Five years ago, hundreds of Whistlerites took to the Village Stroll demanding urgent action to reverse the effects of climate change that had inspired millions around the world to march for the same cause that day.
While the makeup of the marchers was decidedly varied, it was Whistler’s youth—sparked by a group of Whistler Secondary students that was spearheaded by eventual Citizen of the Year nominee, 17-year-old Jade Quinn-McDonald—who led the charge.
The Association of Whistler Area Residents for the Environment (AWARE) now wants to re-inspire local youth, the inheritors of our current climate crisis, through a key program highlighted in the organization’s recently released strategic plan.
“At the end of the day, AWARE's invitation to the youth and Whistler, is that we know you have a lot on your plate. We know that these issues involving the climate can feel really overwhelming,” said AWARE’s executive director, Pegah Pourkarimi. “However, we deeply value your insight and input, and we want to hear what you have to say, so we can work together in creating a brighter and more resilient planet.”
That specific program, Project Now, is a youth-centred opportunity with dwindling involvement. Pourkarimi hopes to engage Whistler Secondary students, with a particular focus on youth ages 15 to 16 who are involved in extracurriculars.
The program mentors youth for climate action and gives them opportunities to create and accomplish a climate action project at school or in their community. They can work as a team or on their own, getting paired with an expert who helps get the project off the ground.
Aside from giving youth an outlet for their fears and frustrations about climate change, students learn practical skills in project management, developing a business case, and how to effectively pitch ideas. They’ll also network with community leaders and expand their knowledge, learn about local government policies, and more.
Students, teachers or parents can learn more about the program through AWARE’s website, or fill out an expression of interest form.
Other initiatives include Circular Economy Month, running through October, with events like a repair café, a community garage sale and a clothing swap.
Future focused
Project Now is just one small tenet of AWARE’s new strategic plan, which looks ahead to 2027 and emphasizes community well-being and ensuring nature thrives.
To achieve those goals, the charity’s plan has four pillars: programs, advocacy, research and innovation and operational prerequisites. Pourkarimi explained that achieving these pathways is all about the approach. By reinforcing interaction between AWARE, policy makers and the community, they want to move the dial on environmental action.
“There isn't just one sole organization or industry that we can be pointing our fingers at and saying, ‘Hey, that's not right.’ That's a really easy way out. It really does involve us being able to work collaboratively together and recognizing that all organizations and all levels have a role to play,” she said.
The first pathway, programs, seeks to “enhance community engagement through education and action on environmental issues.” Initiatives include educational programs about nature conservation and the circular economy, community partnerships, youth engagement and supporting the Resort Municipality of Whistler’s (RMOW) Big Moves strategy.
Whistler’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The RMOW tracks its own corporate GHG emissions as well as the community’s, and it recently released emissions figures for 2023. Resort-wide, last year Whistler increased its GHG output by two per cent from 2022, which was three per cent higher than its baseline emissions year, 2007.
“Whistler is not on track to meet the GHG emission reduction target of 50 per cent below 2007 by 2030,” the report noted.
Vehicles are the biggest emitters in Whistler, contributing to 53 per cent of the total pie.
Pourkarimi said one of the programs AWARE focuses on that can have a tangible benefit in line with the RMOW’s GHG reduction goals is GoByBike Week, a partnership between the municipality, AWARE and Go By Bike BC Society. Between Sept. 23 and Oct. 6, residents were encouraged to cut back on their personal emissions by biking to work, school, or for daily errands.
While Whistler isn’t on track, Pourkarimi emphasized the municipality has done “good work” since 2016, when they started the Community Energy and Climate Action Plan, which morphed into the 2020 Big Moves Strategy and its current Big Moves Climate Action Implementation Plan.
“It's a tricky space that we're in right now. We're in this transition period where there's going to be some hard decisions that need to be made as it relates to climate change. And these issues really do involve all players getting involved. So, it isn't just a task that's cut out for the RMOW only,” she said.
Advocacy, innovation and operations
The second pathway is advocacy. Actions include creating an index of relevant Sea to Sky interest groups, through which AWARE hopes to increase mobilization and community engagement. The charity is also looking at developing a targeted messaging campaign connected to key issues impacting Whistler, as well as creating opportunities for more structured advocacy alongside the RMOW.
The third pathway is research and innovation, with a goal to “support and integrate innovative approaches to conservation and sustainability.” Ideas include evaluating existing projects across the country that could translate locally, and collaborating with the Squamish and Lil’wat First Nations, which have traditional environmental knowledge.
Lastly, the operational prerequisite pathways will help achieve AWARE’s goals. Pourkarimi said AWARE operates with a lean team, and to achieve the strategic goals laid out in its new plan, the group is focusing on recruiting staff, growing membership and volunteers, and seeking more funding.
“We’re focusing on what is important, because we can't be trying to sink our teeth into all of these initiatives and projects if we aren't taking care of our own operations and ensuring sustainability there,” she said.
AWARE wants feedback from the community on its strategic plan, which will help them build it out further. You can send input to [email protected].
“A strategic plan is a framework. Now, we're going to start to hopefully put up some walls and the other architectural facets,” Pourkarimi said.
