On the first day Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) were back in fall session after an extended 137-day break, Ontario Nature hosted its inaugural Nature at Queen’s Park. This event was an opportunity for Ontario Nature, its Nature Network and partners to raise the profile of nature conservation amongst provincial decision-makers at the Legislation Assembly of Ontario, more commonly referred to as Queen’s Park.
Ontario Nature staff and partner attendees met with MPPs throughout the day and hosted an evening reception to engage decision-makers on:
The event also provided an opportunity to discuss the need for a commitment to implement and fund the Ontario Biodiversity Strategy.
Remarks during inaugural Nature at Queen’s Park
In total, over 20 MPPs and their staffers attended the event or provided meetings earlier in the day, representing all political parties. A big thank you to our Nature Network groups, partners and Youth Council representative that attended to voice how important nature is to the well-being and future prosperity of Ontario:
Events like this, sometimes referred to as lobby days, are essential for raising priorities and issues with MPPs that juggle multiple competing priorities and hear from numerous people daily. These provincial representatives decide the laws and policies that protect our wild species and wild spaces, as well as where provincial dollars are allocated. By meeting face to face and advocating for our collective priorities, we successfully put nature on their radar.
We hope to make this an annual event that grows each year to show the reach of our network and the number of residents of Ontario that want nature protected and restored. The future of Ontario is tied to our natural legacy, and the more our provincial decision-makers here from Ontario Nature, the Nature Network, the Youth Council, and members and supporters, the more powerful our voice will be.
Tony Morris is Ontario Nature’s Campaign and Policy Director. He holds a MES from York University, where he focused on biodiversity policy in Ontario, and a B.A from Trent University with a joint major in Environmental Studies and Political Studies. Tony has over 10 years of professional experience with various government departments and agencies in Ontario and the Northwest Territories. He has a strong background in environmental policy, strategic planning, and land use and watershed planning at the provincial and municipal level.
To help advance our objectives related to Bill 5, Ontario Nature is partnering with Legal Advocates for Nature’s Defence (LAND). An environmental law non-profit, LAND advances access to justice in northern Ontario to protect nature and Indigenous rights. Ontario Nature is providing financial and in-kind advocacy support to LAND to advance legal challenges by Indigenous rights holders to Bill 5. Ontario Nature and LAND will also collaborate on events, and amplifying Bill 5 opposition and Indigenous voices.
