Climate change and mental health and wellness are so deeply entwined. As a society, we are stuck in a cycle of consumption in an attempt to heal ourselves. We think that we can ease our suffering through material objects: bigger houses, shiner cars, and more possessions. Change is made through small actions made by many people. It’s made by silent revolutions. It’s made by switching from consumption to connection, and only then can the healing — for both planet and people — begin.

Climate change affects every area of life because we live in the climate of the Earth. Clean air to breathe and clean water to drink is essential for maintaining the diverse ecosystem of this unique area now and in the foreseeable future.

My hope is for Windsor to set strict policies and measures about reducing plastic/toxic waste. I would like to see more engagement and educational events for the public in leading a greener life and getting people more involved. Setting up better air quality control initiatives for manufacturing companies/factories in the area to reduce carbon emissions such as filtration systems is what I also hope to see change in the area.

In our communities, and with each other, is where hope lives. I hope to see us in Windsor-Essex always striving to create a better way of living with the natural world and with each other.

Less reliance on non-renewables, from businesses to collective dwellings to individual homes, using better energy efficient building materials and more consistent insolation (including retrofitting). Municipal policies could be a great help in that regard.

To those I know who think the issue is out of their control, so they don't do anything about it. But if everyone did their part it would make a difference.

A lot of people think that climate change is a far away phenomena but it actually affects us in Windsor-Essex more than we think about. From heat waves, floods, and beach erosion to new mosquito species and invasion of warm-climate diseases, there are a lot of effects that affect both our health and lifestyle.

I hope that when my daughter grows up, she’s able to swim in a clean Lake Erie, eat delicious fresh local food, and go on long hikes on trails through lush healthy forests filled with special creatures found nowhere else in Canada. And for that to become a reality, I hope that Windsor-Essex does its part to reach national and global greenhouse gas reduction targets and plants a bajillion trees.

That we can maintain the water quality and lower our pollutants.

That we ensure that our green spaces are protected.

That living conditions go from single family to multi-family to lessen the impact on the environment.

That there are further initiatives that come from local municipalities and the province that will help with recycling and ensuring better care of our region’s wildlife.