Thursday, December 22, 2011

St Pat's Housing for the Homeless is successful!


Identified as one of the only successful Occupy camps of the 1500 across the planet, the St Pat's organization continues to place individuals into programs for housing, education & employment. Additionally, counselling for a variety of issues is also being accessed from local agencies. A byproduct of the experience is an identification of best practices within the homeless network, as well as gleaning deeply relevant information on systemic ommissions and inefficiencies. There are significant chasms in service delivery, areas which St Pat's will target on the Compassion Continuum.


The St Pat's Co-op is formalizing and discussions continue with numerous local organizations, focused primarily on the One STOP Shop (employee owned BottleDepot, FarmersMarket, EmploymentAgency, HealthServices, Bike Repairs, Communications, Services, Supports, Training, et al) & the MHOPP (Micro Home Ownership Pilot Program) which includes the CCFI (Calgary Community Farm Initiative) on the TUC (Transportation and Utility Corridor).


St Pat's Co-op on Facebook

St Pat's Co-op Blog

Article 25 Food & Shelter UNHRD

HOME: Home Ownership Matters 2 Every1 & MHOPP

HOMES 4 the Holidays

CPR: Calgary Poverty Reduction

ReSTART

ARE3A: Ag + Recreation + Environment + Education + Entertainment + Art

Monday, November 14, 2011

Occupy Calgary Olympic Plaza Faction & Bill Bruce, City of Calgary Bylaw Director

Occupy Calgary Olympic Plaza Faction & Bill Bruce, City of Calgary Bylaw Director

THE CITY OF CALGARY
ANIMAL & BYLAW SERVICES

The City of Calgary is committed to maintaining the integrity of its Parks
and Pathways so they can truly be shared and enjoyed by all Calgarians.



For this reason, the Parks and Pathways Bylaw 20M2003 contains rules which
must be followed in and on Parks and Pathways. Failure to follow these rules
may constitute an offence which, upon conviction, is punishable with a fine
and/or imprisonment. Fines under the Bylaw range from $25.00 to $1,000.00
for a first offence.

Calgary’s Olympic Plaza is a Park and its use is subject to the Park and
Pathways Bylaw.

The City of Calgary recognizes the rights of Calgarians to engage in public
expression and peaceful assembly.

The City will enforce the Parks and Pathways Bylaw in respect of Oympic
Plaza to restore the use of Olympic Plaza for the benefit, use and enjoyment
of all Calgarians and to avoid further damage being caused to Olympic Plaza.

As of 0900 hrs on 2011 November 15th, The City of Calgary will enforce the
Parks and Pathways Bylaw with respect to Olympic Plaza.

Any unattended materials or unoccupied tents will be removed from Olympic
Plaza.

For questions about responsibilities and obligations while in Olympic Plaza
please visit www.calgary.ca and Search Parks Bylaws.

POSTED at Olympic Plaza on 2011 November 14th at 0900 hrs.

Bill Bruce
Director
Animal & Bylaw Services

Sunday, November 13, 2011

It's 2011... Time to STOP KILLING of Big Game in Canada

Stop Killing Big Game in Canada.

Facebook: Stop, Halt, Ban Big Game Sport Killing in Canada



Big Game Hunting has targeted the most genetically gifted animals throughout history, so that a head can be hung on a wall. They refer to themselves as hunters although they use high powered, scope enabled weapons from a distance. This is a complete bastardization of the term hunter. The terms that best describes this microscopic demographic of our society is killer, sniper, assassin, murderer, executioner and coward. Although few in numbers, they have a disporportionate impact on our ecology by killing our superior genetic diversity. It's 2011, we know better. Ask your MP/MLA to Stop or Halt Big Game Sport Executions in Canada.

Start with our Prime Minister: pm@pm.gc.ca Twitter: @PMHarper

There are individuals who will "hunt" animals like Moose and Deer for meat, based on a tag system. They are excluded from the above characterization.

For an example of the type of operations that serve a very exclusive clientele focused on removing genetic diversity from future generations, see: (Please add more examples in comments section)

NEW Seven Wonders of the Natural World

A list of the NEW seven wonders of the natural world is about to be announced following a global survey. Which sites will make the final roster? Here are some of the mostbeautiful and unique sites from around the world...

















Saturday, November 12, 2011

CBC, HNIC & Profanity/Racism

Canadian Broadcasting Company, Hockey Night In Canada tweets from 11.11.11 @ aprox 1700hrs

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Sisters & Brothers: This is an independent proposal 2 all #OccupyCalgary participants. Attn: No commitments have been made.

05Oct11
Sisters & Brothers: 
This is an independent proposal 2 all #OccupyCalgary participants.
Attn: No commitments have been made.

This is a proposal that has been researched and discussed, NO commitments have been made.

