From the student leaders of Fridays for Future Owen Sound:

To the City of Owen Sound,

Given that climate impacts are already causing serious loss of life and destroying vital ecosystems, global average temperature, atmospheric greenhouse gases, and ocean acidity are already at dangerous levels, and wartime economic mobilizations have proven how quickly nations can restructure their economies when facing an extreme threat, it is inexcusable to continue with climate-damaging policies that put us all in even greater peril.

We ask of our councillors to implement a municipality-wide climate emergency response, which would involve …

• Publicly acknowledge the climate emergency
• Review the Council’s strategic plan
• Create a foundation for climate emergency action
• Implement a climate emergency plan

We’ve risen to big challenges in the past when an emergency has been declared, with citizens and all sides of politics rising to the occasion and working together for the common good. We have all the resources and ability to overcome the climate emergency, we are only lacking two things: political will and the number of people to change that political will.

We, the citizens of Owen Sound, petition the city to declare a climate emergency.

Climate Warming is already severely impacting our nation, increasing wildfire risk and leading to dangerous weather patterns.

We demand that the Owen Sound City Council publicly acknowledges the climate emergency and implement a climate emergency plan. (Download petition as a word document here)