8 ways to get informed and involved in Canada’s 2015 federal election

The last nine years of Harper rule have seen a strategic dismantling of environmental protections, an increase in surveillance, muzzling of scientists, laws designed to limit our ability to protest our government, and contempt for democracy itself. (It doesn’t end there: see The Tyee’s compilation of “70 Harper government assaults on democracy and the law”.)

It’s time to fix that in what may be the most important election Canada has ever seen. Let’s not just get Canada back — let’s make it better (as my friend Faisal Moola says). I believe the most important thing we Canadians can do is get out and vote en masse. With 61.1% of eligible voters casting a ballot in 2011 and the Conservatives winning a majority with the support of only about a quarter of eligible voters, we have major room for improvement. Less than 40% of 18- to 24-year-olds voted. If you have friends, neighbours or family who don’t vote, especially if they’re between 18 and 30, please encourage them (gently, non-judgementally, and non-partisanally) to vote on October 19th. Let’s vote in a government that can restore our Canadian pride!

Here are some great organizations and some sources of data to help you get out the vote, get informed and help others find reliable information.

VoteBC.ca

Victoria, BC-based Dogwood Initiative has a great resource to help British Columbians identify candidates in their riding who share their values. Candidates in all ridings were sent a ten-question survey around issues like oil pipeline expansion, Bill C-51 and the current state of democracy in our country. Responses from candidates who obliged are online. VoteBC.ca also includes current polling data.

Want to get involved? Calling Dogwood supporters is key to getting voters to the polls. You can help out by joining a phone banking party or canvassing. (I’ve been volunteering with Dogwood Initiative since summer 2014.)

VoteTogether.ca

“Leadnow’s Vote Together campaign connects the millions of people who want change on October 19th with the information and tools they need to defeat the Harper Conservatives.” The Vote Together website offers at-a-glance information about party policies on issues Leadnow’s community cares about, including democratic reform, a fair economy and a clean environment. Enter your postal code to see how your candidates are performing in local polls. Don’t forget to sign the pledge to Vote Together.

Want to get involved? There are plenty of ways to volunteer until the election.

OurDigitalFuture.ca

OpenMedia.ca created a crowd-sourced platform for digital rights in Canada, covering privacy, access and free expression. Pledge to vote for “affordable access, free expression, and a surveillance-free Internet” and encourage your candidate to sign up to be a pro-Internet candidate. OpenMedia’s policies, informed by real Canadians, is also outlined on the website.

Promote the Vote

Promote the Vote encourages and empowers Canadians to increase voter turnout and engagement by having conversations with their friends and family about voting. Promote the Vote offers resources and engagement leadership workshops on dialogue. Check out the website for upcoming events in the Metro Vancouver area. (Workshops ahead of the election have now finished.)

Join Promote the Vote and Reel Causes for a screening of The Price We Pay on October 14th in Vancouver. By donation, with proceeds to Promote the Vote (non-partisan, not-for-profit).

David Suzuki Foundation’s election pledge

Tell our federal leaders you’re voting for bold leadership on the environment and climate change. Take the pledge.

Vote Compass

“Vote Compass shows you how your views align with those of the candidates running for election.” It is “an educational tool developed by political scientists designed to help you explore how you fit in Canada’s political landscape.” I found the results of this one really interesting when I used it before the previous election. (May require some patience loading.)

Polling data

threehundredeight.com polling data is visualized on the poll tracker at CBC.ca.

Make a social media profile photo

Use this easy tool at VoteNation.ca to let your friends know you’re voting.

Are you registered to vote? Make sure you are: visit Elections Canada’s website or call 1-800-463-6868.

What’s a fair share for BC of Enbridge’s Northern Gateway pipeline?

I’m really excited to share with you a website I designed for Dogwood Initiative, which launched this week. Fair Share BC asks a simple but vital question: What’s a fair share of economic benefits for BC of Enbridge’s Northern Gateway pipeline? Whether you’re against the proposed pipeline — as are about three quarters of British Columbians — or for it, or agnostic/undecided, we’d like to hear your opinion.

Understanding that many of us would never put a price on our coast, the main purpose of the site is two-fold: to enable the people to decide what a fair share looks like, and to help conversations happen between folks with different view points. (Maybe Uncle Bob wants more permanent jobs for BC, but thinks we’d get a lot more than we would in reality?) I’d consider myself well-informed, and was surprised by the actual numbers.

Prime Minister Harper’s decision on the Northern Gateway project is anticipated soon. If he gives it the green light, it’s then up to Christy Clark to stand up for BC. But her “fair share of the fiscal and economic benefits” condition in the pipeline’s way is vague — what’s fair by her standards? Dogwood Initiative will collect the public’s Fair Share BC quiz answers (totalling over 2,000) to put some hard, public-powered numbers behind that. I want to make it clear that thinking about what a fair share looks like doesn’t mean we can be bought if we got what we asked for — the reality is that we won’t, so this is an exercise in making it clear that Christy Clark’s fifth condition cannot be met.

I worked closely with Kai Nagata, Energy and Democracy Director. Dogwood Initiative’s Karl Hardin and Joshua W provided technical heavy lifting for which I am grateful.

Additional ways to take action

Join over 16,000 people to send a message to the “Enbridge 21” — BC’s Conservative MPs who stand to lose a lot if the federal government approves the project. Encourage them to support BC instead of Enbridge.

Pledge to support a referendum on the future of pipelines and oil tankers in BC. If you have time, please consider volunteering in your community.

Send Christy Clark a message to stand strong for BC.

Stand up for democracy. Vote on May 2nd!

“More than 60 percent of Canadians do not support Harper and his government’s contempt for democracy. Yet, he could win a majority with as little as 35 percent of the popular vote.” — Project Democracy

I think it’s telling of our citizens that we have three left-wing or centre-left national parties and only one right-wing since the merger of the PC and Reform parties back in 1990-something. (Quebecers of course have an extra choice.) It appears to make sense, then, that 62.4% of voters voted for these parties in the last election. Unfortunately, as we’re all aware, this doesn’t translate to 62% of the House of Commons, and a candidate can be elected with under 30% support in their riding. Our abysmal voter turnout (58.8% in 2008) should be a clear signal that our system needs to change.

Continue reading Stand up for democracy. Vote on May 2nd! »