Changing to a more representative electoral system makes so much sense, and yet it can be such a heavy lift. After even Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau backed away from a public promise to end first-past-the-post voting in Canada, Cascadian reformers may despair of ever prying the cold dead hands of 18th century voting off … Read more
“There is this very unique place on Earth, the Pacific Northwest. It’s either about to become steamrolled by coal and oil heading from North America to foreign shores, or it is going to stand up in an opposition movement and prevent those projects from happening.” Those are the words of Sightline senior policy director Eric … Read more
British Columbia is of two minds. The province has pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas pollution by 80 percent by 2050, but simultaneously it aims to become the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG), a fossil fuel that contributes to climate change through emissions of carbon dioxide and methane. BC is currently considering … Read more
A little over a year ago, 195 countries signed on to the historic Paris Climate Accord to limit global warming pollution. This year, the United States pointed a loaded gun at its own foot, and President Trump pulled the trigger, announcing he will withdraw from the agreement. But the rest of the world is moving … Read more
There’s much ado about expansion plans for Canada’s Trans Mountain Pipeline, and with good reason: exporting tar sands oil through the Salish Sea poses huge spill risks to the region. Now there’s reason to think that Washington may see a giant pipeline expansion of its own. Kinder Morgan, an energy goliath with a checkered past, … Read more
The 2017 British Columbia election results are in, and electoral reform is a winner! The BC Green Party made electoral reform a centerpiece of its platform, and the BC New Democratic Party (NDP) also campaigned on electoral reform. This week, the Greens and the NDP penned a “Confidence and Supply Agreement”—the Greens will guarantee support … Read more
British Columbia’s Pacific Coast is home to prolific salmon runs, pristine shorelines, and a rich archaeological history. Yet amid these natural wonders, the fossil fuel industry has sited proposals for nineteen liquefied natural gas (LNG) developments that would greatly increase tanker traffic navigating remote island channels with strong currents and tides. To make clear the scale … Read more
Every week another barge or tanker traverses the narrow straits through the San Juan Islands north of Seattle, bearing a cargo of tar-sands crude or other heavy oils from Canada, headed for refineries in Washington and California. But the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion Project approved in late 2016 by the government of Canadian … Read more
The legislature is the people’s house, the hall of a representative democracy where representatives of the people meet to craft solutions to pressing problems. It is the body that takes people’s values and puts them into action. That’s the ideal. And when it works well, it’s golden. For example, the US Congress turned people’s growing … Read more
Editor’s note: We added three “made-in-Canada” Proportional Representation methods below: rural-urban, local, and dual member. Because of the Trudeau administration’s promise to move off of first-past-the-post voting, and BC’s impending referendum on electoral reform, Canada has been a hot bed of thinking around how to customize the benefits of Proportional Representation to the specifics of … Read more