Culture and Community – Page 2

6 October 20257 October 2025

Ontario Climate Summit October 3-5, 2025

David Miller speaks at the Ontario Climate Summit

“The Science is real, the problem is urgent. Global greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by 50% by 2030 to avoid climate catastrophe”. Those were the words from David Miller, the keynote speaker at the Ontario Climate Summit held at the University of Toronto this past weekend, attended by four members of the BEA Board, Polly, Rhythm, Dayle and David.

David Miller is the Managing Director of the C40 Centre for City Climate Policy and Economy. The C40 Centre provides mayors, policymakers and city practitioners with the evidence, analysis and policy guidance needed to implement progressive and equitable climate action.

Mr. Miller went on to say that 80% of the people surveyed in Canada want governments to take stronger climate action, that people believe in the science but vastly overestimate the number and strength of the opposition. He said only 17% are climate deniers, the “drill baby drill” folks, but that their oversized voices tend to sway political discussions and policy making.

21 September 202522 September 2025

Across Canada, Thousands attend Draw the Line Events

Protesters at the Edmonton Draw the Line event

On Saturday September 20th thousands attended Draw the Line events across the country. Protests were organized to draw attention to the lack of climate action being taken by our civic leaders, and to highlight the impact this inaction will have, particularly on vulnerable sectors of our population.

11 August 202512 March 2026

BEA presents a workshop on recycling, waste management and composting.

This past Thursday, July 24th, 3 members of our BEA board, including David Laing, Aneet Sandhu & Yarim Hinojosa, gave a presentation to the Knightsbridge Association in Brampton.

This presentation showed the benefits of proper recycling, waste management, composting and the benefits of eating more plants and how proper diversion of waste can help the region of Peel reach its waste diversion targets.

Did you know? The Peel Region has set a target to divert 70% of all waste away from landfill by 2036. Currently it sits at 50% and diverting more green bin waste would go a long way in helping the Region achieve their target.

13 July 202521 July 2025

Brampton to hold Public Consultations on the Future of Bike Lanes

Father and daughter ride along the Howden Bike Lanes

Brampton staff are organizing public consultations over the next few weeks to solicit feedback on the future of Brampton’s bike lanes particularly the protected bike lanes along Howden Boulevard from North Park to Dixie. See below for currently scheduled sessions.

4 drop-in public sessions at different locations/times so residents can learn more, review the data, and share their feedback in person:
- July 23 at BCC Terminal (2–6 PM)
- July 26 at BCC Mall (12–4 PM)
- July 29 & 31 at Chinguacousy Park Sandra Park Hames Centre (4–8 PM)
Online survey open from July 21 to August 7 on the City’s Let’s Connect page — we’ll be promoting this widely through mailouts, social, signage, and flyers.
We’re reaching about 6,000 households directly in the project area plus doing broader promotion to make sure people know how to get involved.

Whether or not you are a cyclist, or a support of active transportation, please come out to one of these sessions to learn the facts about how bike lanes affect traffic and road safety in our city.

If you are not able to attend one of the sessions, you can complete the survey on-line. First check out Dayle Laing’s BikeBrampton post for an analysis of the four options and more background information that will help you with your feedback.

This is more than just the future of a few bike lanes. It’s about the transportation vision for the City of Brampton that is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable.

7 July 20257 July 2025

Upcoming Environmental Events This Summer

Enjoy these events while thinking about the environment this summer.

FAMILY FUN NIGHT

Come on out to Heart Lake Turtle Troopers Family Fun Night on Tuesday July 22nd. Participate in interactive activities for all ages. See where turtles lay their eggs and where they bask in the sun on a hot summer’s day. Visit the Brampton Environmental Alliance table and take the ONE-PLANET LIVING PLEDGE!

CARABRAM FESTIVAL

Carabram is Brampton’s vibrant multicultural festival, celebrating diverse cultures through music, dance, food, and lively performances from around the world. For an eco-friendly option travel to and from the pavilions by bike. See BikeBrampton.ca for suggested bike travel routes and other information on buying your passport to attend this great event.

9 June 20259 June 2025

Another Provincial Attack on Environmental Sustainability

Brampton's Sustainable Development Guidelines

The Provincial Government continued its attack on environmental sustainability this past week, by passing Bill 5 “Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act” and Bill 17, Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter Act, 2025″. They did so despite strong opposition from environmental groups, opposition parties, and First Nations Peoples.

23 May 202526 May 2025

BEA Attends Business Excellence Awards Dinner

BEA Board members attend Business Excellence Awards

This past Thursday evening 7 members of the BEA Board, including: Pauline Thornham, Rajbalinder Ghatoura, Gauravi Sani, Yarim Hinojosa, Amisha Moorjani, Dayle and David Laing, attended a gala awards dinner hosted by the Brampton Board of Trade (BBOT). Each year BBOT recognizes individuals and businesses, large and small, across different categories for their work in growing Brampton’s economy and Brampton’s community through inspiration, innovation, dedication and, determination,

17 May 202523 May 2025

BEA Concerned about Ontario Government’s Bill 5

The Ontario Government is proposing to introduce another in a series of sweeping policies designed to streamline development application processes and energize Ontario’s economy at the expense of maintaining environmental protections. The latest initiative is Bill 5, “Protecting Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025”. Bill 5 aims to speed up development on projects including mining northern Ontario’s Ring of Fire, adding more landfill space in York Region, and exempting the Therme Spa development project from public consultation and review.

If passed by the Provincial legislature, Bill 5 would:

19 April 202519 April 2025

BEA Past Events

Your BEA team is taking advantage of April being Earth Month to participate in various activities to promote environmental awareness. Check out the sections below including: Parent Teacher Night at Harold M. Brathwaite Secondary School,
Sustainable Procurement Workshop at the Rose Theatre,
Reconnect Brampton’s Sip & Stroll Nature Walk in Downtown Brampton,
Earth Day Event at McCandless Park,
CVC Fletchers Creek SNAP Workshop at Brampton City Hall

10 April 202514 April 2025

April is Earth Month, Take the Pledge!

April is the time of year when we celebrate Earth’s bounties, take joy from daylight as it emerges from darkness’s sheath, and as we are released from the ravages of winter cold, snow and ice. April is also a time for us to reflect on the importance of the earth’s natural environment to our health and wellbeing, and the damage it suffers as a result of human pursuit of perpetual economic growth. The old adage that, “those who forget history are doomed to repeat it” is poignant today for many reasons but, perhaps, especially so for the environment. With government’s of all stripes and colours, north and south of the Canada, U.S. border, rolling back environmental legislation in the name of progress, growth and affordability, it’s worth looking back to the time before much of this legislation existed to examine the impact that unbridled growth can have on our quantity and quality of life.