Biography of Colleen McCrory
Meeting Minister Trittin
Meeting Lower Saxony Greens
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British Columbia (BC), a province on the West Coast of Canada, has an
environmental crisis that needs global attention. Last week the German
Green Party celebrated its 25th anniversary in Berlin. Among those attending
the gala event were two Canadian Green Party members from BC, Colleen
McCrory and Karen Wonders. They carried a protest poster stating "We have no voice!"
with photos of a grizzly bear family and an 800-year-old cedar tree.
McCrory, who is Deputy Leader of the BC Green Party, was especially
pleased to meet Juergen Trittin, a founding member of the German Green
Party and Germany`s Environment Minister. She told him "In the last
election, Green Party leaders in BC won 13% of the total vote, but they
have no voice in the Legislature." Her question to Minister Trittin
was: "How can the successful German Green Party provide a role model
for the Greens in BC? "
"Because environmentalists and the Green Party have no political representation
in BC," McCrory explained, "the native wildlife and their habitats are
at greater risk." She emphasized "endangered species such as grizzlies,
mountain caribou, wild salmon and spotted owls depend on ancient forests
and undisturbed watersheds to survive."
But according to McCrory, "instead of protecting the magnificent biodiversity
of BC, the current pro-industry government is engaged in massive habitat
destruction."
"Even the land claims of the aboriginal people of BC,"
she added, "are being denied in favour of resource exploitation and industrial
profit."
Minister Trittin told McCrory that he was aware of the environmental
issues in BC, including deforestation. As one of the leading supporters
of the 1992 United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD),
the Minister recently called for "a global network of protected areas,"
saying "we must act, and act now."
According to the CBD, governments must adopt the principle of sustainability
but McCrory pointed out, "Canada is allowing timber corporations
to clear-cut old growth forests. In BC, ancient red cedar
is disappearing, and with it the cultural and ecological heritage of
the aboriginal people."
Minister Trittin assured McCrory that "Germany is committed to reducing the
consumption of all wood products, and to boycotting old growth wood
products." McCrory expressed her appreciation for this and also for
the recent decision by the European Union to ban the importation of grizzly bear trophies
from BC.
McCrory also spoke of the many Germans who come to BC every year to
experience the vast areas of wilderness, "Yet BC is not promoting sustainable
tourism and European tourist organizations representing seven million
Germans have complained about this."
Minister Trittin confirmed "biological degradation is an urgent global
problem which requires international environmental governance," and
he gave his warm support to the Greens from BC.
Links:
Colleen McCrory speaks with Minister Jürgen Trittin.
(Foto: Stephan Röhl)
From left to right: Colleen McCrory, Jürgen Trittin,
Karen Wonders.
(Foto: Stephan Röhl)
Eva Quistorp, one of the founding members of the party
"Die Grünen".
(Foto: Karen Wonders)
25th anniversary of the founding of "Die Grünen",
Kalkscheune, Berlin
(Foto: Stephan Röhl)
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