GUELPH POLITICAST #163 - Evan Ferrari, eMERGE Guelph

We could start this with the usual preamble about extreme weather, the 12-year deadline from the U.N. Panel on Climate Change report, or the enigma of climate change denial, but let’s take a moment to explore these issues on a more immediate level. And here in Guelph, it seems, we seem to really know how to tackle the problem in an effective way.

One of the leaders in this problem solving is Evan Ferrari, the executive director of eMERGE Guelph. In its own words, eMERGE fights climate change by helping people reduce energy and water use through the promotion of smart behavior, policy and improved efficiency to help Guelph build a road map to beat climate change, and achieve 100 per cent renewable energy by 2050.

The fact that they will help you save money by making those changes only sweetens the deal. In the process, eMERGE believes that this will create more good paying jobs, attract innovative businesses, save money on energy costs, and yes, save and restore the environment for generations to come. Although the solving of climate change seems almost too big to wrap your head around, Ferrari and eMERGE seem to be making the case that you can still "think globally, and act locally."

So this week on the podcast we'll test that sentiment. Ferrari will talk to us about where Guelph stands on the battle against climate change, how the debate has changed in the last few years, and how the economic argument has ultimately proved to be very persuasive in getting more people to take action.

Ferrari also talks about how Guelph is leading the way on a lot of those changes (obviously), including how our own development community has seen the value of net zero builds, and how the building code itself is letting us down on that account. And since this is a political show, we do also talk about the politics, how the various levels of governments are sending us different messages, and whether Guelph City Council should follow Kingston’s lead and declare a climate change emergency.

So let's put a hopeful face on our environmental future on this week's edition of the Guelph Politicast!

You can find out more about eMERGE and its services at their website here, and you can take part in Eco Market sponsored by eMERGE on March 23 from 10 am to 3 pm at the Old Quebec Street Mall.

The host for the Guelph Politicast is Podbean. Find more episodes of the Politicast here.

Remember that the Politicast Podbean channel is also the host for podcast versions of Open Sources Guelph. The previous Thursday’s episode of Open Sources will be posted on Mondays.