"Rye gets its Greens" - Our first media coverage in the Eyeopener

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http://theeyeopener.com/article/3662

Posted on 12/22/07
Written by Alexandra Yeboah

(The Eyeopener) - A new political association is hoping to bring a green agenda to campus.

The Ryerson Greens will be the school’s fourth political party group, alongside the Young Liberals, the Campus Conservatives and the Young New Democratic Party.

To start things off, the Greens plan to hold a meeting in January with guest speakers Frank De Jong, leader of the Green Party of Ontario, and Chris Tindal, Green Party of Canada candidate for the Toronto Centre.

Tindal, a Ryerson graduate himself, advises the Greens to make the party’s activities as fun as possible. “If it’s not fun, it’s not sustainable. Also, attract as much people as you can. Talk about democracy, not politics because people think politics is a dirty word. That’s what the Ryerson Greens should be all about.”

Denis Agar, who founded Rye’s Greens, is confident there is green support on campus.

“I was surprised [Ryerson] didn’t have a Green Party, so I wanted to start one. The Green Party reflects my goals and beliefs, and it’s an effective way to make positive change.”

Chris Drew, Ryerson Students’ Union VP Finance, supports the Greens starting on campus. “I think environment issues are finally getting the recognition they deserve. The coalition will welcome anyone who wishes to get involved with sustainability issues on campus,” he said.

RSU president Nora Loreto also supports the new party. “I think it’s good to have all four parties represented on campus, hopefully students can become engaged on campus through their own interests.”

The Ryerson Greens registered as an affiliate group in October and have not received any money from the Green Party of Canada, but have enjoyed materials and event speakers.

Currently, coordinators Agar and Amanda Bond are working part-time on an upcoming by-election, advertising the January meeting, and figuring out the Greens’ role on campus.

“There are so many campaigns in terms of activism, but we want to narrow it down so it will be more effective,” Agar said.

In terms of green efforts on campus, Agar says there is a lot more that could be done. “We have a lot of work to do at Ryerson. What Ryerson really needs is a sustainability office, it is definitely necessary. Right now, they have green efforts in every department and that’s good, but if they coordinate things, they can decide which green efforts are more effective.”

Tindal says having locally produced food is something Ryerson might want to try — the University of Toronto has been doing for over a year. U of T also has a sustainability office and a green team that is actively doing its part to make campus more environment-friendly.