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PhD candidate known to some as “that bird guy”, trying to prevent harm, help others and grow reconnections with nature. How should we use what time we have?🆘🌎
Jun 22 19 tweets 6 min read
Someone complained about my yard again and TWO bylaw officers showed up to investigate, front yard and back. They told me the yard and lot maintenance bylaw applies to grass and weeds over 8 inches. We had a good discussion in which I explained the updated bylaw, and they left. Image I asked, can you please identify which grass and which weeds in particular are causing the problem and impacting health or safety? They could not. They did not seem familiar with the new parameters of the bylaw’s height restrictions (e.g., corner visibility triangles).
Sep 8, 2023 12 tweets 4 min read
The government’s predictions are extremely bleak 🫣 Pardon my Français but if we weren’t already in crisis, held hostage by corrupt leaders/companies hijacking our outdated systems of government, maybe the publication of this data would provide the “oh shit” moment Ontarians need
Image On the above chart, red is “Very High” risk, captured from the report’s executive summary

ontario.ca/files/2023-08/…
May 2, 2023 4 tweets 1 min read
I wish we (people on Ontario) paid more attention to proposals of solutions for major issues that are being tabled by the opposition and rejected by the provincial government. The Greens, Liberals and NDP are offering ways to address lack of affordable housing, climate change… We are at a point in our political discourse when the extent of the problems or the merit of ideas to fix the problems matter a lot less than the colour of the branding for whoever is proposing solutions. This majority government only listens and votes according to the party line
Jan 18, 2023 4 tweets 2 min read
Now that @ON_Integrity @OntarioAuditor agreed to investigate, it might be helpful to uncover more info about circumstances of this backroom meeting and others like it re: greenbelt development. Which specific developers attended this private function in Markham on Feb 12 2018? In case you missed it…
pressprogress.ca/doug-ford-made…
Jan 17, 2023 15 tweets 11 min read
I wrote a blog for @envirodefence summarizing info from Ontario conservation authorities and municipalities about impacts to wetlands following changes to OWES.

Learn more about which specific wetlands are at risk of losing protection in your watershed👇 environmentaldefence.ca/2023/01/17/flo… I took the 📸 in the blog header last summer at the Sifton Bog, a wetland in #ldnont 10,000 years in the making that @UTRCAmarketing says is no longer guaranteed protection as a Provincially Significant Wetland complex under revised OWES rules. Which other wetlands are at risk? Image
Jan 5, 2023 4 tweets 2 min read
This video is so misleading it is almost nauseating, but with a new soundtrack it could be rebranded as a trailer for a futurist/dystopian horror film set in Ontario Ontarians should follow the public participation for this project closely. It remains to be seen whether the international, privately-held Therme Group is designing their luxury spa concept after the public’s interest. Seems problematic, according to senior planners in Toronto
Dec 30, 2022 4 tweets 2 min read
I get that this involves the pharmacy retail industry but aren’t there rules about Ontario’s Minister of Health inviting the President of a particular megacompany to plug their services through an official announcement? Why not feature a representative of the pharmacy profession? I have to wonder, is this a fair, equitable approach to privatizing primary care services, one that allows all pharmacies and other businesses equal opportunities to realize this new market space? Or are advantages being provided by this government to certain private interests?
Dec 13, 2022 5 tweets 3 min read
To what extent did @fordnation’s government plan in advance to ram through all these omnibus bills at once, and underspend on public services? What details are hidden in the secret mandate letters, still undisclosed despite legal requirement? 3.5 yrs to go cbc.ca/news/canada/to… “The Ontario government is refusing to say how many taxpayer-funded hours its lawyers have spent fighting to keep Premier Doug Ford's mandate letters secret, despite being ordered to release the figure to CBC Toronto by the province's privacy commissioner”
cbc.ca/news/canada/to…
Dec 11, 2022 22 tweets 16 min read
What are students saying about Ontario’s #Bill23? On Friday December 9, @westernsogs organized a large public demonstration on #WesternU’s campus as part of our effort to spread community awareness of the Bill and what it means for the housing and climate crises. A recap 🧵 Image If you don’t know me, I’m the 1st Sustainability Coordinator at SOGS. I advocate on behalf of grad students’ environmental rights. I’m the Chair of an advisory committee for the City of London dedicated to environmental stewardship & climate action. I’m also working on a PhD!🐦🪟 Image
Dec 10, 2022 4 tweets 1 min read
Wonder how many conservative voters the current Ontario government is alienating with their recent antics. Those are voices I would love to hear more from The legacy of the Ontario PC party, and their ability to recruit new younger voters, may well depend on the response from their base to current events. Quiet disagreement is fine, but on the outside it just looks like you are complicit
Nov 25, 2022 5 tweets 3 min read
I would love to see a coalition of municipalities work together to put pressure on the Ontario government to incorporate sustainable building design into the Ontario Building Code, to replace municipal green standards that have been lost in the midst of a climate emergency. Maybe this is advocacy that @AMOPolicy @ONBigCityMayors can explore? Without green standards, development can proceed that isn't built to withstand climate change conditions. Ultimately, this will leave municipalities & property owners on the hook for costs of disaster mitigation
Nov 19, 2022 10 tweets 5 min read
🚨Ontarians should write to their MPP to ask for an integrity / privacy commissioner investigation: Did @fordnation breach the oath of the Premier’s office and conflict of interest rules when he privately told developers he would allow them to develop lands in the greenbelt?
Sep 26, 2022 8 tweets 4 min read
Please encourage newcomers to #WesternU to consider voting in the upcoming #ldnont municipal election. Student turnout for these elections is historically low, yet students will be affected by many decisions to be made by the next local government. Also…
westerngazette.ca/news/everythin… If you wanna get informed about the election, check out accounts like @ThrivingLdnOnt & @london_votes. Watch online recordings of debates hosted by @ULLdn to find out how local candidates stack up on issues. There are good summaries available to make your research really simple!
Sep 25, 2022 5 tweets 2 min read
I am disappointed that this petition went nowhere after the federal 🇨🇦government made excuses and didn’t acknowledge the feasibility of reasonable actions we asked for. They claim there isn’t enough evidence to suggest balloon releases are a problem / warrant intervention… If you are in Canada and want to release tens, hundreds, event thousands of plastic balloons into the sky for your enjoyment, the government response suggests the 🇨🇦 legal system will not stop you. This happens more often than we know - just search balloon release on Twitter
Oct 6, 2021 4 tweets 2 min read
Remember the petition by @FLAPCanada urging the province of Ontario to update the Ontario Building Code to require bird friendly glass in new construction? @ChrisGloverMPP just introduced a motion in support to the Legislature! Please share and sign: chrisglovermpp.ca/protect_migrat… Read more about this petition and why actions are needed to protect birds from collisions with building windows in Ontario: