A record crowd of more than 25,000 converged on Quebec City Saturday afternoon for Canada’s largest-ever climate-themed protest, with marchers demanding strong climate action at the provincial/territorial premiers’ summit this week.
“At the heart of the discussion is a contradiction in policy that few political leaders in Canada have been courageous enough to publicly acknowledge: the simultaneous push for growth in Canada’s oil patch and for a reduction in the country’s emissions,” writes Corporate Knights Editor-in-Chief Tyler Hamilton. “Environmental leaders say both can’t happen at the same time—something has to give.”
The rally received support Saturday from smaller marches across Canada. “Our provincial leaders must do what’s essential by supporting renewable energy and not tar sands pipelines,” said Greenpeace Canada Executive Director Joanna Kerr.
“Whoa! seeing pics of a huge climate march in Quebec! #ActOnClimate @defendourclimate Canada is fully awake, I think,” tweeted 350.org founder Bill McKibben. “(thanks Mr. Harper!)”
The focus of the march was “to protest the Energy East pipeline and urge more investment in renewable energy,” Hamilton writes. “Most of those who attended wore red coats, shirts, and hats—including red-capped police officers—to symbolize the rising temperature in a thermometer, an image that was captured from aerial shots of a roundabout in front of Quebec’s legislative assembly.”
