Thursday night’s Simcoe Climate Action meeting was an all-ages event, bringing people together who've been fighting environmental changes for years, as well as the ones who will carry on the battle into the future.
The Holly Community Centre's upstairs meeting room saw close to 50 people listen as guest speakers of all ages discussed issues pertaining to climate-change concerns.
Grade 6 student Nari Hwang was a star at the event and told BarrieToday why she wanted to speak to her peers and elders.
“I got to talk about how awesome Lake Simcoe is, what some of the issues affecting it are, and what we need to do to help it,” she said. “I am really worried about the lake’s future, because if we carry on the way we’re acting now, then Lake Simcoe could totally be gone or just somewhere we wouldn’t want to swim.”
The 11-year-old Shanty Bay resident says she appreciates how some people keep the lake and its surrounding area healthy.
“I love to swim there and investigate the forest by there, because I am aware that the forest is like a filter for the dirty water that comes from the roads and helps to protect the lake water,” Hwang said. “I really enjoy taking my dog down there for a swim and to cool off.”
Guest speaker Gideon Forman, who's a climate policy activist from the David Suzuki Foundation, told BarrieToday that climate change is here, but we can start to curb the effects.
“It is a very serious issue, but it's not hopeless and there are still lots of things we can do to turn Canada into a climate leader,” Forman said. “We can still change the course and protect Canadians, and the really cool thing is having young people like Nari here to talk to those my age and older."
Climate change is a hot topic today, with many scientists saying the Earth is at a crucial point of possible catastrophe if current bad habits, such as increased emissions and wasteful plastic use, aren’t stopped.
There are others who claim that climate change is a myth and there are no real concerns, a point Forman says is dangerous to spread.
“Many people tend to look at other parts of the world and say it can’t happen here, but it is happening here and it is very real,” said Forman. “We’re seeing flooding of huge proportions, forest fires constantly, droughts in some places, all that will start to effect of food supply and our health.
"It is true we have had events like floods for thousands of years, but what is happening is they are getting worse, climate change is making our weather more extreme more frequently," Forman added. "The weather is also becoming crazier with one day being a record high and the next a record low, these are points we need to pay attention to.”
