Letter from Sierra Club Canada

Sierra Club Canada

September 24, 2008


Dear Sunshine Walk - Climate Justice Walk to Ottawa Organizers,

Sierra Club Canada wishes to convey its full support of the Sunshine Walk – Climate Justice Walk to Ottawa taking place between October 4th and 20th, 2008. We hope that your action will help to increase the awareness of the impacts of climate change on Canadians and Canadian ecosystems as well as global ecosystems and populations.

Climate change is an unparalleled and unequivocal man-made environmental crisis. Around the world we are already witnessing numerous climate change impacts, including ice-loss, drought, flooding, extreme weather events, and forest fires. In Canada, we have seen the melting of glaciers, the dramatic loss of sea-ice in the Arctic, loss of permafrost, and the destruction of forests by the pine beetle. Without immediate action, long-term impacts such as rising sea levels will result in millions of environmental refugees and destruction of crops will lead to world-wide famine.

In order to prevent catastrophically dangerous climate change, the global average temperature increase above pre-industrial levels must be kept below 2 degrees Celsius. In order achieve this, global greenhouse gas emissions must be stabilized and begin to decline before 2015, and be further reduced to less than 50 per cent of 1990 levels by 2050. This means that developed countries, including Canada, must reduce emissions 25 to 40 per cent by 2020, and 80 to 95 per cent by 2050. Canada’s current efforts to address climate change are insufficient and we must do much more.

We hope that your walk is a success and helps to further educate Canadians and governmental officials on the urgent need for action to address climate change.

Sincerely,

Stephen Hazell
Executive Director
412-1 Nicholas Street,
Ottawa ON
K1N 7B7
Tel: (613) 241-4611
Fax: (613) 241-2292
email: info@sierraclub.ca
web: http://www.sierraclub.ca/

Letter from the David Suzuki Foundation

September 5, 2008


Dear Sunshine Walk Organizing Committee,

The David Suzuki Foundation fully supports the Sunshine Walk as a means of increasing public awareness onthe effects of climate change here in Canada and around the world. Climate change is considered by many scientists to be the most serious threat facing the world today. Canada's current efforts to address climate change are insufficient and a great deal of progress is necessary if we are to reach the science based target of at least a 25% reduction in GHG emissions by 2020 (from 1990 levels).

Informing people of the dire consequences that many regions around the world are already experiencing at the hands of climate change is important for understanding the magnitude of this crisis and how urgently we require solutions. Reaching out to people and discussing the contributing causes and solutions is an important part of building an informed environmental conscience in Canada and a society that will demand greater leadership on
this issue from its politicians.

We wish you all the best with this initiative and hope that your efforts will contribute to a greater public understanding of climate change and a demand for policy reform.

Sincerely,
Morag Carter
Director, Climate Change

http://www.davidsuzuki.org/