Closing the Deal for Farmland Protection- Feb. 22nd.

“We need to pack city hall on February 22^nd” says Monique Nutter- Co-Chair of GEA’s Local Foods Team. “We’ve done it twice, we need to do again.

This time the focus is not just on city council.

“We need to turn significant attention onto the province, who ultimately controls the destiny of our land.

“We have done a great deal in the past two years to transform the city’s Municipal Development Plan and make it a more sustainable and relevant document to the future needs of our citizens. We need it to pass this spring."


We are inviting you to attend and bring 1-2 friends on Febuary 22nd 6:00-9:30 p.m. Our individual efforts will add up to significant public stength.


Click here to watch Monique Nutter's Presentation to City Council on June 23rd, 2009 describing the contents and the importance of a local food system.


Action Recap

In April of 2008, 200 leaders in Ebenezer United Church began the conversation about how their church could have less impact on our environment. They organized a local foods dinner to demonstrate the environmental and economic benefits of buying local. Nearly 200 people participated in this event.


This lead to more than 300 people participating in the Launch of GEA’s This Land is our Land Campaign, where GEA announced an organizing campaign to engage citizens in the Municipal Development Plan process.


The following November more than 500 people turned out to city hall to back up GEA’s vision of creating a strong local foods economy and to protect the remaining farmland in our city. 


In June 2009 more than 600 people came out to support amendments that began to entrench farmland protection within the MPD.


In September more than 15,000 Edmontonians attempted to walk the land of Gord Visser’s Norbest Farms, in search of locally grown potatoes. Watch the Great Potato Give Away Video here.


In November 2009 those amendments were passed. Now this February we need the whole plan, which includes the farmland protection amendments to pass. We need to close the deal and take this important step as a city toward a sustainable city.

Email office©greateredmontonalliance.com if you plan to attend and to bring 2 friends. In organizing the rule is never act alone, always come as part of a team.





SustainableWorks Launches

Over 400 people turned out for the launch of SustainableWorks at St Theresa's on Nov 18th. The massive turnout demostrates the frustration felt by many people who are trying to be more efficient, and struggling to save on their utilities. It shows that Albertans are willing to work together to tackle the major issue of our time: the environment, and that they want green living wage jobs.

The public launch means SustainableWorks will be moving into high gear in 2010 and starting to organize neighbourhoods (beginning with Capilano, and Strahcona). Our partners from labour, government, finance, utility providers, the environment, and community will be essential to realizing our goals.

If you haven't signed up to help organize, do so now!

Special Thanks: SustainableWorks would also like to thank Mayor Mandel and CO2RE for announcing plans to work together on a partnership to help low-income homeowners retrofit their homes for energy efficiencey. This is a tremendous victory for all of our leaders, and the City's Office of the Environment.

For more information on SW please click here to read the background.

Pledge your home (no financial commitment).

Watch a video about the SustainableWorks pilot projects.

About GEA
GEA is a network of nearly 40 organizations of faith, labour, community and small business that work together to organize citizen’s power so that we can act effectively and with impact on issues that matter to us all. Download our brochure.