democracy Day Toronto 2008,” taking place all day on October 23.

What: A series of thematic and skills-building panels and workshops on media democracy followed by a rabble.ca relaunch party with guest speakers Maude Barlow and Linda McQuaig, and musical guests LAL, KoboTown and Maryam Tollar.

When: Thursday, October 23, 2008, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (workshops and panels); 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. (rabble.ca relaunch party).

Where: Free workshops and panels at International Student Centre (33 St. George Street), University of Toronto; Pay-what-you-can rabble.ca relaunch party (suggested $10 to $25 donation to rabble.ca) at the Steam Whistle Roundhouse (255 Bremner Blvd.)

For program details and a list of participating organizations please visit: www.missinginthemedia.ca.

Blog Action Day 2008: Poverty


Today is Blog Action Day 2008 and this year the topic is poverty. Over 10,000 sites are participating to discuss poverty, and yes this site is one of them.

here’s some good news on poverty from Asia:

Asean countries have made strong progress in reducing extreme poverty and hunger in the region, said Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports Yu-Foo Yee Shoon.

She said a recent report completed by researchers under the Asean-Australian Development Programme showed Asean countries had been able to reduce poverty among its populations.

Speaking at the 6th Asean Senior Officials Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication here Monday, Yu-Foo said although there were still considerable differences across some member countries, all 10 member-countries of the regional association aimed at achieving goals set by the United Nations to combat global poverty.

Election Day in Canada – Go Vote!

Yes, it ‘s finally here! All Things Are Good Canadian readers need to make sure they vote today. If you don’t know where exactly to vote check out elections.ca. It’s not a difficult task to vote since you don’t even need to be registered.

Remember that the most important thing you do today (if not this year) is to vote for the environment.

I Vote Toronto Wants New Torontonians to Vote

I Vote Toronto is all about getting people who live in Toronto to show their support for their city and democracy come voting day. I Vote Toronto wants to help people new to Toronto (and those unfamiliar with the Canadian electoral system) figure out how to vote. Canada’s federal election is happening on Oct. 14th and hopefully people will vote showing respect for each other and vote for a party that looks to help the people of Canada.

From their website:

I Vote Toronto is a coalition of individuals and organizations who believe in creating a more inclusive and representative city. Our coalition consists of community centres, settlement and integration services, social justice groups, employment agencies, environmental organizations and concerned residents from all areas of Toronto. While the coalition represents many different interests, we are united in our understanding that Toronto’s electoral process must reflect the makeup of its residents.

The I Vote Toronto campaign will engage communities all across Toronto, building awareness and providing the facts about immigration, integration, civic engagement and the health of our neighbourhoods. We will then make our case to provincial and municipal politicians, and urge them to update our voting laws, which currently leave hundreds of thousands of Torontonians without a voice.