Is the world becoming greener, or are some of us just becoming more prone to seeing it that way? * You’ve heard of “green-washing”, where companies make their products sound more ecologically friendly than they are. Well, I keep seeing something more insidious: green-tinted glasses. Green-washing is propaganda; it’s easy to spot and dispel. Like
An expert panel discusses how our municipal government could help build a more economically vital and ecologically resilient community * * There have long been gaps between the vision most of us have for a socially responsible, environmentally “green” Victoria, and the high-priced, unbridled growth towards which the dominant economic forces in this region steer
There’s a problematic gap between what many people want to see in Victoria’s Official Community Plan, and what traditional urban economics dictates. * As the public participation component of Victoria’s Official Community Plan process officially launched, the air felt heavy with irony. It was only March, but fans were already fighting mugginess in the glass-roofed
We’re paying a lot for parking. An awful lot. * Years ago, I was awaiting the fate of a grant application before Victoria city council to help build a community garden. Instead, council got bogged down debating a developer’s building permit and re-zoning application. The developer wanted a reduction in the number of parking spaces
Our elections have ever less substance–and maybe that’s becoming true of us, too. There’s an empty vacuum in the middle of our elections. For years, the honesty and humanity of candidates has been evaporating, leaving behind only superficial posturing. Then, substantive issues and investigative, truly critical media were sucked of vitality, leaving behind only vague