Why Sustainability is a Family Matter




Family Day is just around the corner and while we encourage everyone to get outdoors and enjoy Calgary's urban environment, it might be worth it to take a moment to reflect on the beauty of the nature in and around Calgary, and how your family is part of that ecosystem.

Alberta is an incredibly beautiful place - our tourism industry reflects that - but while Albertans can enjoy and appreciate our natural spaces, those spaces also need our respect and stewardship. Not only do those green spaces provide Albertans with places to play and enjoy, they are also good for us! Research has shown that living close to green spaces and spending time outside betters our health.Those wild spaces are at risk from climate change, which itself comes with significant health risks.

What does this have to do with families? Well, it's our families that live with the consequences of climate change. Children will have to live with our increasingly fragile world, while the elderly are at high risk from natural disasters. No one is immune from the difficulties of climate change, and while those difficulties sometimes feel distant, we all have to face them eventually.

So, what can we do? There are many resources out there that tell you different things you can do to make your own life more sustainable, from personal actions to policy, and everything in between. Green Calgary focuses our efforts on climate and environmental education, with programs for primary and secondary students, as well as education for adults through our workplace and community programs. We rely on community support to bring that education to all of these current and future students.

Our members, donors, and volunteers form the core of that support, and, this Family Day, we want you to join us. Around Green Calgary we've been saying, "It Takes a City to Save a Planet," by which we mean that no one can change the world alone, but we as Calgarians and Albertans, whether we were born here or are newly arrived, can work together to make our city, province, country, and even world a better place to live for all of our families.
Please share this message with your family, your friends, and everyone you care for. Thank you.

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