Justice and ecology are two topics currently in the news because Rio +20 (United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on June 20-22, 2012) is fast approaching.
 
On Saturday, June 9, the members of the Groupe Solidarité benefitted from a session on Ecology and Social Justice, offered by the Carrefour de participation, a resource and education center, CPRF.

Mrs. Louise Lafortune, the animator for the day, helped us to discover the inescapable link between ecology and social justice. With her, we identified the crises which are unsettling to our world, affecting the most vulnerable people and putting life (on earth) in danger. 

Later, we looked at future prospects for bringing about social transformation. Through a game that was comprehensive, but also amusing, we discovered solutions and possible actions which can give power back to individuals as well as to groups.

Here are some actions stemming from the discussion on how to become more responsible consumers:

• recycle, reduce, re-use,
• preserve natural resources,
• improve public transport,
• tax the purchase of vehicles which pollute and reinvest these taxes into the fight against poverty,
• increase taxes on luxuries,
• tax financial transactions, tax the purchase of a second vehicle in the city at 100%, etc.

Claudette Bastien, S.N.J.M.