What’s happening with NIPR?
The Greens of North Island-Powell River (NIPR) Electoral District Association (EDA) Executive have been working hard for you.
Greens of North Island-Powell River (NIPR) Strategic Plan
The NIPR Electoral District Association (EDA) Executive doesn’t plan to fail, so we decided to come up with a strategic plan. We spent an entire day together in January, learning what a strategic plan is and why it’s important to have one.
After much mental sweat equity, we came up with six strategic objectives. They are:
- Develop all available resources to hand over to the campaign team at election time.
- Work with urgency to build safer, more sustainable and resilient communities for present and future generations.
- Increase understanding of Green Party values and policies and their relevance to our local communities.
- Work with BC Greens to elect Green MLAs in the next provincial election.
- Strengthen connection with Federal Greens, including Green Party headquarters and other EDAs.
- Find the perfect candidate for the next Federal election.
Then we took the show on the road, so to speak, and we held the …
Powell River strategic planning event
On February 23, we held an event in Powell River with a very engaged group of Greens in the wonderful Cranberry Hall.
The three-hour event could have gone on longer. We presented the six strategic objectives the NIPR EDA had devised. The goal was to get people in Powell River talking about activities they could do locally that would fit into those strategic objectives. We focused on four of the objectives and divided into four groups. After spending about 15 minutes on one strategic objective, people then rotated to a second table and a second strategic objective.
The intent was to come up with ideas the Greens in Powell River wanted to undertake in the year going forward. Admittedly, COVID-19 has called a halt to all of these activities. But the ideas remain!
The other thing we did was NIPR Executive members and volunteers met on March 8 to work on a communications plan. Ten people gathered for an intensive, 4-hour workshop presented by Elizabeth Crum, who is on the NIPR Executive.
Elizabeth took us through various exercises to help us decide on our “voice.” Once we established NIPR’s voice, we chose six characteristics that we decided present a cohesive ‘image’, one that we want to project across all our communications. Those six are:
- Welcoming
- Respectful
- Scientific
- Practical
- Progressive and
- Optimistic.
While much of the focus was on digital media, conveying this impression is also how we want to be perceived in our spoken and written communications. We feel that these characteristics also reflect the six core principles of the Green Party.
If anyone would like to join the Communications Team, please write to northislandgreens@gmail.com. If you like to write Facebook posts, we need you. If you like to write political analysis, we need you. If you like to write funny stories or short letters, we need you. If you’re a graphic artist who likes to create Instagram posts, we need you!
Green Party of Canada (GPC) Leadership Race
The Greens of North Island-Powell River (and hopefully the Courtenay-Alberni Greens) are planning to host as many of the leadership candidates as possible on June 29, 2020. That’s a Monday evening and the event will be from 7-9 pm. The reason for that date is that it’s the day after the BC Greens Convention ends in Nanaimo and some of the leadership candidates will be in Nanaimo anyway. So mark your calendars now.
If the coronavirus makes it impossible for the candidates to get here in person, we’ll do our very best to have them online. It won’t be ideal, but you will still get a chance to hear from them.
The field continues to expand. This is becoming an interesting and dynamic leadership race. Read more about the race here.
Also have a look at the website for the GPC leadership race here.
Here are the candidates that we know of right now. Nominations have not yet closed, so this list may change.
Alex Tyrrell
Facebook I Instagram I Website
Amita Kuttner
Twitter I Facebook I Instagram I Website
Annamie Paul
Twitter I Facebook I Instagram I Website
David Merner
Twitter I Facebook I Instagram I Website
Dimitri Lascaris
Twitter I Facebook I Website
Judy N Green
Twitter I Facebook I Instagram I Website
Federal Council and Young Greens Council Nominations Opening
The leadership race isn’t your only opportunity for engaging in elections this year.
Nominations for Federal Council positions are now open! Federal Council governs the Green Party of Canada on behalf of members like you. It is essentially the board of the directors for the party which determines planning, vision and budget.
As a member in good standing, you are invited to apply, or to nominate someone else, for one of the available positions. The deadline to submit your nomination is March 25, 2020 at 12:00 pm PDT. Online voting will take place from April 1 to May 1, 2020.
The following positions are up for election (two year terms):
- Vice President - English
- Fund Representative
- British Columbia Representative
- Nova Scotia Representative
- Ontario Representative
- Prince Edward Island Representative
- Saskatchewan Representative
The following positions are up for election (one year term):
- Newfoundland & Labrador Representative
- Quebec Representative
- Territories Representative
We are also pleased to announce the opening of nominations for positions on the Young Greens of Canada Council! The Council represents the youth wing of the Green Party of Canada and serves all members under the age of 30. You are invited to apply, or to nominate someone else!
The following Young Greens of Canada Council positions are up for election (two year terms):
- Co-Chair
- British Columbia Representative
- Saskatchewan Representative
- Nova Scotia Representative
- Ontario Representative
- Prince Edward Island Representative
The following positions are up for election (one year terms):
- Co-Chair
- Alberta Representative
- Territories Representative
The deadline to submit your nomination is March 25, 2020 at 12:00 pm PDT. Online voting will take place from April 1st to May 1st, 2020. In line with the Green principle of Respect for Diversity, the YGC highly encourages nominations from underrepresented, racialized, and otherwise marginalized groups.
