I still remember the thrill and fear of skipping my Grade 6 classes on Nov. 2, 2018, to join my first climate strike with Fridays for Future.
Seven years later, I am a first-year economics and policy student at the University of Ottawa, continuing the fight for a liveable world for all life.
On Sept. 16, I had the incredible opportunity to speak at the launch of the Catherine McKenna’s book, “Run Like a Girl”. I shared a story from when I was 10, the day I made a pinky promise with McKenna to protect the planet. She taught me that promises and politics do not have to be empty. They can be powerful.
That standard of honesty and accountability should apply to all leaders. In the room were the prime minister, senators, cabinet ministers and MPs.
From Oct. 19-21, I attended a Citizens’ Climate Lobby Canada’s conference in Ottawa. One message from Tzeporah Berman of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty stood out.
"The atmosphere does not care how many solar panels we build. It only cares how many fuel projects we do not build, and right now, we are building a lot of fossil fuel projects," Berman said.
That message and the conversations I had with my MP, Viviane Lapointe, reminded me that citizen engagement is critical and that policies must align with science, not politics.
On Oct. 30, I had the privilege of serving as a witness before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development (ENVI). At 18, I may be the youngest person ever to present to ENVI.
I asked the committee how long climate policy will remain too difficult to advertise in political campaigns, how long this global crisis will be treated as a partisan issue, and whether voters understand the costs of inaction.
I called on the committee to ensure that polluters pay and warned that carbon capture and sequestration are ineffective, expensive for taxpayers, and that policies benefit polluters rather than the public. I submitted a booklet of peer-reviewed evidence showing how fast the climate crisis is accelerating, the best policy solutions, and why carbon capture is a dangerous distraction.
The Q&A session was extraordinary. MP Shannon Miedema asked about my experience at COP27 in Egypt, where fossil fuel companies gave a presentation in the Canadian Pavilion, but took no questions from the audience. MP Patrick Bonin asked me to reflect on presenting in a committee alongside fossil fuel-funded spokespersons, Jim Keating of the Oil & Gas Corporation of Newfoundland and Labrador, and Margareta Dovgal of Resource Works Society. I emphasised that I do not have their resources, but climate change does not wait and continues to worsen
MP Eric St-Pierre asked what I would tell his young daughters about their future. I said I will continue to fight for them and hope every politician here today does the same. MP Bruce Fanjoy asked what I would say to Conservatives about not addressing this moment in the climate crisis. I said that yes, climate policies cost, but it does feel that we are prioritising money over the lives of youth. Some committee members did not directly engage with my testimony, underscoring the need for accountability from all parties.
The video is available on the House of Commons website: https://parlvu.parl.gc.ca/Harmony/en/PowerBrowser/PowerBrowserV2?fk=13168163
Climate change is here, it is deadly, and it is stealing the dreams of young people like me. That is why I will be watching the federal budget announcement on Nov. 5, which will include a Climate Competitiveness Strategy.
That is also why I am suing the Ontario government alongside other youth and our lawyers from Ecojustice and Stockwoods LLP. On Dec. 1-2, we will return to court to continue the fight.
It is time for every leader to prove that they value people over polluters. My generation will not stop pushing for policies that match the science and protect our future.
Sophia Mathur is a climate activist from Greater Sudbury.