Via a conversation with a representative of Calgary City Police and a representative of the City of Calgary, we have a SUGGESTION on how the Occupy Calgary event can unfold in a respectful, responsible & safe manner. 
#OccupyCalgary would have a base at Centenary Park on @St. Patrick's Island. Movement into the downtown core would be along the RiverWalk system, with final entrance to the core from Eau Claire Market along Barklay Mall (3rd ST). This would provide for minimal disruption and allow us to access Stephen Ave, including Banker's Hall & Olympic Plaza, if in fact we choose to do so.

Tenatively, the base camp would be established for aprox 2 weeks at Centenary Park, with portable toilets, water and clearly designated camping spots. There would be an area for daily assemblies and group gatherings. After 2 weeks, we would review with The City of Calgary & Calgary Police Service.

The CPS has indicated that they would like to work together. We have been invited to a meeting tomorrow @ 9am at CPS HQ to discuss the details of #OccupyCalgary and how we can HOST our event so that Public Safety is achieved.

Again, NO commitments have been made.

My humble suggestion to the General Assembly is we meet with the CPS/City of Calgary and finalize the above option.

Again, NO commitments have been made.
 Respectfully,
Paul Hughes

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Occupy Wall Street Posters #OccupyWallStreet #99

Occupy Wall Street Posters #OccupyWallStreet #99













Occupy Wall Street Posters #OccupyWallStreet #99

Friday, September 23, 2011

Dr Vandana Shiva arrives in Calgary! 23Sep11

I had the honour of being Dr Vandana Shiva's chauffeur today. Her energy is contagious! What an inspiration for those of us working in food and social justice.


Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Food Policy & the Political Foundation of a Local Food System: Saskatoon

Food Policy & the Political Foundation of a Local Food System
I will be presenting at Cafe Sola in Saskatoon this Saturday, 24Sep11 @6.30pm
The event is free.


Sunday, September 18, 2011

Food For Thought: A celebration of Local Food Producers, Chefs & People Calgary 15October, 2011

Food 4 Thought 15Oct11 @2255 Crowchild Trail
A celebration of Local Food Producers, Chefs & People
 
 REAP’s 2nd annual FOOD FOR THOUGHT is a celebration of local sustainable food and farmers!

Food For Thought
October 15, 2011  6:00 pm  -  10:00 pm
2255 Crowchild Trail NW
McMahon Stadium, east entrance
(Absolute Baseball Academy kwansit hut next to Viper Stadium)

REAP Business Association is proud to host, with the support of Community Natural Foods, First Calgary Financial, and Calgary Herald, a wonderful event in celebration of local sustainable food and farmers!

The 2nd annual FOOD FOR THOUGHT will showcase local sustainable farmers and producers, paired with restaurants and catering companies who already adore and promote their products, and offer tastings to our attendees while giving everyone a chance to talk to our farmers and chefs directly.

After the greeting and eating we will be premiering a documentary called In the Same Boat, which features the stories of an Alberta farming family and a Newfoundland fishing family, both of whom have been impacted by industrialized agriculture. The filmmaker, Rachel Bower, will lead a discussion about the importance of local, sustainable food systems after the film.

Doors open at 6:00 pm
Curtain at 8:30 pm

Tickets are $25 and available at Community Natural Foods locations or online at www.reapcalgary.com/events/food-thought.

This event sold out last year, so advance ticket purchase is highly recommended. Any remaining tickets will be available for purchase at the door.

We would like to thank the following organizations for their generous support:
·         Community Natural Foods
·         First Calgary Financial
·         Calgary Herald
·         SwizzleSticks SalonSpa
·         River Cafe
·         Boxwood
·         Absolute Baseball Academy
·         Hotel Alma
 

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Graffiti: Yes, Comrade, we love our pure, unadulterated, grey infrastructure. Yay 4 Grey!


Tagging is about as creative as Calgary City Council, but a little humour makes graffiti a whole new experience.

Here is a Banksy knock off in SunnySide on the North LRT Bridge support.


  Here's City staff removing the "Graffiti". Thank god SunnySide is a Banksy Knock Off Free Zone. Yes, Comrade, we love our pure, unadulterated, grey infrastructure. Yay 4 Grey!


Friday, July 22, 2011

Start Food Policy Councils

Start Food Policy Councils

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step ~Lao-tzu

If your community, municipality, region, county, province, state, country or planet doesn't have a Food Policy Council... start one.


How to start a Food Policy Council:


Communicate via Social Media
Start a Facebook page, twitter account, blog, google group/list & email.


Host a meeting
Book a room, set a meeting date, create an agenda and promote/invite local food groups and individuals to the founding/organizational meeting of your community's food policy council.


Have the meeting
Start talking about Food Policy in your community. The rest will follow... The most important action is to initiate the discussion.


Alberta Food Policy Council

North American Food Policy Council