Thank you for participating in these important processes that help build a strong Green Party!
BC Greens Convention
When:
Friday, June 26, 2020 at 1:00 PM to Sunday, June 28, 2020 at 1:00 PM
Where:
Vancouver Island Convention Centre
101 Gordon St, Nanaimo, BC V9R 5J8
Google map and directions
Contact: Madeline Gareau · info@bcgreens.ca · 1-888-473-3686.
Of course, COVID-19 may change everything. Find out whether or not the convention will be going ahead here.
BC Greens Riding Associations (RA)
Both the Courtenay-Comox and the Powell River-Sunshine Coast BC Green RAs had their AGMs recently. The next election will be a provincial one (hopefully), so make sure you’ve connected with your local BC Greens.
BC Greens Leadership Race
At the moment, there are two BC Green leadership candidates: Kim Darwin and Sonia Furstenau.
Check out Kim’s website here and Sonia’s website here.
Kim Darwin is hosting two online forums, which will be held as follows:
Thursday, March 19, 7 PM: Register here
Saturday, March 21, 11 AM: Register here.
Sonia Furstenau’s campaign is shifting to a digital strategy and is organizing an online town hall. The town hall will be a moderated video chat in which participants will have the opportunity to hear about Sonia’s plans for the province and to ask questions.
If you’re interested in participating in an online town hall, please fill out this short poll so her campaign team can make sure they are accommodating as many people as possible.
There will be three official leadership debates held between April 30 and June 15, 2020. The debates will take place on Vancouver Island, the Lower Mainland and in the Interior/North. Specific dates and locations will be announced soon. All debates will be broadcast live online so that voters can watch wherever they are in the province.
Who can vote? Anyone who supports the core values of the BC Green Party can vote. It’s not necessary to be a member, so if you have friends and family who might be interested, please share this information.
There are two ways to vote:
- As a member of the BC Green Party. Your membership must be active and in good standing (all dues paid) by May 30 and through to June 15 (the first day of voting).
- As a registered supporter. You can register to vote by becoming a “supporter” for this leadership contest. By registering to vote as a supporter, you are not making any commitment to the BC Green Party - just simply taking part in the leadership contest.
You can find answers to other questions you may have here. You can register to vote here.
In Profiles in Green, we will showcase individuals (or businesses) who are leaders in the personal or economic changes needed to ensure a livable future for the next seven generations. If you know of individuals (or businesses) who may be candidates for Profiles in Green, write to us at northislandgreens@gmail.com. We’d love to profile individuals and businesses from throughout the riding.
The Refillery
The Comox Valley has a new retailer/coffee shop, The Local Refillery. It was started by Ginette Matthews. Ginette is driven to do whatever she can to leave her children with a healthy planet. She is passionate about local, organic food and about minimizing the waste generated by her household.
When Ginette was a new mother, she found it incredibly challenging to avoid purchasing plastic packaging and unhealthy chemicals when shopping for her family. After years of educating herself and others about the available planet-friendly alternatives, she decided to open The Local Refillery to share her knowledge, passion, and solutions with others.
“It is our mission to provide high-quality, package-free food and zero-waste lifestyle products in one convenient location. We are committed to working with suppliers towards building a circular economy, and to being a hub of positive change in the Comox Valley community.
Our coffee shop is a community gathering place and a hub for aspiring ‘zero-wasters.’ Our coffee comes from award-winning French Press Coffee Roasters in Qualicum Beach, and our goodies are locally made and delivered to us fresh.”
Check out NIPR’s calendar of events on a regular basis. You may see upcoming events there before a newsletter goes out.
We’re always looking for events happening in our riding of interest to Greens wherever they live. They don’t have to be Green events. As you’ll see from the calendar, many of the events showcased here have to do with issues that matter to us as citizens, no matter what our political party of choice. And many are events being put on my groups whose work we as Greens support. If you know of events in your community that you think might interest Green supporters, write to the NIPR Greens and let us know. Please provide as much information as possible, with links to the relevant Facebook or event page.
Of course, the coronavirus, COVID-19, is wreaking havoc with so many plans. All in-person events are cancelled for the time being. But that doesn’t mean your local Greens are going to be slacking off. We’re working on having Zoom meetings with the Green Party of Canada (GPC) Federal Council candidates at the end of March. And we’re working on having either in-person or Zoom sessions with the GPC leadership candidates in June.
Stay tuned ….
Online
April 9, 7-9:30 pm
BC Greens Book Club
RSVP: bcgreens.ca/bc_green_book_club
Greens are defined by a personal responsibility to the community, the quality of decisions we make, and our ability to defend those decisions. We are not responsible for the success or failure of other political entities, and Greens are committed to earning the respect of voters.
Official NIPR email:
northislandgreens@gmail.com
Your NPR Executive:
Megan Ardyche, Comox
Doug Cowell, Courtenay
Elizabeth Crum, Campbell River
Blair Cusack, Courtenay
Mark de Bruijn, Courtenay
Susan Holvenstot, Courtenay
Heather Jones, Port Hardy
Susan Short, Powell River
Carol Thatcher, Courtenay
Chris Tithecott, Campbell River
Jay Van Oostdam, Comox
© 2020 Greens of North Island - Powell River Approved by the official agent.
