Your (recent) editorial asked for opinions regarding whether or not to support the modest community grant provided to KRUNA (Kootenay Region – United Nations Association) for the upcoming conference entitled “A Gathering of Eagles” so I’m responding with a resounding yes.
Perhaps if you provided your readers with a bit of information about this very interesting community gathering instead of trying to dismiss it or label it as political, you would have done a better job to encourage thoughtful discussion over this matter.
The conference is a wonderful local opportunity for our community to hear from people who will directly experience the impact of pipelines carrying bitumen tar across our province. It will allow us a rare opportunity to gather and reflect on the importance of protecting our fragile environment; the water we drink and the land that sustains us.
Enbridge and their friends have spared no expense in attempting to thwart a public debate. The Harper government has removed many of our democratic environmental protections in an attempt to allow inevitably harmful practices to be quickly approved. Many decisions are removed from the general population by bureaucracy so it is refreshing when our local representatives want to encourage public participation and education on important matters.
I am really impressed that KRUNA and the other conference sponsors care enough about my ability as a citizen to gain information about an important issue that might impact my quality of life here in the West Kootenays, and that we have a director who supports organizations who are fostering debate.
At the very least, I hope your question will peak additional interest in the conference. The more citizens that we have engaged in discussing our lives, the better, and that is politics at its finest.
–Cindy McCallum Miller,
Castlegar