Sunday, June 25, 10 a.m. Again this orange light that illuminates my typical Montreal backyard, and this smell that reminds me of the campfires we make in the summer, with friends, during a nice camping weekend. Except that the smell of campfire today, it knots my stomach. The campfire is Quebec.
Even today, it is Quebec that is burning, from the North Shore to Mauricie, via Abitibi and Saguenay. These are the flames that consume hectares of wood and spare nothing in their path. Nor this fauna1 that I like to observe so much when I go camping or the communities that have to evacuate their homes leaving everything behind them, and that I imagine with a heavy heart and a bent back with the uncertainty of the days to come.
And while I can live out my eco-anxiety relatively quietly in the comfort of my apartment, closing the windows and comparing the price of air purifiers online against the backdrop of classical “end of the world chill” music, I think of all those people for whom the solution cannot be reduced to simply closing the windows. I think about climate change, the lack of action by those in power, and what we can do, collectively, to turn our eco-anxiety into action that will have an impact.
“Weather not cooperating,” reads an article subtitle. Can we also take care of the elephant in the middle of the room?
This smoke is a mirror from which we cannot look away and which forces us to look reality in the face: “Human who does not collaborate” would have been an equally legitimate subtitle. And by human, I point precisely to the people responsible for the major political, economic or social orientations of this country. I think of Justin Trudeau and the federal government, who continue to heavily support fossil fuels, the main driver of climate change according to scientists and other experts. Or even to the government of François Legault, which is not inclined to organize a BAPE to hold a real debate on the energy future of Quebec.
I am also thinking of Dave McKay, CEO of RBC, the bank that financed the most fossil fuels worldwide in 2022. We could also name the Caisse de depot et placement du Québec (CDPQ), which is still a shareholder in controversial fuel projects. fossil fuels, such as the Coastal GasLink pipeline. The equation at the heart of the climate crisis is: fossil fuels = climate change and disrespect for the rights of indigenous peoples = increase and aggravation2 extreme climatic events (such as forest fires or floods).
Well caulked in my apartment, which has become too hot, I am also worried about the impact of this crisis on health. While wildfires and smoke pose a health risk to the population as a whole, they have a disproportionate impact on Indigenous and rural communities, Black and racialized, LGBTQIA2S+, or marginalized people.
So yes, being generally among the wealthiest, I have no complaints, it’s true. Are we going to accept the situation? Living holed up at home waiting for the rains to clear up – literally – until the next extreme weather event?
To those of you who watch the latest fire news with dread, worry about the thick orange fog, identify yourself as eco-anxious, or are “just shopping for a few N95 masks, just in case”… we can do something about it.
Taking action feels good. And sometimes it even changes things. Last year, a celebratory activity outside Scotiabank’s annual general meeting helped end the bank’s partnership with Canada’s most powerful fossil fuel lobby. In December, the mobilization of people from all over the world for COP15 in Montreal led to the Kunming-Montreal agreement, setting the stage for real protection of nature and for the recognition of the role of indigenous and traditional territories in the achievement of this objective.
The clearing, the real one, it will come because we will have generated it, claimed it collectively. Together, we can demand those with power, such as governments or banks, to stop funding fossil fuels and invest more in sustainable, community-driven energy solutions.
The solutions to combat climate change and implement adequate mitigation and adaptation measures for communities facing these fires exist. Whether in nature, in indigenous knowledge and modes of governance, or in the knowledge generated by civil and scientific society, the solutions are there and are just waiting to be funded and implemented. It is high time for the federal and provincial governments to look into this smoke mirror and take action to protect biodiversity, the climate and communities.