<p>-- a bulletin from <a href="http://www.StopThePave.org" title="www.StopThePave.org">www.StopThePave.org</a> –</p>
<p>[Sorry for not being in touch recently, we were rather tied up with this little effort called Occupy Vancouver.]</p>
<p><strong>1) System Change Not Climate Change! Occupy Vancouver Rally against Canadian Government Sabotage of International Climate Change Process</strong></p>
<p>12:00 noon - 3:00pm<br />
Saturday December 3 2011<br />
Venue: Vancouver Art Gallery<br />
Address: 800 West Georgia Street</p>
<p>Share this event with your Facebook friends! <a href="http://www.facebook.com/events/119580774823330/" title="http://www.facebook.com/events/119580774823330/">http://www.facebook.com/events/119580774823330/</a></p>
<p>Occupy Vancouver participants will return in force to the Vancouver Art gallery this Saturday, December 3rd at 12:00 noon to rally for systemic change including the end to freeway expansions that drive up tar sand oil consumption, and to condemn Canada’s role in derailing progress in the International Climate Change negotiations.</p>
<p>“The slogan ‘System change not climate change’ is well known in Europe,” Says Eric Doherty of Council of Canadians Vancouver Chapter. “It’s becoming a central rallying cry in the growing global movement for climate justice, and Occupy Vancouver is stepping up the fight for real action on climate change by introducing this concept to BC.”</p>
<p>World leaders are currently meeting in Durban, South Africa to address the threat of global warming and the associated impacts of drought, flooding and extreme weather, but the CBC reported on Monday that Canada may already be preparing to abandon international agreements on climate change.</p>
<p>The report suggest that while Canada has been meeting with world leaders for the past six years and committing to work out a binding agreement for the second phase of the Kyoto Protocol, the Canadian government had no intention of honouring the agreement and had, in fact, planned to abandon it shortly after the UN climate change summit in Durban.</p>
<p>“Experts such as David Suzuki and Bill McKibben have already spoken to Occupy Vancouver about the need for deep systemic change, including the need to question the endless growth in consumption and production that is driving up carbon emissions,” says Sarah Beuhler of Occupy Vancouver. “The rally on Saturday will once again bring this important issue to the forefront with talks from prominent climate change experts.”</p>
<p>System Change Not Climate Change speakers will include:<br />
Tria Donaldson (Wilderness Committee)<br />
Rex Weyler (Writer and Greenpeace International co-founder)<br />
Matt Horne (Pembina)<br />
George Heyman (Sierra Club)<br />
Eric Doherty (StopThePave.org &amp; Council of Canadians, Vancouver Chapter)</p>
<p><strong>2) Translink seems to be back on their discredited freeway building agenda again, and your help is needed to get our transit agency back focused on Better Transit Not Freeways!</strong></p>
<p>StopThePave.org, along with hundreds of New Westminster residents managed to get the North Fraser Perimeter Road through New Westminster cancelled, our biggest victory so far against the Provincial Gateway freeway megaproject. However, TransLink is still considering spending about a billion dollars to replace the existing 4-lane Pattullo Bridge with a six lane bridge. This is despite the fact that there is nowhere for 2 more lanes of polluting traffic to go in New Westminster.</p>
<p>According to TransLink, the existing bridge is structurally safe but upgrading it to modern seismic standards would disrupt automobile traffic. So far, TransLink has not produced any conclusive evidence that the existing bridge cannot be made safe at much less expense. If you think that TransLink should look at saving hundreds of millions that could be spent on transit, let them know at <a href="http://www.translink.ca/en/Be-Part-of-the-Plan/Roads-Bridges-and-Goods-Movement/Pattullo-Bridge-Replacement/About-the-Project.aspx" title="http://www.translink.ca/en/Be-Part-of-the-Plan/Roads-Bridges-and-Goods-Movement/Pattullo-Bridge-Replacement/About-the-Project.aspx">http://www.translink.ca/en/Be-Part-of-the-Plan/Roads-Bridges-and-Goods-M...</a> or email <a href="mailto:vincent.gonsalves@translink.ca">vincent.gonsalves@translink.ca</a></p>