| Guest blog by Eric Sizer, Campaign Manager Hi, I’m Eric Sizer, David Merner’s campaign manager. The Green Party leadership contest has been a tremendous experience so far for everyone on David’s campaign team. Greens from all across the country and from all walks of life are joining David’s campaign because they can see he has what it takes to bring our party together and put our best foot forward at election time. One of the important things we agreed on from the start was that we wanted to run a very Green leadership campaign. For example, to offset David’s travel we’re going to plant trees in every Canadian province and territory. I’m also very proud of the way we’ve built collaborative working teams across Canada. We’ve developed policy papers, campaign Information Systems, bilingual communications material, and outreach strategies to engage Greens from coast to coast to coast. Click to read more |
| A DEEP COMMITMENT TO FAIR VOTING |
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| Ever since I studied political science at the University of Alberta as a young man, I have felt that our system for electing Members of Parliament is unfair and divides our country. Our First Past the Post (FPTP) system is unfair because it produces results that only rarely reflect the will of Canadians. Almost all “majority” governments in Canadian history have been formed by parties supported by a minority of Canadians. FPTP is also bad for the unity of our country because it gives regional parties and separatist parties a big advantage, at the expense of true national parties running in all ridings. The 2019 election is a good example. The Bloc Québecois earned 7.6 percent of the vote and the Green Party earned 6.5 percent; but that vote resulted in 32 seats for the Bloc and only three seats for the Greens. This result does not accurately represent the will of the people. This week, Fair Vote Canada rated the platforms of all the Green Party leadership candidates. I’m very pleased to report that our campaign received an “A”, Fair Vote Canada’s top grade. Click to read more |
| DONATIONS WELCOME |
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| We are now campaigning hard across BC, from Squamish, to Kamploops, Kelowna, Abbotsford, Surrey, New Westminster, Vancouver, Gibsons, the Sunshine Coast, and all of Vancouver Island. We’re in top campaign shape, having completed tours of Ontario and Quebec in the last three weeks! Can you help us with the costs of travel by donating? No amount is too small! (And the maximum is $1625.) |
| VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT |
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| Nick Dickinson-Wilde was born and raised on the west coast – from the Gulf Islands, to Port Renfrew, to his current home in East Sooke. A web developer by day, he has been a member of the Green Party for over half his life – Nick’s earliest memories include the Clayoquot Sound protests. He has spoken at the UNEP International Children’s Conference on the Environment and served on Environment Canada’s Youth Round Table on the Environment. When he’s not volunteering on environmental causes, Nick works as a web developer specializing in Drupal. In 2020, he helped to organize DrupalCon, North America’s premier event for Drupal developers. Due to COVID, DrupalCon became a fully online event, as well as a resounding success. Nik is also a bike rider and he loves the bike trails of South Vancouver Island. During the 2019 federal election, he biked to all campaign related events, including one event that required a 75 kilometer round trip. “When David asked me to get involved, I was considering it but hadn’t yet taken the step. I agreed because my pragmatic side says he will win our seat for the Greens in the next election if he becomes leader. That’s a major bonus! I also have a sufficient degree of policy alignment to be comfortable backing him. But really, the cincher that made my decision easy is David’s constant support, raising up, and congratulations to everyone including his competitors in this race.” |
| JOIN OUR TEAM |
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| Join the movement to unite the Green Party and empower Green members. As our campaign grows, we need volunteers to help with everything from phone outreach, to media and communications, fundraising, event planning and research. Training and support will be provided to all. This is a great opportunity to get involved in a winning leadership campaign and to campaign at the national level. To volunteer, please email us at: vote.merner@greenparty.ca. |
| WHAT’S HAPPENING THIS WEEK |
 New Westminster, BC – in person public assembly Sunday September 6 – 2:00 PM Pacific Time Tipperary Park — 315 Queens Ave – look for Green Party Banners *COVID-19 social distancing precautions will be observed* Vancouver, BC – in person public assembly Monday September 7 – 2:00 PM Pacific Time Queen Elizabeth Park — Access from Main St. at East 33rd Ave. meet near Duck Pond *COVID-19 social distancing precautions will be observed* Zoom with Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount Tuesday September 8, 7:30 PM Eastern Time Click here North Vancouver, BC – in person public assembly Tuesday September 8, 6:30 PM Pacific Time Mahon Park – Access off 16th St. W – near Fen Burdett Stadium *COVID-19 social distancing precautions will be observed* West Vancouver, BC – in person public assembly Wednesday September 9, 11:00 AM Pacific Time Whytecliff Park – 7102 Marine Dr, West Vancouver *COVID-19 social distancing precautions will be observed* Gibsons, BC – in person public assembly Wednesday September 9, 6:00 PM Pacific Time Dougall Park – Parking off Gower Point Rd – meet near the tennis courts *COVID-19 social distancing precautions will be observed* Canada’s place in the world: Green Party Leadership All-Candidates Debate Thursday September 10, 7:00 PM Eastern Time Sponsored by rabble.ca and Canadian Foreign Policy Institute Moderated by Journalist Judy Rebick. Join us for a Green Party leadership candidates debate on Canada’s place in the world. Hear candidates’ views on Palestinian rights, Venezuela, NATO, the global climate crisis, as well as the International mining and arms industries. Candidates will also address the global pandemic, Donald Trump, tensions with China as well as the global struggle against anti-Blackness and Canada’s second consecutive failure to win a seat on the UN Security Council. Click here to register Courtenay, BC – in person public assembly Friday September 11, 6:00 PM Pacific Time Lewis Park – 46 5th St *COVID-19 social distancing precautions will be observed*Also, join me on Zoom every Saturday at 11:00 AM Pacific / 2:00 PM Eastern for our weekly chat. All event details are at www.davidmerner.com – click on “Events”. |
| HOW TO HELP Volunteer Attend a Zoom call Donate SOCIAL MEDIA Follow our campaign on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to keep up to date with events, Green Party policy, and campaign updates! |
| Thank you again for your support. Sincerely, David David Merner 250 514 5507 |