Kim Charlesworth has friends in high places.
On Sunday afternoon the Nelson-Creston candidate hosted legendary environmentalist David Suzuki for a full day of campaigning, starting with an appearance at the Kootenay Co-op and culminating with a Lakeside Park rally that attracted hundreds.
The B.C. Green Party seems to have a lot of cards up their sleeve this election cycle, first flying in provincial leader Andrew Weaver before surprising everyone with a recent appearance from federal leader Elizabeth May. Their campaign is beginning to pick up steam, with Nelson-Creston considered a potential win for the fledgling political force.
And Suzuki is their ace.
The spry 81-year-old host of The Nature of Things is no stranger to the Kootenays — he lived in a Japanese internment camp as a child in Slocan — and though he’s a long-time NDP supporter, he told his audiences that he’s become disillusioned with the current political system.
Suzuki praised Green Party leader and climate scientist Andrew Weaver for giving up his teaching position at the University of Victoria to pursue environmental goals, and said he was impressed by the way Weaver’s composed himself in the legislature. So he’s throwing his weight behind the Greens as they attempt to elect four candidates for the first time.
Orange bridge, Green rally
By the time Charlesworth and Suzuki arrived at Lakeside Park on Sunday afternoon, where free sunflower seeds were being handed out and local musician Soniko Waira was entertaining the crowd, there was nearly 400 people there.
“What we’re hearing is that people are tired of this not working. They’re ready to vote Green, and they’re going to do it. I would go so far as to say that in this riding, in this election, the strategic vote is Green,” said Charlesworth.
“I have stepped up to be your candidate. I’m passionate about changing the path we’re on and I promise I’ll bring all my energy to be your voice … all I need is your vote.”
Then Suzuki came up to the microphone, delivering a fiery speech in which he criticized the fossil fuel industry, the political class and the media for their “willful blindness” on the climate catastrophes occurring worldwide.
“This is a moment that’s unique in the entire 3.9 billion years that life has existed on this planet. One species, us, has become so powerful we are the major factor altering the physical, chemical and biological properties of the planet on a geological scale,” he said.
“There has never been a species able to transform the planet as we are doing today. Welcome to the anthropocene epoch, a moment in time where scientists say we are the major factor shaping the properties of the planet but we don’t know how to apply the powers we now have in a way that’s sustainable.”
He was routinely met with raucous applause.
Mungall reaches out
Earlier in the day, when Montana Burgess of the West Kootenay Ecosociety was interviewing Suzuki about renewable energy, Nelson-Creston MLA Michelle Mungall positioned herself above the proceedings and listened intently.
She was feeling conflicted, because though Suzuki is a long-time hero of hers, he was there to campaign against her — and they’d never met. After the appearance she shook his hand and thanked him before he was whisked away by Charlesworth.
“He talked about some things that happened before my time, so I can’t really comment on how he made his decision about the NDP,” she said.
“He’s supported Jack Layton, though, and of course he was a huge personal mentor in my life. I think Mr. Suzuki and I agree on more than we disagree on.”
She said he’s entitled to support whatever party he likes, but she hopes in the future he might look into some of the environmental initiatives she’s been involved in, such as campaigning to “Keep Jumbo Wild.”
“One of the things Mr. Suzuki talked about was the tenacity of the Vancouver Island region advocating for Clayoquot Sound. Well that same tenacity is here for Jumbo and I’ve been at the helm of that fight for the last eight years in the legislature, and it’s not over.”
In her opinion, it’s “only the New Democrats that can stop it.”
Green or blue?
All of this means that the Greens are playing a different game than the NDP and the Liberals, who are jostling for provincial control and looking to put either Christy Clark or John Horgan in power. According to Suzuki and Charlesworth, this gives them the ability to pursue bipartisan aims.
And though things still have the potential to get ugly, the candidates are playing nice. Mungall attended Suzuki’s appearance, introducing herself and praising him as a “great Canadian,” while Liberal candidate Tanya Wall has expressed admiration for the way Charlesworth is running her campaign.
“And as far as the NDP and Greens go with the vote-splitting thing, numbers are numbers and people are going to vote in this election for a change,” said Wall.
“With no disrespect, we’ve seen in this riding that the NDP hasn’t gotten this riding much in the way of investments or improvements. People are looking for change regardless, whether it’s green or blue.”
And there are big economic concerns on people’s minds, she said, such as the uncertainty around the softwood lumber deal with the U.S.
“The lumber industry is frustrated and they’re insulted. We develop a lot of amazing products in this riding, not just conventional products but also specialty products, and we’re very inventive. They’re concerned, but they’re also confident that with the re-election of the BC Liberals they’ll get a fair shake and a fair deal.”
And however things work out, she thinks the Kootenays has lots of room for growth.
“We’ve spent so much time on the opposite side of the government that a fresh new look, whether it’s Liberal or Green, will drive this area into a successful future.”
