Concerns from Around the Table

Mon, 04/23/2007 - 09:16 — Gord Miller

Important decisions about Great Lakes governance agreements will be made shortly by governments on behalf of the Great Lakes basin community. These decisions must be guided by a collective vision of the future of the Great Lakes. It is vital that the public be given a forum to publicly engage in discussions in order to shape Ontario?s collective vision of the future of the Great Lakes.

This lack of attention is made even worse by a steadily declining level of monitoring data available to alert the public and decision makers to the ecological conditions and changing stresses in the lakes. No system for monitoring conditions means no alerting of change, means no concern and no interest or engagement of the various governments.

From November 2006 - January 2007, I partnered with Pollution Probe to host a series of public events on the future of the Great Lakes in Kingston, Windsor, Hamilton, Thunder Bay, and Toronto. About 500 Great Lakes stakeholders and citizens in Ontario participated in these roundtables and public forums.

We found that, despite good progress in some areas, there is increasing apprehension (on both sides of border) over the future of the Great Lakes. There are new challenges that need our urgent attention, including invasive species, climate change, and the threat of water withdrawals from the Great Lakes.

Discussions at the roundtables were organized around five themes:

?Water Quality and Ecological Processes;
?Water Levels and Water Use and Consumption;
?Government and Institutional Support;
?Business and Economic Development;
?Community Health and Well-being.

For each of the themes, participants were asked to consider the following questions:

?What threats do you see?
?What concerns do you have?
?What opportunities are there?
?How can we improve the situation?

For the next five days I will talk about results coming out of these proceedings.

Engagement and Education

Many participants in our Great Lakes Roundtables felt that a sense of complacency had set in with respect to the Great Lakes, and that there was no sense of urgency to take action. There is a strong need for political leaders to articulate a vision that inspires people to care.

One participant made a comment that resonated profoundly with many of us: ?The problem isn?t invasive aquatic species, toxics, climate change, or any other of the many issues we face. The problem is us. Our lifestyle has to adapt to the environment. Until we humble ourselves, and understand that we are the invasive species, we won?t get it. ?

As one participant explained, ?Rather than get bogged down in the science, we need to do a much better job of articulating to the public why they should care about the Great Lakes.? Another pointed out the need ?to inform and engage the general public, so they understand the natural capital within the Great Lakes basin.?

It is clear that public communication on Great Lakes issues - so vitally important for citizen and stakeholder engagement ? is lacking. We need to popularize or ?mainstream? communication and education on the Great Lakes in a way that would resonate with the public. Individuals and businesses need to be made aware of their connection to the Lakes and to feel that connection, including the sense of place associated with living near the Great Lakes.

On a number of occasions, the roundtables raised the issue of bringing people and organizations that care about the Great Lakes together. As one participant observed, ?There is a groundswell of interest and concern over the Great Lakes right now. How do we capture the groundswell and turn it into a tidal wave??

Participants pointed out that politicians need to be convinced that the public wants to see an investment in the Great Lakes. The awareness of the public is key. Understanding the need for life style changes is critical. As one participant explained, ?The public does not realize how low the rate of renewal of Great Lakes water is - we cannot continue to live the way we do?.

Many participants expressed the need for Great Lakes restoration in Ontario to work from the bottom up and that grassroots participation in the policy development process needs to be encouraged.

Similarly, the roundtable type process (such as the Ontario Round Tables on Employment and Economy) worked well at the provincial and federal level. Community or regional Great Lakes roundtables could be created with funding from the senior levels of government, as an alternative structure to government, to foster local engagement and to provide government with advice on the Great Lakes.

For the average citizen, the complexity of Great Lakes issues is a major barrier to participation in Great Lakes decision-making. Roundtable participants agreed that dedicated environmental education is a critical factor in fostering awareness and raising the public?s consciousness and sense of stewardship for the Lakes and the environment more generally. However, there was great concern that the necessary awareness and consciousness has been hampered by the removal of environmental science from the Ontario school curriculum.

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