When it comes to the environment, everything is connected. Take, for example, the use of pesticides: harming large groups of insects impacts the amount of food available for animals all the way up the food chain, and the magnification of toxicity can cause larger animals to die prematurely. Pesticides also enter water systems, poisoning soil and waterways, eventually harming land and aquatic life. These impacts extend to humans – we consume fish and animals that have accumulated high levels of toxins, and drink contaminated water.
However, when environmental effects extend to humans, they are hardly spread equally. In Canada, long-term drinking water advisories are only present in Indigenous communities. Even in communities with clean water, it’s often still not accessible to unhoused individuals. The concept of environmental justice surrounds the inequalities created or exacerbated by effects on the environment, and affirms that addressing environmental harms also means addressing how these effects target populations that are already vulnerable or marginalized.
The Guelph Environmental Justice Collective is a community initiative founded on the principles of environmental justice and aims to provide both long- and short-term assistance to the folks most impacted by climate change. Supported by the Wellington Water Watchers, the GEJC takes a human rights-centered approach in their work. This manifests in much of their work focusing on improving access to drinking water, sanitation services, and sustainable shelter for unhoused and underhoused individuals in the Guelph area. Barriers to this access include environmental effects – such as an increase in extreme weather events and unpredictable weather conditions – and municipal policies toward the unhoused population.
In pursuit of their mission, the GEJC takes three streams of action: short-term, immediate relief efforts; long-term solutions and protections; and creating community awareness and support. In terms of short-term action, the GEJC already has multiple projects on the go. The first focuses on water and sanitation access in a revival of the Blue W initiative that encourages local businesses to post a symbol in their front window that advertises themselves as an access point for clean water, bathrooms, or showers. Their second project aims to keep individuals living in tents or encampments safe from both the cold weather and unsafe attempts to keep warm. Numerous tent fires have been reported in Guelph over the winter as people try to heat their tents. The GEJC is purchasing materials to build tent-safe heaters that don’t produce toxic fumes, keep the flame sheltered, and immediately extinguish when tipped over. The heaters are inexpensive, accessible, functional, and most importantly, safe.
An example of the GEJC’s long-term strategies is the resistance to an anti-encampment policy proposed by city council. The Public Space Use Bylaw, proposed in January 2024, would force the dislocation of unhoused people from roughly 20 encampments in the city of Guelph. The GEJC held an email campaign and supported over 50 delegations to city council to protest the policy, which was meant to come into effect in February – still in the middle of winter. These actions contributed to the bylaw’s deferral on February 14th, and as of March 2024, the policy has still not yet been accepted.
Finally, the GEJC is fostering and leading community awareness about the challenges unhoused individuals face as a result of climate change. In December, they held their Community Connect event to share their information and goals with the public. More than this, the Community Connect event was also an opportunity to build relationships with unhoused and underhoused individuals, laying the groundwork for collaborative action moving forward. The GEJC is also creating resources for unhoused individuals and the greater Guelph community, including a pocket guide that shares where to access water, shelters, showers, bathrooms, warming stations, and cooling stations.
This is just the beginning for the Guelph Environmental Justice Collective. Their approach emphasizes intention, listening, and collaboration, stating that “we’re going slow so we can go fast.” Such actions mean that GEJC gets to create impacts that are more effective and meaningful right from the start. With action at three different levels, the GEJC shows us how complex these issues are, and how we need collaboration and a comprehensive plan to create both immediate and sustainable change.
* In loving memory of our friend and dedicated community advocate Kate Nixon
* Guelph Environmental Justice Collective resides on the treaty lands and territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit.